6.6.44 Wine
As we remember and honor people who have died while serving in the US Armed Forces this Memorial Day, we wanted to make sure you had heard about 6.6.44, a wine commemorating D-Day. In preparation for that important day’s 75th anniversary, Boisset Collection recently released this elegant red wine made with grapes from both California and France. The wine honors an important moment in world history and Boisset Collection is also donating a portion of the proceeds to an important veterans’ charity.
D-Day was one of the most pivotal moments in world history, when 160,000 Allied troops landed along a 50-mile stretch of heavily fortified coastline in Normandy, in northwest France, on June 6, 1944. The operation, including the largest seaborne invasion in history, began the liberation of German-occupied France (and later Europe) from Nazi control and laid the foundations of the Allied victory on the Western Front.
6.6.44 represents a first-of-its-kind partnership between Boisset winemakers in California (Stephanie Putnam, Brian Maloney and Thane Knutson) and France (Grégory Patriat, Laurent Sauvage, Florent Georger and Jean-Philippe Perrin). This Franco-American red wine blend features Gamay, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre and Petit Verdot grapes from the French regions of Languedoc, Rhône, Beaujolais and Burgundy. California’s contributions include Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Petite Sirah and Malbec grapes from the Russian River Valley and Napa Valley.
Aged in mostly neutral French oak, this tasty wine is bright and aromatic with aromas of fresh raspberry and blueberry as well as currants and dark spices. The palate presents toasted almonds and balsamic notes with dark cherry flavors and a wonderful spicy finish.
6.6.44 can be purchased online through the websites for each of the Boisset Collection’s California wineries: Raymond Vineyards, Buena Vista Winery, DeLoach Vineyards as well as JCB by Jean-Charles Boisset. Or, you may have better luck finding it in person at BevMo! (in California, Arizona and Washington), Safeway grocery stores, New Hampshire Liquor & Wine Outlets, and Boisset’s own Oakville Grocery locations.
In honor of D-Day, Boisset Collection will donate $1 from the sale of each bottle of 6.6.44 to the American Legion, the largest wartime veterans’ service organization. Chartered by Congress in 1919, The American Legion is committed to mentoring youth and sponsoring wholesome community programs, advocating patriotism and honor, promoting a strong national security, and continued devotion to service members and veterans. Please note, BevMo! will also make a matching donation for the bottles sold out of its stores.
The wine industry supports many social and community efforts, so we are always happy to do what we can to help promote these worthy causes. We encourage you to find and purchase a bottle of 6.6.44 yourself to make your own contribution.
Boisset Collection is a family-owned collection of historic and unique wineries and lifestyle destinations bound together by a common vision: authentic, terroir-driven wines in harmony with their history, their future and the land and people essential to their existence. With more than 25 historical and prestigious still and sparkling wineries in the world’s preeminent terroirs, including Burgundy, Beaujolais, Jura, the Rhône Valley, the south of France and California’s Russian River Valley and the Napa Valley. Each house retains its unique history, identity and style, and all are united in the pursuit of fine wines expressive of their terroir.
For Jean-Charles and Nathalie Boisset, sibling proprietors of Boisset Collection, 6.6.44 is an intensely personal project that encapsulates their French family’s gratitude to the United States and pride in the shared values and close relationship between the two countries.
“Our grandparents served in the Resistance in France on the side of freedom and felt a close connection to the American soldiers that came to their aid. Seventy-five years later, with this magical international blend from French and California grapes, we begin another chapter of celebration, commemoration, peace and commitment to our common culture and values!” – Jean-Charles Boisset