Irouléguy "Ohitza," Domaine Brana 2003

Yesterday would have been my friend Marc's 38th birthday — should have been — had he not lost his life to cancer three weeks ago. I wrote about what it meant to me then, a part of my process of mourning and a way of paying respect to a great guy who I didn't appreciate nearly enough when he was still with us. Last night I was aiming more simply, wanting to celebrate his birthday like we should have, with good food and wine. While I thought about opening something "special" for the occasion, I ended up changing my mind, instead opting for something that made me think of him, something that I can remember him selling and discussing with just as much animation as did I back in the years when we worked together on a semi-regular basis. It just felt right. Happily, the wine did too.

Irouléguy "Ohitza," Domaine Brana 2003
$15 on release. 13% alcohol. Composite cork. Importer: Wine Traditions, Falls Church, VA.

Though arguably better known for their top-notch eaux de vie than for their wines, Domain Brana produce high-quality, traditional and expressive examples of Irouléguy in all three colors. The entry-level of their three reds, "Ohitza" is a fairly typical Irouléguy blend of Tannat (50%), Cabernet Franc (30%), and Cabernet Sauvignon (20%), all of which is manually harvested and completely destemmed before undergoing a 15-20 day fermentation followed by about a year of aging in previously used barrels.

Here's a $15 wine (a few years back at any rate) that's not merely lasted five-plus years but actually rewarded the time and patience spent in the cellaring. It's also an excellent example of wine from the oft scorned 2003 vintage. Where the heat and drought of the year brought out over-ripe, over-cooked flavor and structural tendencies in many a region, here in Irouléguy, at least in this case, the vintage conditions simply brought out a touch more roundness and generosity than in a more typical growing season. The wine is still fantastically balanced, as evidenced by a more than solid showing over the course of the last two days. When we're talking about terraced vineyards cut into 65% gradients on a meager soil base (red-hued, mica-flecked sandstone) at reasonably high-elevation, perhaps a hot year isn't such a bad thing.

That generosity of which I wrote showed most clearly when I first opened the bottle with dinner last night. Rich blackberry fruit mingled with aromas of rosemary and leather — not the dirty, brett-y side of the leather spectrum, just a resolved (and quite attractive) aspect of the inherently savage character of Tannat and Cabernet Franc grown in the Basque country. The longer it had to open up, the more aromatic and, seemingly, terroir expressive it became. Clove and cherry stones after about an hour; leafy, spicy, tree bark aromatics and red currant fruit another half-hour later. Tonight, it was still rock solid and just as, if not even more so, aromatically open, redolent of iron and drying tobacco leaves, showing less overt spice, more earth/mineral clarity.

Suffice it to say it was a damn nice bottle. And yes again, it definitely felt right.

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A Facelift for Fabrice Gasnier

When last I wrote about the Chinons of Fabrice Gasnier at any length, it was at such length (three long posts — not quite King Lear but close enough) that I've not returned, at least not in writing, at any significant length since. Fabrice's wines, nonetheless, have remained stalwart on my home table, finding a spot in regular, relaxed rotation, much akin to wines like those I wrote up last week: familiar, enjoyable and solid, even if not the most remarkable of their kind. Given that some subtle but meaningful changes have been afoot at the estate over the last year or two, I figured it's about time for an update, something I've been meaning to do for some time now.

In the years since Fabrice's father, Jacky, gradually but surely began to step back from his roles in the farming and wine making practices, the estate has seen two corresponding facelifts. First was the Vignoble Gasnier label (at left, above), from the years when I originally got to know the Gasniers' wines in the 90s, followed by the switch to the Fabrice Gasnier label of the early Naughties. Both earlier versions, if you take note of the fine print, gave credit to Jacky and Fabrice.

More recently, as of last year (vintages '06 - '08 depending on the bottling), it seems that Fabrice decided to take primacy, reincorporating as Domaine Fabrice Gasnier and replacing his père's name with that of his wife, Sandrine. The label above is from the 2008 vintage of Fabrice and Sandrine's Chinon "Vieilles Vignes" bottling, number two in their four-level hierarchy of red bottlings. Supple, ripe and forward, well-balanced and expressive, the wine's drinking easily right now, delivering warm red fruit, delicate tannins and gentle acidity across the palate, but should continue to age gracefully for some years to come.

Along with the new front label came an updated rear etiquette, displaying the realization of ambitions that Fabrice had hinted at when I last saw him back in 2004. He and his father had already farmed organically for many years, and Fabrice had begun conversion to biodynamic farming practices just a year or two prior to our visit. As you'll see, he's now gone whole hog, taking on the onus of bureaucratic responsibilities necessary to obtain and maintain both organic and biodynamic (Demeter) certification. It matters not to me — what's important is what's in the bottle, not what's on it — but I hope the step proves beneficial to the reception of his wines on his home and away markets.

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Uncomplicated Pleasures

If you read enough wine blogs, especially at the more geeked-out end of the spectrum, or just here for that matter, it may sometimes seem as if there's a constant march forward, ever seeking out something more complex, something more obscure, more I-drank-it-first than yesterday's experience. There's no question that those pursuits do keep wine blogging fresh and help to keep the love of wine alive. But I also expect that the people doing all of that exploring and writing are still drinking simple wines, too, and continuing to find pleasure in them even if at a more quotidian, less rarefied level. I know that, for me, there are plenty of nights where I actually don't want something challenging or provocative, instead preferring to sit down with something simple, straightforward and just plain old easy drinking.


