The "le cigare" in the name refers to the French term for UFO. The back label tells an abbreviated version of the story about legislation put on the books in the Rhône Valley back in the 1950s. The law banned UFOs from landing in the vineyards. It appears to have worked.
This orange wine was made from 44.5% Grenache Blanc grapes, 25% Pinot Gris, 14% Grenache Gris, 9.5% Orange Muscat, and 7% Chenin Blanc, all grown in a handful of Central Coast vineyards. Le Cigare Orange is vegan friendly and gluten free, carries alcohol at 11.5% abv and cost about $12 at my neighborhood Whole Foods Market.
This wine has a beautiful salmon orange color, quite brilliant. The nose displays the stone fruit and citrus one might expect from a white wine, but also a boatload of cherry and strawberry aromas. There is a lovely tangerine citrus note that comes after swirling the wine. Stone fruit dominates the palate, but with a considerable salinity over it, the kind of savory attraction for which winemaker Randall Grahm has made his calling card.
