MH Tour Blog Stage 16: The Epic Stage

OK Tourists, we're seriously into the Haute Pyrenees tonight with a couple of massive Hors Categorie climbs, including the infamous Col du Tourmalet at over 2km high! So unlike Schleckie, we recommend you stay off the diuretics and nestle in for a long one tonight with a glass of good red instead...

Profile c/o letour.fr

It could well be said that it's now or never for the GC competitors. With Wiggins well out ahead, this, and tomorrow night's stage will almost certainly see changes: either an extended margin on Froome, Nibali and Evans, or perhaps a comeback from the Italian and/or Aussie mountain-men.

We'll most likely see a few would-be climbers break out from the pack early, and within the Peloton the SKY riders will be working flat-out once again to protect Wiggo's lead from the likely assailants: Evans and Nibali. Both will fancy themselves on that massive descent into the finish, and we'll look forward to watching them with balls to the wall to close the Wiggins gap...

OUR PICK: Nibali to bring it in, hotly pursued by Evans, making up a minute or so on Wiggins....

DRINK MATCH:  Here in the French Pyrénées, it's time to get into Madiran: Usually mainly the Tannat grape (as its name suggests, plenty of tannin around a dark-berry fruit flavour), along with parcels of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Try: Domaine du Crampilh Madiran 


AUSSIE MATCH: If we're talking dark berry fruit and fine tannins in the heart of the Pyrenees... (the ones closer to home) ...then it might be time for a bit of our Mitchell Harris Pyrenees Cabernet Sauvignon 2009...perfect for a cold winter night watching little blokes go up big mountains....


And don't forget, for a little look at our Winter Reds, including the Cab, our new Mataro / Grenache / Shiraz, and the Pyrenees Sangiovese, get into our Winter Warmer Six-Pack - $120 for this month!

Our Pyrenees Cabernet...before it met the bottle.

It's off to Pau we Go! Stage 15 Samatan to Pau

Well folks, you wanted attacks, and all we got were tacks & lots of them. Bad puns aside, what a night of high drama! Stage 14 captured some of both the highs & lows that make this a truly remarkable sporting event.

The peleton lead by the yellow Wiggle showed great sportsmanship free-wheeling down Mur de Péguere to allow Cadel Evens & a dozen or so other punctured riders back to the main group. Pierre Rolland tried a bit of the 'I no speaker de English', and enjoyed his uncontested and short lived breakaway before toeing the line & getting swallowed up by the peleton. And unfortunately for Kiserlovski the tacks took him off to hospital & out of the race!

But what about that breakaway? Over 15 minutes clear of the peloton when the tack drama unfolded, it was Luis Leon Sanchez who broke away from the breakaway to get a well deserved victory.

So what does Stage 15 have in store for us?

It's back to Pau we go, & tonight it's one for the sprinters. This will probably sort out who's got their eye on the prize in Paris, or who's thinking of London.

Sagan is well clear in the battle for the green guersey, but will he have enough gas in the tank after his brilliant effort to cross the line in 2nd place in the hils last night?

Is Gossy gone? Griepel 'The Gorilla' loves to win, but watch out for the Manx Missile! I reckon Cav will want this win to make a statement to his rivals before London.

After yesterdays shenanigans, the GC boys will take it easy, as there is plenty more action in them there hills to come!

Our Pick: The Missile - Cavendish to show them who's the boss!

Drink match: After last night we need a drink - a real drink. We're in Armagnac country tonight! If that's a bit strong for you then there are plenty of interesting Vin-de-Pays in this part of France plus other small lesser know (but no less remarkable) appelations - try a Malbec from Cahors or a Tannat from the Madiran that'll be sure to add a few extra hairs to your chest.

Local Match: Try an Aussie Brandy such as the St Agnes 7 Star XO, a Malbec from Bleasdale or Ferngrove, or any other odd aussies you have lurking in your cellar!

Into the Pyrenees... MH Tour Blog Stage 14

Tonight we head from Limoux to Foix, in the foothills of the magnificent Pyrenees. It's only 40km from one to another, but the peloton are taking a bit of a 191km detour into the Haute Pyrenees with a couple of massive Category 1 climbs in the last half of the day's ride.

The final climb is still over 40km from the finish, so I doubt we'll see the GC contenders have a real crack, instead aiming not to lose any time. We'll most likely see one of the out-of-contention climbers have a major dip at a breakaway.

OUR PICK: Whilst Schleck and Gesink have the climbing pedigree, we fancy someone like Jurgen Van den Broeck, who looked pretty strong in the Alps a few nights ago.

DRINK MATCH: In the foothills of the Pyrenees, Limoux was actually the first place in France to produce sparkling wine, and they still make some excellent bubbles, particularly Crémant de Limoux. One of the biggest producers is fairly easy to find in Oz, so try a Sieur d'Arques Aimery Crémant de Limoux 1531.

AUSSIE MATCH: Hmmm....what could we Mitchell Harris boys suggest as a great bubbles made in the foothills of the Pyrenees here in Australia???....

That's right, another plug for our new bubbles, SABRE by MITCHELL HARRIS Vintage 2008!

Drop us an email at: info@mitchellharris.com.au if we can interest you in trying it out bottle or two...

Cheers Mr Halliday! - The SABRE review...

Thankyou Mr Halliday. A ripper review for our Sabre by MH in the latest Wine Companion mag. 95 points! Email info@mitchellharris.com.au if you would like to get your hands on some yourself.