Saumur Champigny, Domaine Joulin (Philippe Joulin) 2008
$18. 13% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Oslo Enterprise, Takoma Park, MD.
Sometimes that wine comes unexpectedly, in the form of something that's not familiar. I'd never had the Saumur Champigny rouge from Philippe Joulin so opened it on a night when I was up for anything. Something complex or challenging, something easy, maybe even something not so nice. This came out on the simple, straightforward point of the spectrum -- fresh, lively and supple; well balanced and direct. None of the gut, crunch or intense energy of, say, the Chinons of Bernard Baudry or the Bourgueils of Catherine and Pierre Breton; nowhere close to the depth and complexity of the Saumur Champigny's from Clos Rougeard, nor the richness of those from Thierry Germain. The only thing complicating this picture is the question of quality-to-price ratio. If this were three or four bucks less per bottle, there would be a good argument for slotting this into regular rotation for just the kind of nights I described above; at $18, though, it under delivers.



Barbera d'Asti, Roberto Ferraris 2009
$14. 14% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.
At the totally expected end of the spectrum sits the Barbera d'Asti of Azienda Agricola Roberto Ferraris. I've been selling Roberto's wines for well nigh ten years and enjoying them for several longer, although oddly enough I've only written about them once before, for my guest contribution to the Barbera 2010 blog. Ferraris makes a couple of wines of ambition but the wines in his portfolio that I most enjoy drinking are his single vineyard "Nobbio" bottling and this, his Barbera d'Asti "normale." The 2009 just came ashore in the last few weeks and is already drinking great. Less dark, rich and jammy than the iterations from 2007 and 2008, the '09 epitomizes what I like most about good, straightforward expressions of Piemontese Barbera: it's juicy, snappy, full of blueberry and black cherry fruit, completely soft when it comes to tannic structure but alive and zingy on the palate thanks to Barbera's naturally high acid profile. Barbera also has natural tendencies toward giving high potential alcohol and, at 14%, this is indeed "stronger" than I normally like to go for everyday enjoyment. In this case, though, the 14% alcohol is completely balanced and integrated, showing up only via the pleasantly warm glow the wine delivers in the belly. Perfect Monday night pizza wine and, as long as we're talking QPR, a spot-on value at its price point.

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Another Gravel-Grown Chinon

Cabernet Franc: when it's ripe enough to overcome its weedy tendencies and left well enough alone to be able to express its true self, there are few other vines that speak to me so clearly. It's a vine, like Pinot Noir or Riesling, that when grown in the right place seems to possess an immutable capability to express not just the flavor of the grape but a clear sense of its origins.

Take Chinon as a perfect example of one such Franc-centric place of origin. The wines of Chinon – again, when they're made well enough to retain their transparency – speak differently of their overall place depending on whether they hail from the banks of the Vienne, the flat lands east of the city or the hillsides that climb up from those plains. Perhaps the clearest and easiest to understand of those expressions is the voice of the Vienne, where the sand and gravel dominated soils yield Chinons of cool, supple texture, driven more by fresh acids and delicacy than by the greater richness and sinew of their cousins to the near north. There's a certain fine-grained, dusty character to the wines' tannins and a hallmark cassis-driven fruit signature that just says gravel-grown to me when I taste it. I wrote about a few such examples earlier this year; here's another.

Chinon "Les Gravières d'Amador Abbé de Turpenay," Couly-Dutheil 2006
$17. 12.5% alcohol. Composite cork. Importer: Elite Wines Imports, Lorton, VA.
The first words written in my raw tasting notes over the course of two days spent with the above wine? "I'm betting this is riverside Chinon." Light, fresh, supple and minty, it's driven by red cassis fruit and leafy aromas, with medium-high acidity and a lightly tannic touch. A dash of cocoa and raspberry parfait emerged as the wine opened. Somewhat loose around the edges. That loose-edged sensation was more apparent on day two when the wine lost much of its structure, though it did retain its coolly textured impact in spite of the softer mouthfeel. A bit less characterful than similarly priced wines from the top producers, but nonetheless a solid if simple Chinon.

I'll admit to not knowing much about Couly-Dutheil going into this bottle. So after drinking and mostly enjoying it, a quick bit of research was in order. Couly-Dutheil is a large producer by most standards, and very large indeed by Chinon standards, farming 90 hectares of vines and overseeing an additional 30 hectares, with annual production figures in the 100,000 case ballpark. "Les Gravières" falls into a group of cuvées that Couly-Dutheil classifies as Chinons de plaisir. Sure enough, it's produced from 25-35 year-old vines planted on the gravel and sandy terraces of the Vienne, just to the east of the town of Chinon. I was – again, I'll admit it – rather pleased to find my gut reaction to the wine was correct. And it's additionally edifying to find a larger producer that, regardless of what their reputation may be, can still get it right.

* * *

Some of you may recognize today's photo, by the way, as something of an Edwardian reference. There's no real connection between Nick Cave's latest novel and the Chinon, other than that it's what I've been reading of late. Entertaining enough, I suppose, but not one of the author's better efforts, musical or literary. I'll let you know if the verdict changes once I've tested its finish.

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Breton and Burgers

This one gets filed in the annals of great food and wine pairings, with cross indexed references under simplicity and beauty. For two consecutive nights this weekend, I enjoyed one of the simplest and most classic of American meals – the hamburger. In this case it was lamb burgers. I’ve found through past experiences that the ground lamb at my local farmers market is intensely flavorful but also pretty high in fat content. Trying to divide it into patties of dainty proportion just doesn’t work, as what you’re left with after the fat renders off on the grill is far too small and far too easily overcooked. So two juicy half-pounder lamb burgers it was.

