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THE WINE The Tannat grape variety is native to the rugged area in the foothills of the Pyrenees, where Stage 6 of the Tour de France begins today. The village of Madiran in the rolling countryside of Gascony, is an area known for its indulgent gastronomy and rich, concentrated, robust red wines. These wines are made primarily from the Tannat grape variety. Wines made from Tannat are structured with intense color, acidity, and tannins. Some wines are single-varietal wines, but Tannat can be blended with Cabernet Sauvignon or Cabernet Franc. Gascon culinary specialties include magret de canard and cassoulet – rich, gamey foods that demand a wine match of serious character and structure. Tannat prices are very reasonable, the wine is delicious; I hope you will try a Tannat wine.  Tannat grapes. from Wiki Today, Stage 6, the peloton races into the final stage in the Pyrenees mountains. These are some of the most storied climbs in the Tour de France. Up into the mountains went the peloton, at about 68 km, over the Col d’Aspin Nelson Powless takes the intermediate King of the Mountain (KOA) points to go into the virtual lead for the Polka-dot Jersey. Mathieu Van Der Poel leads a very fast descent, clocked at about 40-45mph; with Wout Van Aert leading the 1st group through the valley up one of the most storied climbs, the Col de Tourmalet. 86 times the Col de Tourmalet has been part of the Tour de France. At about 3.5km to go on the climb, the team Jumbo-Visma accelerates with Vingegaard and Pogacar, team UAE, in the group. All riders are under pressure with the high race tempo. Brutal. American riders Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) and Neilson Powless (EF Education) are major players on these climbs. There are only 9 American riders in the race, so this is an unusual statement. The race favorites take off; Vingegaard with Pogacar on his wheel. With about 2km left in the race, Pogacar finds his extra gear and accelerates leaving Vingegaard behind. Pogacar wins the stage, with Vingegaard taking the Yellow Jersey. The entire top 10 was shuffled today. Neilson Powless took the 8 points at the top of the Col de Tourmalet to retake the Polka-dot Jersey and Jasper Philipsen remains in the Green Jersey. The last 2 stages in the Pyrenees were very exciting. Tomorrow, we will head north through Bordeaux; racing through the most famous vineyards in the most famous Grand Tour race. Sante  Stage 7 race profile. by LeTour.com Comments are closed.
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