Washington Rose' vs. Provence

The 107th edition of the Tour de France is set to start in just a few days.  After a nearly two month delay, the tour will get underway in Nice on Sunday, which seems fitting since one of the last pre-Covid races to be completed on the normal calendar was Paris-Nice.  

Even though Paris-Nice was run, it still was not exempt from the challenges of the pandemic. The race was shortened by one day, removing the traditional stage in Nice.

When I think of Nice, I think of Southern France.  And when I think of southern France, I think of rose'!

The latest Lucha Vino challenge features a Washington Rose' taking on a Rose' from Provence to celebrate the return of the grand tours.

2018 T2 Cellars Rose' of Counoise vs. 2019 Miraval Rose' from Provence

Washington Rose v. Provence

Hors Delai!  Those two words can be like a knife to the heart of a bike racer.  That is the French phrase for "you missed the time cut" and now you are out of our bike race.  This post is a bit hors delai, but I am defying the Tour organizers and continuing on with the race..

The Tour de France kicked off the 100th edition on the island of Corsica.  It is hard to believe, but this is the first time le Tour has visited this island just to the South of Nice in the Mediterranean Sea.

The first three stages of the tour took place on Corsica and each offered up plenty of thrills and twists.  Stage one featured the Orica-GreenEdge team bus getting stuck under the finish line banner and a big crash that took out the majority of the top sprinters including Mark Cavendish.  Stage two had enough hills that the sprinters were left behind, many of them finish 17 minutes behind the surprise winner, Jan Bakelants, of the RadioShack Leopard team who narrowly beat a charging field by 1 second.  Stage three went a bit more to form, but once again the sprinters were dropped on one of the final climbs and Orica-GreenEdge made up for their embarrassing bus incident with Simon Gerrans taking the sprint victory.

The race left Corsica and blazed a trail across Provence.  That is where we pick up the race route.

This Lucha Vino challenge features a classic Southern France Rose' challenging a Washington Rose' that seeks inspiration from Provence.

Chateau Barbanau Cotes de Provence 2011 L'Instant v. Syncline 2012 Rose

Washington Rose v. Provence

This week the Tour de France route continued South and then took a right turn as the racers brushed by Provence and traced through the Rhone.  There has been plenty of action through le Alpes and then on to some "flatter" stages that still included some leg breaking climbs.  Bradley Wiggins is leading the Tour and his Team Sky domestiques have been controlling the race for the past week.  There are many conclusions after the first two weeks of racing and many believe that Wiggins will wear the Yellow Jersey onto the streets of the Champs-Elysees.

It is summer time and Provence is a region well known for Rose' wines.  The Lucha Vino challenge for this week features a Rose' Rumble.

2011 Tranche Cellars Pink Pape v. 2011 Aix en Provence Rose'