On Friday, I experimented a little with condiments, adding mustard and cheese only to find them both unnecessary, even distracting from the purity of the lamb’s flavor. Saturday night I dialed it in…. Slice a ciabatta roll (I didn’t bother to toast it but it certainly couldn’t hurt) and drizzle on some good olive oil, which marries much more harmoniously with the lamb than does mustard or ketchup. On went a single slice of ripe, heirloom tomato. And the finishing touch – a few of the ramps I pickled earlier in the year. They’re damn tasty on their own (if I do say so) but are even better atop burgers, their sweet pungency working exceptionally well with the meaty rusticity of lamb.

A super simple meal, extremely tasty and even better with:

Chinon “Les Picasses,” Catherine et Pierre Breton 2004
$25. 12.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.
No detailed tasting notes for you today. This was showing so well that I just had to sit down, settle in and enjoy. Loaded with layers of black fruit and minerality, richly flavored yet lithe, juicy and graceful all at once. If, as its label suggests, “Les Picasses” is indeed aged in barriques, the wine sure doesn’t show any woodiness – just sheer succulence. And as good as it was solo it was even better when enjoyed along with the lamb burger double header. More than once my wife asked if everything was okay and I had to explain that, yes, everything was fine, those noises she was hearing were just my groans and grunts of pleasure. Good food, great wine and a pairing that beautifully exceeded the sum of its parts.

The academician in me will strive to persevere for another few years before opening my last bottle of this little gem from the Bretons but my inner hedonist will be fighting all the way. If you’re lucky enough to be holding multiple bottles, have at a couple of ‘em; this is in a really great spot right now.

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Domaine Guion Bourgueil

Though I didn’t take notes when drinking the 2007 Bourgueil “Cuvée Domaine” from Domaine Guion a month or two back, I remember it leaving me somewhat nonplussed. Good wine, certainly. Drinkable, an easy bistro wine, but not much more. A little lean and monochromatic. I’ve heard positive things about Guion’s wines though, from people whose opinions I trust, so when it came time to select something to pair with a simple market dinner – grilled pork chops, seasoned with nothing more than salt and pepper, and a mixed green salad – out came the slightly more “serious” wine from Domaine Guion.


Bourgueil “Cuvée Prestige,” Domaine Guion (Stéphane Guion) 2005
$14. 12.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Fruits of the Vines, New York, NY.

First off, fourteen bucks? This is a seriously good value, especially given that, as mentioned above, it is the estate’s more elaborate wine (the “Domaine” bottling goes for $11). A bright, translucent red with violet highlights, it shines that slightly surreal color of raspberry sorbet – the natural stuff, not the dyed blue variety. Brett is the first thing that greets the nose, savory more than off-putting, attractive in its fresh-stomped aromas of the barnyard. The wine’s not flawless but it’s all the more interesting for its crooks and freckles.

Blackberries, slightly under ripe black cherries and a muddle of green and black peppercorns first strike the palate and are echoed on the nose once past the wine’s Brett-driven pungency. Slightly sour acidity and a taut, narrow tannic profile make this a wine for the table, for sure; delicious with my pork chop but more than a little challenging as an easy sipping wine. Again, that complicated essence is one of the qualities that most endears me to good Loire Cabernet Franc.

As things open up and settle in, the wine’s blue- and red-fruited nature comes to the fore – plums, blueberries, boysenberries…. And yes, it’s also very floral, with a nose not unlike the slightly rustic side of cool vintage Northern Rhône Syrah – hothouse flowers, baking spices, berry fruit and animal aromatics. Fourteen bucks? Yep, I could happily drink this on a regular basis.

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Graves in Chinon

I love Chinon. There, I said it. While the wine producing communes of Chinon have hardly been mapped, dissected and defined to the extent of the vineyards of Burgundy’s Côte d’Or or the Mosel in Germany, one thing that makes Chinon so continuously compelling to me is the way its best wines express the area’s diversity of terroir. Clay, sand, limestone and gravel; riverbanks, flatlands, hillsides and plateaus; it’s all there, in various shapes, mixtures and forms.

It doesn’t seem coincidental to me that some of my favorite wines for everyday drinking come from the gravel rich soils near the banks of the Vienne River in the commune of Cravant les Coteaux. Wines like “Les Granges” and “Le Domaine” from Bernard and Matthieu Baudry, which I’ve really been enjoying over the past few years. Or like the Chinon “Les Graves,” from Domaine Fabrice Gasnier, a wine that’s been among my house pours for over a decade now. They’re not generally the most serious or structured wines of Chinon. Rather, they’re more wines of ease and clarity – great with food and built for regular enjoyment. But when they’re on, they’re still serious in the way they express their origins. When I drink wines such as those above, it’s as if I taste blueberries, plums, cherries, cassis, and fresh, savory herbs that have all been muddled by and macerated with the very gravel of the vineyards from which they sprang. And it’s as if I can feel the texture of that gravel in the fine-grained tannins and cool texture of the wines.

Needless to say then, I’m always on the lookout for Chinons, from the area and in this style, that are new to me. Here's one I got to know recently; if you have any other gravelly favorites, please do let me know.


Chinon “Tradition Graves,” Domaine les Chesnaies (Béatrice et Pascal Lambert) 2006
$17. 13% alcohol. Diam. Importer: A Thomas Calder Selection, Potomac Selections, Landover, MD.

