Wine grapes: Marsanne blanche

Synonym
Ermitage, in honor of the lands of Tain l’Hermitage in Valais where Marsanne covers a hundred hectares. 

Origin
Probably in Persia. However the trail was lost at one point, and found again later in Côtes-du-Rhône where Marsanne has been grown since ancient times, probably having been brought there by the Romans. 

Definition
The leaves are large, thick, pentagonal and coarsely "blistered." The bunches are large, often winged and shaped like a flattened cone while the spherical whitish-green grapes often have nice coppery touches.

Wine and aromas 
Marsanne makes full rich wines with complex aromas suggesting white truffle and raspberry liqueur or wild berries. 

Gastronomy
This full-bodied wine is wonderful with grilled salmon or fried fish, veal kidneys or sweetbreads or chicken in sauce. Chicken in "half-mourning" with a truffle sauce or braised turbot in raspberry vinegar would also be good pairings.

When overly mature, marsanne is good with blue cheese, foie gras or even wild berry desserts.