When in Rhone...Tour Blog Stage 13

We're back on the flat tonight, for a 215km burn down from the Rhone valley, scooting around Montpellier and onto the Mediterranean coast road down to Le Cap-D'Agde.

It's been a super few days up in the Alps, but tonight will be either one for the sprinters, or we think, ripe for a breakaway pack. It's Bastille Day, so it's not too much of a stretch to imagine one or two of the Frenchies wanting to get themselves (and their sponsors' logos) out in front for much of the race. A stiff sea breeze for the last 50km will still keep the pressure on the GC contenders, but they'll probably stick together again.

OUR PICK: After getting stung 30 points for getting a little wobbly in front of Sagan, we'll go for Gossy to want to regain some pride with a sprint finish.

DRINKING MATCH: Find yourself a Chateauneuf du Pape to drink on this wintry Bastille Night down under.

AUSSIE MATCH: Time to try our little Rhoney-style number: The Mitchell Harris 2011 Mataro Grenache Shiraz fits the bill with spicy, fresh, lively Pyrenees fruit to watch Le tour by...

Round 16 MH Footy Tipping - Back to the GLORY DAYS!

That's right tipsters, the ol' Navy Blues displayed some form last weekend worthy of their glory days in the `80's. Knocking the Pies off their perch last Friday would have put a smile on the face of Bruce Doull and his buxom admirer. Only a few of you tipsters out there picked the bluebaggers including young Liv Jones, who became the third member of her family to take home the MH goodies. The only question to ask is whether she'll be able to wrestle the bottle of MH Shiraz from her dad??

It's tighter than a nun's nasty at the pointy end of the leaderboard with Patty 'MadDog' Moloney still sitting proudly on top, Rob snapping at his heels and an absolute stack of tipsters only one point off.

Onto the ball game...

North Melbourne v Carlton

Are the Blue Boys back? After running around with their heads hung low for the last month or so they came out swinging against the Pies to show the type of form that made them a real top 4 threat just a couple of months ago. Nice of them to stir the pot with a bit of twitter banter about stealing Travis Cloke. Could be a good fit? The poor old Shinboners let another vital game slip out of their grasp to really put a spanner in their finals claims. What a game by big Coxy for the Eagles though. Whoa! He was unpenetrable and Roos will need a big lift to win this.

Melbourne Demons v Fremantle

They could probably pay folks to come and watch this and still not fill Etihad stadium. Dees fans don't like traveling to the Badlands and it'll probably only be the die hard minority that'll fly across the Nullabor for this. The game is up for grabs and both teams will be keen for and really need the win. Close and scrapy this one!

Port Adelaide v Essendon

Two teams fresh from 10 goal thumpings going toe to toe at AAMI stadium may not sound like your cup of Emu Export but this could be a reasonable clash. Their could be blood on the turf at windy hill if Hirdy can't get his troops up for this to stop the hemorrhaging and keep their finals campaign intact.

Richmond v Gold Coast Suns

The Tiges will be nervous this week. Very nervous. The last time they headed up to Cazaly's Stadium to take on the Suns they got rolled and their finals campaign was all but destroyed. Can it happen again? With a pretty good run home the Tiges need this big time! Having put up a good show against the Cats last week the Suns will be keen to keep applying pressure anyway they can and will be excited about their chances again to post their first win for the year.

Geelong v Collingwood

Are the Cats coasting to the line ready to dial up the pressure come finals time or are they just not the same classy and consistent outfit that we've come to expect from Kardinia Park in recent years? After tripping up over the Blues last week the Pies will come out swinging and will be keen to cement their top 4 positioning and to show the Pussy Cats that it's they who are the ones to beat in 2012. Has the makings of a classic - we hope!

Brisbane Lions v St Kilda

Even with a home ground advantage it is difficult to see the Lions bothering the Saints too much for the 4 points in this game on Saturday night. The Lions were ho-hum against the red hot Swannies, and the Saints are back to some good form coming into the finals with Riewoldt & Milney in good touch. The Saints need to keep the momentum of last week rolling to make this one a sure bet.

Greater Western Sydney v Adelaide Crows

Poor GWS! Last week's flooding at the hands of the Hawks don't come much uglier than that. They were completely outclassed and out gunned at every turn and will need to dig deep into the kit to stop the same thing from happening again this week. Those Crows are good, very good, and will be keen to stretch the legs out and post a big win this week to keep them at the pointy end of the top 4 for some home ground advantage action come September.

Western Bulldogs v Hawthorn

The Doggies will be breathing sighs of relief that big Buddy will be watching this one from the sidelines. The Hawks are in the sizzling form that they've been promising to deliver for the last couple of seasons. Will it continue all the way to September? Whether it does or it doesn't probably doesn't really matter this week. The Doggies will just be glad that Buddy won't be compounding the damage any more than it's going to be.

West Coast v Sydney Swans

Match of the round! 1st vs 2nd. The Swans are red hot and on a nice roll of form and the Weagles can be devastating at home. These two teams haven't meet for over a year so this will be an intriguing and gladatorial battle at this stage of the season. The Weagles will be keen to put recent losses and close calls behind them and the Swans, with Goodes, Jack, and McVeigh all in good form will be keen to draw early blood with finals footy just around the corner. A potential thriller!

Go forth and tip well!

Shan, Mitch, Lis and Johnno

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