Pascal and Béatrice Lambert are relative newcomers to Cravant les Coteaux, having established their 14-hectare estate, Domaine les Chesnaies, in 1987. Their wines – five reds, two rosés and three whites – are made solely from Cabernet Franc (or Breton, as it’s often called locally) for the reds and rosés and Chenin Blanc (or Pineau de la Loire) for the whites. All fruit is hand-harvested, with fermentation and aging disciplines varying based on the nature of each cuvée. The label of their “Tradition Graves” tells us – “Vin issu de raisins en conversion vers l'agriculture biologique certifié par Écocert” – that they’re in the process of conversion to organic farming. Actually, they’ve been working toward biodynamic conversion since 2004 but apparently are planning on organic rather than biodynamic certification.

“Tradition Graves” is produced from 25-50 year old vines of Cabernet Franc planted in gravel, clay and flint rich soils. After a maceration and fermentation of 18-30 days depending on the vintage, the wine ages for 12-18 months in steel tanks prior to bottling.

Medium bodied and firmly tannic, it displays classic aromas of tree bark, dried herbs, red cassis, plum skins and moist soil. As the wine unfolds a bit, there are also distinct whiffs of both menthol and Virginia tobacco. In fact, after an hour of air the wine becomes even more aromatic, with all the elements building rather than changing. I get the sense through the wine’s red fruit dominated palate and its grip, more firm than textured, that the clay in Lambert’s soil is expressing itself, grappling with the gravel for which the wine is named. Day two brought a rounder, plusher and somewhat simpler mouthfeel, but with all those stemmy, barky, spicy aromas and minerally red fruit still intact. Though lacking the energy and brooding nature of Baudry’s gravel-based cuvées and not as bright and fresh as Gasnier’s “Les Graves,” this is nonetheless quite compelling Chinon.

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Bernard Baudry's 2007 Chinon "Les Granges"

If yesterday was tomorrow, it’s now clearly today…. With that, as promised on Wednesday, today’s post takes us about a half-hour’s drive to the west along the greater Loire Valley to the commune of Chinon and, specifically, to the Domaine of Bernard and Matthieu Baudry in Cravant les Coteaux. Baudry’s wines have been promoted gregariously by Brooklynguy of late, an endorsement that always raises my expectations. This represents my first chance to check in with any of the estate’s wines from the 2007 vintage.


Chinon "Les Granges," Domaine Bernard Baudry 2007
$18. 12.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.
In direct opposition to Wednesday’s Cheverny, Baudry’s “Les Granges” was at its most seductive immediately after pouring. Right off the bat, it delivered aromatic waves of hothouse flowers and macerated blue fruit, interspersed with a natural, attractive equine scent. Like many of the other 2007s I’ve tasted from Chinon, Bourgueil and St. Nicolas de Bourgueil, it’s extremely fruit-forward and supple. One could chalk that up partly to the young-vine nature of “Les Granges” but it also seems to be a signature of the vintage – less structured and easier drinking than 2006.

After about 20 minutes, the wine settled into a more red-fruited and slightly leaner stance, with red cassis, pencil shavings and mineral character coming through on the nose and palate. Though its tannins remained quite gentle, the raspy, invigorating texture and bright acidity – both aspects that help wines from this region work so beautifully on the table – became clearer than when first poured. Day two brought much of the same. Not profound but highly pleasurable, this will make a great choice for regular drinking over the next year or two and is more than enough to make me look forward to spending some time with Baudry’s other cuvées from 2007.

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Traveling the Loire with a White Steed from Lessona

A spur of the moment invite a few nights ago triggered this latest installment of “Notes from a Sunday" (aka "Wine with Bill"). While my always gracious host cooked up a salubrious repast of pan-seared loin of pork, rigatoni Bolognese and, yes, even some vegetables, I got to work on opening a few bottles for the evening’s tasting. The focus, once again, was on the Loire but I’d brought along an interesting tie-in, an interloper from Italy. Before we get to that though, a little bubbly as an aperitif….

Saumur Brut Rosé, Domaine du Vieux Pressoir NV
This was pure, simple pleasure in a glass. Boisterously pink at the core and paler at the edges. Coarse mousse and a nose like red berry zinger tea. Juicy strawberry and raspberry fruit led off, followed by a nuance of fresh herbs and a fuzzy raspberry finish. Refreshingly dry yet round and generous in feel. 100% Cabernet Franc, produced from a single year’s fruit (though not vintage dated) using the Méthode Traditionnelle. Malolactic fermentation is inhibited in the base wine to retain crispness and freshness. $18. 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: VOS Selections, New York, NY.


Cheverny Rouge, Clos du Tue-Boeuf 2007
Clos du Tue-Boeuf is the family estate of Thierry Puzelat and his older brother Jean-Marie. Their Cheverny rouge, as the young AOC rules of Cheverny dictate, is a blend of Gamay and Pinot Noir. Beautiful color: bright, translucent and ever so slightly cloudy. Chalky on the palate, there’s an immediate impression of raspberry bubble gum, but then there’s texture and surprising length given the wine’s initial appearances of simplicity.

The Gamay seems to assert its personality much more strongly than does the Pinot Noir. This lacks the wildness that many of Puzelat’s wines are known for but it’s no less tasty. Raspberry parfait gives way to a savory, porky nuance and a noticeably saline quality. Crisp and fresh. A lean acid profile provides a ridge right down the middle of the palate and then that texture kicks in with a scrubbing, rugged vitality. If anyone knows the story behind the psychedelic flying cow that adorns the label, I’d love to hear it. $17. 11% alcohol. Synthetic stopper (Nomacorc). Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.

