Washington GSM v. Cotes du Rhone

The Criterium du Dauphine' is one of the final tune up stage races as the pros get ready for the Tour de France.  The Dauphine' is great training because it follows many of the routes used on the le Tour.  The stages in the week long race will also often mimic stages the riders will experience in July.  In the past several years the winner of the Dauphine' has gone on to win the Tour de France.

This year's edition of the race rolls through the Rhone Valley and through Provence before heading back for a couple of mountainous stages to wrap things up with a bang.  The race featured the top contenders for the Tour de France.  Chris Froome, Alberto Contador and Vincenzo Nibali are expected to be the top three riders battling for the crown in July.  They did not disappoint in this year's Dauphine with numerous attacks and spirited uphill skirmishes.

In the end, Andrew Talansky took the overall victory.  Nobody saw that coming.  Well, maybe the Garmin Director Sportif, Jonathan Vaughters saw it.  But he would have been the only one outside the Garmin team.  Talansky took the (well earned) overall victory on the final stage of the race.

This week's Lucha Vino matchup takes a trip to the south of France with a tour de force through the Cotes du Rhone AOC.

2008 Brian Carter Byzance v. 2011 Alain Jaume & Fils Domaine Grand Veneur Les Champouvins

Washington Syrah v. Northern Rhone

The pro cyclists are putting the finishing touches on their form for the Tour de France.  There are several 7 or 8 day stage races leading up to the tour that are used for their final tune ups.  Some choose the Criterium du Dauphine.  While others choose the Tour de Suisse.

One advantage to selecting the Criterium du Dauphine is that the race shares a promoter with the Tour de France.  That usually means you get an opportunity to race on some of the same routes that will be used in July for the Grande Bucle.

Team Sky sent their number one racer, Chris Froome, to the Dauphine this year.  Just like they did in 2012 with Sir Bradley Wiggins.  The results in 2013 were the same as 2012 - a general classification win for Team Sky.

This week's matchup features Washington Syrah vs. French Syrah from the Cotes du Rhone.

2006 Nicholas Cole Dauphine v. 2011 Yves Cuilleron Les Vignes d'a Cote

Washington Syrah v. Crozes Hermitage

The start of the Tour de France is just three weeks away.  The pros will be putting the finishing touches on their preparation for the "biggest bike race in the world" in one of two upcoming week long stage races.

The Criterium du Dauphine takes place this week in the Central/Eastern regions of France.  The racers will cover parts of the Rhone and Savoie regions.

The other option is the Tour de Suise which begins June 9th.

The Dauphine began with a short Prologue Time Trial covering just 5.7 km.  This is a short powerful effort with the racers on their limit for slightly less than 7 minutes.  Syrah is a great companion to this type of powerful effort.

This week's matchup features a Washington state Syrah battling with a Syrah from the Crozes Hermitage region in the Northern Rhone.

2007 Nota Bene Columbia Valley Syrah v. 2006 A. Ogier & Fils Crozes Hermitage Syrah