Ok, the island of St. Martin doesn't exactly have a wine "region," but this bifurcated island (half Dutch, half French) does have a wine heritage courtesy of the thousands of French expats who have colonized this Caribbean paradise. During our winter vacation we hewed to the French side, tasting plenty of good wine and great food in the process.

About the Island
The conventional wisdom is "Stay Dutch, Eat French."  Fortunately, we ignored that old saw and stayed, ate, drank, swam, and wallowed French. The Dutch side looked like Aruba's smaller and less attractive cousin, filled with gigundo casinos, tacky fanny packers, and American chain restaurants.  Gary golfed at the only course on the island, which was on the Dutch side, but quickly hurried back to our "maison" in Grand Case, known as the "dining capital of the Caribbean."

We stayed at Hotel L'Esplanade, a wonderful small hotel nestled into the hills of Grand Case overlooking a picture-perfect bay. Operated by an American expat who grew up in the town adjacent to the VinoDuo pair, L'Esplanade has just 24 rooms, all with ocean views. A rambling path took us down the hill into the town of Grand Case each morning for croissants and each evening for a gastronomic feast. We'll admit to feeling the burn on the somewhat strenuous walk up the hill each evening, but after all that eating and drinking we needed the exercise.

What We Drank
When in France...drink French wine.  Sure, there were a few token California, Chilean, and Italian names on each restaurant's voluminous wine list, but we knew our best bet was to drink what the locals drank. We are seriously deficient in French wine knowledge so we used our vacation as a tutorial to bone up on the greatest wine in the world (so we were told.)

Chateau Lavallade, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, Grand Vin de Bordeaux 2003      $27
This lovely bottle was courtesy of Hotel L'Esplanade, delivered to our room when they learned we were celebrating our 10th anniversary (a few months early.) So we didn't pay for it, but we checked the hotel's wine list and it was selling for $27.  A restaurant in Yonkers, NY has it on its wine list for $55—clearly a rip off at that price!

While it was young and not quite ready, we found the wine very drinkable.  Cherries, blackberries, with a hint of spice on the nose. Strong fruit flavor and a smooth finish.  On a Wine Spectator-type scale we would give it an 85.  Clearly not one of the great Bordeaux blends but a well-priced and enjoyable wine. We recommend drinking it on a sunny terrace overlooking a sailboat-dotted bay!

Domaine du Grison Bourgogne Aligoté 2005   $12
We bought this light, white Burgundy (made from the Cépage Aligoté grape) at the supermarché for no other reason than the guy on line in front of us had four bottles in his basket and he was French!  Turns out—he knew what he was doing. Gary likened it to white grape juice (but in a good way), as he downed half a bottle in a flash (at 12% alcohol, this wine barely touched him.)

Crisp and clean, with an aroma of green apples and lemon and a "belle finesse" — their words, but we concur. It was the perfect accompaniment to French goat cheese and herbed crackers.

Chateau la Tour L'Aspic, Cru Bourgeos, Pauillac  1998    $25
You can see we were moving up in the world, price-wise, and not a moment too soon. We felt we owed it to our VinoDuo readers to venture into the more reputable French wines. We purchased this powerful red Bordeaux (primarily Cab) at the top wine shop in St. Martin—Vinissimo in the capital of Marigot. Gary has enjoyed many fine wines from the Pauillac region and the "maitresse" of the shop warmly approved of his selection.

Two nights later we opened the bottle, let it aerate a bit, and headed to the terrace with another fine hunk of cheese and crusty French bread.  We were first struck by the strong scent of  anise, cherries, strawberry, and leather.  This fruit-forward wine had flavors of cooked plums and blackberry, with a hint of smoke. The dry finish was no surprise to Gary, but Lisa was put off by it. As the week wore on we continued to enjoy this classic Cab.

Chateau de Chamirey Mercurey,Grand Vin de Bourgogne, Marquis de Jouennes d'Herville  2000      $50
On our last evening in Grand Case we had dinner at one of the island's most talked-about restaurants, Le Pressoir. The menu was classically French, as was the service (for better or worse,) and the attitude. But ah, the wine. Gary ordered this classic Chard, which he had enjoyed years earlier in the states. While Lisa typically shies away from creamy Chards, Gary swore the Mercurey would appeal.  It did.  Pale, with just a hint of butter and flavors of vanilla and green apple. Good acidity and well-balanced finish. In short, a delicious, crowd-pleasing white Burgundy. We enjoyed it with French Sea Bass (Gary) and Chicken with Flat Head Lobster and Wild Mushrooms (Lisa.)

Throughout the week we indulged our love of local beer, downing a few Carib's and Presidente's at beach bars along the French side. But St. Martin is a wine destination and we flew home with a greater appreciation of French wine and a recognition of how much more we had to learn. Ooh, do I hear another trip?