Vino da Tavola “’L Franc Bandit,” Proprietà Sperino 2004
This was the oddball of the evening in more ways than one. Like the bubbly with which we started, this is varietal Cabernet Franc. It’s also not vintage dated. Yet in this case that’s a requirement of the governing bodies of the Italian wine world in this part of Piedmont, not a decision made by the producer. The wine comes from Paolo de Marchi’s new property in Lessona, a small viticultural zone in the northeastern corner of Piedmont known for its Nebbiolo based wines. Cabernet Franc is allowed in small percentages in the broader neighboring Coste della Sesia DOC but the local regulations do not allow for wines made purely from Cabernet Franc. So de Marchi’s labeling includes a clever workaround, “Lotto CF04,” which is shorthand for Lot Cabernet Franc 2004.


The rest of the cleverness on the label, I can only assume, would seem to be de Marchi’s tongue in cheek expression of frustration with the authorities who essentially have forced him to declassify the wine to the lowly Vino da Tavola category. The graffiti on the label translates something like this:

“…cross the Alps, elegant white steed, to and fro, etc. ... noble roots, silently, solitary thief, and a bunch of other things, if only they came to mind. All right then, maybe even enough, nay rather, no: he took a liking he did to these ancient sands, what noble nature, and them, him, bla bla bla ... only to arrive at a label. Vigorous, intense, sanguine, o free bandit! There you have it."

We have at least a double entendre: franco means both free (in the sense of speaking freely or frankly) and Franc/k in Italian but is clearly a reference to the vine involved and its country of origin. That reference is brought more clearly into the wine world with the image of a white steed (Cheval Blanc…) crossing the Alps, of Cabernet Franc, an unwanted bandit, leaving its home in France and infiltrating the Piedmont vineyards. Also wrapped up in there somewhere appears to be a clear statement from de Marchi that he saw the potential for Cabernet Franc to thrive in the terroir of Lessona and chose to explore it, wine bureaucrats be damned.

But what about the wine? True to just about all of Paolo’s wines, both at his Tuscan estate Isole e Olena and here at Proprietà Sperino in Lessona, this has a transparent richness and truly elegant feel and balance. Chocolate, cool earth, cassis, tobacco and stewed plums interlace on the palate. It’s medium-bodied and soft, with extremely supple tannins. There’s also a forward yet perfectly integrated oak influence, sweet and clean, that elevates the wine’s fruit without burying it in costume dress and pancake makeup. There’s just barely a touch of alcoholic heat; otherwise, this is seamless. I can’t say it screams of Lessona typicity. But then, what is the local typicity for Cabernet Franc? ‘L Franc Bandit would seem to be de Marchi’s first answer – 2004 is the first vintage – to that question. The downside? It’s an expensive answer. $60. 13.5% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.


Coteaux du Layon, Château Soucherie (Pierre-Yves Tijou & Fils) 2005
This, the basic Coteaux du Layon from Pierre-Yves Tijou, is consistently one of the best values in sweet Angevin Chenin Blanc, year in and year out. Still under $20, it’s a bottle that can be enjoyed today or socked away in a cool wine cellar for another 20 years. Medium-sweet, it veers only modestly into Layon’s sometime tropical fruit character. Instead, there’s lemon oil, orange creamsicle, persimmon, peach blossom and peach butter. Underneath it all is a core of stoniness that, along with medium acidity, lends balance. In spite of only medium sweetness, there’s an intense confectionery element to the wine’s palate attack. A great pairing with local Loire goat’s cheese, this would also be lovely with just about any type of pâté or rillette. $19. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchants, New York, NY.

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A Few Under $20 Gems from the Loire

The occasional Riesling or Burgundy aside, I’ve been on a huge Loire kick of late. Starting just prior to the last episode of WBW that focused on French Cabernet Franc, running straight through my rather prolix three part story of a visit to Chinon, and continuing right into dinner last night, the wines of the Loire have been keeping me coming back for more. I’m sure the beauty of the region and the experiences recalled from my last trip there have something to do with it. It also doesn’t hurt that the Loire seems to be the hottest bed of innovative and natural wine growers in France. Many Loire wines tend toward naturally low alcohol levels. And it remains one of the few regions where some seriously high quality, age worthy wines can still be found for under $20 a bottle. Above and beyond all of that, I think it’s the incredible diversity and the vibrant, food friendly nature of the Loire’s best wines that really keep me captivated.


Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie "Le Fief du Breil," Domaine de la Louvetrie (Jo Landron) 2004
Jo Landron is one of the champs of the natural wine movement in the Pays Nantais, the region at the mouth of the Loire, near the Atlantic seaboard and synonymous with the wines of Muscadet. His 2004 “Le Fief du Breil” is showing just great right now. Its intense, almost saline mineral extract, combined with a marrowy, leesy influence in the mouth made me think of a soft pretzel taken straight from the oven and thrown onto a platter of oyster shells. This is classically crisp and fresh, yet it’s no lightweight. Bracing acidity combines with the wine’s physiological density to provide some serious palate impact. This has a long life ahead of it.

Here’s a side note of potential interest. If you’re keen to find wines made from organic fruit and feel more secure with produce that is certified organic (as opposed to being farmed organically but without certification), then take a look at the small print in the photo of Landron’s label. “Vin Issu de Raisins de l'Agriculture Biologique, Certifié par ECOCERT” means literally “wine issued from organically grown grapes, certified by ECOCERT.” ECOCERT is one of France’s primary organic certification bodies. $14. 12% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Martin Scott Wines, Lake Success, NY.

Chinon, Domaine Bernard Baudry 2005
Speaking of modestly priced wines worthy of a spot in your wine closet, the basic 2005 Chinon from Bernard Baudry is a great candidate for mid-term cellaring; that said, it’s hard to pass up enjoying it now. It reminds me an awful lot of the Chinon “Les Graves” of Fabrice Gasnier. That’s a good thing, not just because Gasnier’s basic cuvée is among my long-standing everyday favorites, but also because the similarity speaks to the clear, true expression of terroir in both producers’ wines. Baudry and Gasnier are both located in Cravant Les Coteaux, one of Chinon’s sub-regions located just to the east of the city and just north of the banks of the Vienne. Here again, it’s worth studying the information on Baudry’s label:


Cabernet Franc
Graviers 80% et Argiles de Coteaux 20%
Sols travaillés sans utilisation de désherbants et d'engrais chimiques.
Vendange manuelle
The geological makeup, 80% gravel and 20% argile/clay soils, is pretty much identical to that of the vineyards from which Gasnier’s “Les Graves” is produced. Baudry’s wine is a touch more muscular but both share leafy aromas, hints of red cassis and cherry fruit, crackly acidity and lots of texture. Not big, bold tannins. Just lots of fine grain that gives a really invigorating mouth feel. These wines demand food with their texture. And they blossom in the presence of food, ranging anywhere from salmon to pork and poultry, and from sausages to a local goat’s milk cheese like St. Maure de Touraine. $17. 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections, New York, NY.


Touraine "Cuvée Côt," Clos Roche Blanche 2005
My first encounter with the “Cuvée Côt” from Clos Roche Blanche was at François and Manuela Chidaine’s wine shop, La Cave Insolite, during a visit there in early 2004. I brought a bottle home with me, the 2002 I think, and ended up not opening it for quite a while. When I finally did, it made my top-ten list for the year. Just delicious, characterful wine. I’m not sure the 2005 is quite as captivating, though it may get there with time. Either way, it’s tasty as can be right now. Classic Loire Côt (Malbec) aromas of hickory smoked bacon, huckleberries and fresh horse poop. Like with the Chinons above, there’s a nice spine of zesty acidity. The mouth feel is rounder, with broader, rustic tannic impact. This is the bottle I enjoyed with dinner last night, a simple plate of pasta with a tomato and mushroom sauce. Not culturally synchronized, I know, but actually not a bad match. It would be even better with those same mushrooms along with some caramelized onions served over a roast loin of pork. $17. 12% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections, New York, NY.

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Celebrating the Chevaliers de Chezelet

This is the final installment of a three-part story of a visit at Chinon's Vignoble Gasnier in February 2004. Links to parts one and two can be found at the end of this posting.

When we’d passed through the dining hall at Domaine Gasnier earlier in the day, in search of some clean stemware, I couldn’t help but notice the hot plates placed at regular intervals along the long, wooden banquet table. I took pause for a moment to ponder their specific purpose; however, we quickly moved on to the more pressing matter of tasting.

When we returned later that night for dinner at Fabrice’s invitation, the first thing we realized was that our group of nine wine travelers had been joined by two dozen or so graduate students from the University in Tours. They’d come for the day to learn about the particulars of the agricultural and culinary history of Cravant Les Coteaux. Not long after, the purpose of those hot plates became clear. Fondue. But I’m getting ahead of myself….


The cultural connection between Rabelais and Chinon (that's Fabrice Gasnier on the right) would become clear as the night wore on.
The next time you think of staging a horizontal/vertical tasting of Chinon for you and thirty or forty friends, consider something along the lines of that evening’s event.

As an aperitif, we were all offered a glass of sparkling rosé, poured from clear glass, unlabeled bottles. It turned out, unbeknownst to me at that time, that Fabrice produced small quantities of sparkling “Chinon” every year, for the sole purpose of enjoying it with family and friends. Since then, perhaps encouraged by our enthusiasm for it, he’s decided to commercialize the wine as a non-AOC bubbly (Chinon regulations do not allow for sparkling wine) called “La Cravantine,” which you can read more about here. Dry, soft, fruity and deliciously quaffable, we enjoyed our first glasses and were offered refills while it lasted.

Dinner started with a simple salad of fresh greens with smoked salmon and local chevre, accompanied by Fabrice’s 2003 Chinon Rosé. Next up was the aforementioned fondue.

This was not your everyday fondue. No oil, cheese or chocolate was to be found. Instead, each fondue pot was filled with basic Chinon rouge, cut with a little water and stock and seasoned with a handful of fresh herbs. Placed in front of every few guests was a plate of glistening, ruby-red cubes of local beef, a mound of potatoes that had been roasted in the hall’s open hearth and a bundle of fondue forks – nothing more, nothing less. With a minute or so in the bubbling pot of Chinon, each morsel of beef emerged perfectly medium-rare, infused with the flavors of the place we’d spent so much time discovering earlier in the day. The only problem was remembering to heed that minute timing, as both wine and conviviality flowed around the communal table.

Fabrice started everyone off with the current release, 2002, of his “Cuvée Les Graves.” I’m not sure what was opened around the rest of the table, but Fabrice raided the cellar for our little corner of the room. Bottles of 1997 and 1996 “Cuvée Prestige” were followed by “Cuvée Fabrice” from 1999, 2000 and 2001. A bottle of “Cuvée Vieilles Vignes” from 1989, a great vintage (which Fabrice made us guess after tasting), was still bright and youthful, rounded at its edges and evocative of dried plums enjoyed around a campfire at the end of a long, autumn walk in the forest.


As the fondue furor subsided, Jacky Gasnier, Fabrice’s father, made his presence know at the front of the hall. Following his retirement from winemaking a few years earlier, Jacky had assumed the duties as head of the local Rabelais appreciation society, the Chevaliers de Chezelet. Apparently, one of my co-workers and fellow travelers, Eric Tuverson, had made a lasting impression during his previous visit with the Gasniers. I think it may have had something to do with a certain drinking technique he displayed at a local rugby match. In any event, Jacky had gathered a couple of members of the Chevaliers to make Eric part of their brotherhood. In keeping with François Rabelais’ famous quote, “Beuvez toujours, vous ne mourrez jamais” (Drink always and never die), Eric’s induction ceremony involved a bottle of Chinon and the largest wine glass I’d ever seen. I’ll say no more, other than that it provided a truly Rabelaisian ending to a long day of learning and fun.

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Related posts:

Part One: On the Farm in Chinon with Fabrice Gasnier
Part Two: Tasting Chinon with Fabrice Gasnier

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Tasting Chinon with Fabrice Gasnier

This is installment two of a February 2004 visit at Vignoble Gasnier in Chinon. If you missed part one, please see On the Farm in Chinon with Fabrice Gasnier.

Our walk through the vineyards and tour of the Cravant Les Coteaux hillsides complete, we headed to Fabrice’s cellar and winery to learn what happens indoors and to sample what he had wrought from the last couple of vintages. Gasnier’s winery is dominated by cement vats, which Fabrice prefers to steel for their slight oxygen permeability. All vats are temperature controlled, with all primary and most malolactic fermentation conducted in cement. The couple of stainless steel tanks in evidence are used only for assemblage and short-term holding. All fruit is de-stemmed and sorted prior to being crushed in a small vertical press. Following natural malolactic fermentation, the wines are left alone, saving for some occasional batonage if deemed necessary.

Fabrice Gasnier pulling a sample from the younger of the two foudres in which he ages his "Cuvée Vieilles Vignes."
Vignoble Gasnier bottles six different wines: four reds – cuvées called Les Graves, Vieilles Vignes, Prestige (since renamed Cuvée à l’Ancienne) and Fabrice – one rosé and a sparkling wine. As no white fruit is planted, Chenin Blanc being the only permitted variety in AOC Chinon whites, no white wine is made. Box wine is produced and available for local sale only.

“Cuvée Les Graves” is Gasnier’s “young vine” red, made from an assemblage of various parcels from throughout the property but dominated by those planted in the gravelly (thus the name) soil nearest the river. It is varietal Cabernet Franc. Less conscientious producers in some parts of the world might be tempted to call this an old vines bottling, as it comes from 20-25 year-old vines. Fruit from any vines younger than 20 is either sold off or used to produce the aforementioned box wines. “Les Graves” represents about 50% of the estate’s total annual production of roughly 10,000 cases. Fermentation is conducted in two separate batches at different temperatures: one at about 22 degrees Celsius to highlight aromatics and one at around 28 degrees to provide extraction and body. Malolactic follows, also in cement, at a cooler temperature of 20 degrees. Maceration lasts 16-17 days. Assemblage of the two batches is performed after completion of primary and secondary fermentation. Typically bottled in May following the vintage, it is the only one of the reds that sees no wood whatsoever. Because the six month aging regime does not allow enough time for all solids to settle in the large-volume cement vats, a light filtration is conducted before bottling.

Gasnier’s “Cuvée Vieilles Vignes,” also 100% Cabernet Franc, comes from vines of 45-50 years, planted in soils of both argilo-siliceous and gravelly character. Primary and malolactic fermentations are conducted in cement, with a maceration period of 22 days. The wine is then moved into two large, 3700 liter oak foudres, one older than the other, for aging. The contents of the two casks are remarried in steel cuves, after which, again because of volume, a light filtration is performed prior to bottling in the September following the vintage. In all cases, Fabrice prefers to bottle on the early side in order to preserve fruit freshness. The Vieilles Vignes represents about 25% of the estate’s annual production.

The “Cuvée Prestige” comes from two specific plots of even older vines – 50-55 years – grown entirely in argilo-siliceous soil. A touch of Cabernet Sauvignon, a small amount of which is planted in one of Fabrice’s oldest plots, makes it into the Prestige. The Cabernet Sauvignon, which is vinified separately, never represents more than 10% of the final blend. Initial vinification practices, in terms of fermentation vessel and maceration period, are identical to the Vieilles Vignes. Aging, though, occurs in barriques used previously for two to six years. Here, the settling rate in smaller casks allows for bottling, also in September following the vintage, with no filtration. Beginning with the 2004 release, “Cuvée Prestige” was rechristened as “Cuvée à l’Ancienne.” This bottling makes up 15% of Gasnier’s annual production. For reasons unbeknownst to me, though perhaps because it tends to have the sternest character of the four reds, this is the cuvée least frequently available on the US market.

Gasnier’s top red is also his most modern. Though I’ve referred to it for years as “Cuvée Fabrice,” it was only in 2005 that Fabrice actually made it official with a subtle change to the wine’s label, replacing the signature “Fabrice Gasnier” with the name “Cuvée Fabrice.” It seems somewhat common for young vignerons, taking over chief winemaking responsibilities from the previous generation, to add a new or signature wine to the lineup. I’m not sure, though, how many decide to name it in self-homage. Somehow it does seem to fit Fabrice’s big, garrulous personality. Anyway, back to the wine….

“Fabrice” comes from a single plot of the oldest vines (60+ years) on the property. As with “Cuvée Prestige,” it includes 5-10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Primary fermentation, as with all of Gasnier’s wines, occurs in cement. At 25 days, maceration is longer than with the other wines. The modern approach begins after maceration and fermentation, as the wine is moved to barriques – 50% new and 50% one-year-old – for malolactic fermentation and aging. As this regime suggests, it is the only wine in Fabrice’s portfolio that shows an obvious oak influence, at least in terms of aroma and primary flavors. It is bottled without filtration after 14 months, in December of the year following its vintage, and represents only 5% of total production.

The remaining five percent of the Gasniers’ crop goes to the production of Rosé. It is produced by taking a bleeding (saignée) of juice from the production of various lots of Cabernet Franc after 24-48 hours of maceration, depending on the vintage characteristics and the desired level of color extraction. Fermentation is then conducted entirely in cement, with bottling in the spring following harvest.

At the time of our visit in 2004, Fabrice also produced tiny quantities of an unlabeled, unnamed sparkling wine, solely for consumption by family and friends. It is varietal Cabernet Franc, solely from the gravelly terroir of the estate. Lacking the facilities and equipment necessary to craft méthode traditionelle wines, he takes his fruit to the local cooperative, where it is produced, aged sur-latte for one year and bottled without dosage. Since then, perhaps based on our vociferous prodding at dinner later that night, he’s started to commercialize small quantities. He calls it “La Cravantine,” a diminutive term for a creation of the Cravant Les Coteaux commune. Originally produced as rosé, he now strives for a clear Blanc de Noir; a barely discernible salmon hue can still be detected by a knowing eye.

Fabrice feels that Chinon rouge, in general, shows its best between three-to-six years of age. Drinking earlier is ok, of course, while wines from the best vintages can be candidates for 10-15 years or more. He opted to begin our tasting session with finished wines, primarily from the bottled but not yet shipped 2002 vintage, which he considers one of the best growing years since 1996.

• Chinon “Cuvée Les Graves,” 2002
  Beautifully aromatic, with lots of red currant fruit, leaves and spice. Gentle but lively tannic structure. Fabrice always regards this as his “cuvée gourmande,” intended for every day, easy drinking. A pure expression of Cabernet Franc.
  
  
• Chinon “Cuvée Vieilles Vignes,” 2002
  Aromatically closed but already showing richness of body. Less peppery than in some years but still showed fresh, herbaceous suggestions of dill and basil. Darker red tree fruits than in “Les Graves.” Excellent grip.
  
  
• Chinon “Cuvée Prestige,” 2002
  Continuing the climb upwards in terms of grip and structure. Some influence from wood tannins, along with gorgeous fruit concentration. Wild raspberries, cassis and rainier cherries.
  
  
• Chinon “Cuvée Fabrice,” 2002
  The richest texture, with dark plum and black currant fruit. The oak is forward but adds well integrated vanillin and chocolate overtones. A hint of earth on the nose.
  
  
• Chinon “Cuvée Prestige,” 2001
  Here we found the bell pepper that was less in evidence in the 2002 wines. Fresh, damp, loamy earth on the nose. Starting to show some bottle bouquet. Definitely a food wine (but then all Chinon is…).

The landscape surrounding Gasnier's vineyards in Chezelet provides a natural environment for bottle aging caves, excavated directly into the tufa hillsides.
Notes from barrel tastings may not make for the most exciting reading. However, tasting from barrel and vat – particularly after tasting from bottle and spending so much time learning about the viticultural and oenological peculiarities of a producer’s various wines – can be extremely illuminating. It can help to give one a greater sense of how any given wine comes together, from its component parts and through the vinification regimen, to form a whole.

• A sample of “Les Graves” 2003, from a vat fermented at warmer temperature, had a deep purple color, was firmly tannic and still held a trace of unresolved CO2. The warmer fermentation, combined with a preceding three-day cold soak, is intended to give structure to the final blend. I could almost sense the vines’ plant matter on the palate.
  
  
• From another tank of “Les Graves” 2003, fermented cooler for attainment of aromatic freshness, the scents were more peppery and wine-like. Tannins were softer and suppler. It tasted more finished, with no traces of carbon dioxide.
  
  
• 2003 “Vieilles Vignes,” from the older of two large foudres, had a very peppery nose and showed signs of reduction. In Fabrice’s words, it was “going through a bizarre stage.” Yet it showed promising concentration and structure.
  
  
• From the younger cask of 2003 “VV,” aromas were more shut down but the wine was softer and already pleasing in the mouth, with no signs of reductivity. All wine coming from the same sites and same fermentation tanks, the only difference between the two samples was the age of the foudres, with the younger cask allowing more oxygen interchange between wood and wine than in its older neighbor.
  
  
• 2003 “Prestige” tasted from barrel was lush and velvety in texture. Rich cherry kirsch, with nary a hint of pepperiness in the mouth. Substantial grip. At 13.6% potential alcohol and lower apparent acidity than in the Graves and VV, this was showing signs of what to expect from the freakish 2003 vintage.
  
  
• That trend continued with a sample of “Cuvée Fabrice” 2003, pulled from barrel. Dense and dark but ungenerous on the nose. Very rich palate. Plenty of oak influence on the nose. Already, the lower than usual acidity along with the opulent nature of its fruit pointed toward a wine that would be a hit with the “big red crowd,” not the usual Chinon audience. At 13.8% potential alcohol, this was harvested at about a degree higher than in a typical vintage.

To bring us back from the raw experience of tasting samples of the big 2003s and to finish off our tasting session, Fabrice extracted the cork from a bottle of his 1998 signature cuvée. As it turned out, he’d also chosen to finish on a high note. In 1998, Fabrice did not use any new oak for this wine, instead aging it in all first passage barrels that he’d purchased from Château Margaux. The same barrels, he told us, were now (in 2004 that is) being used for his “Cuvée Prestige.” Beautiful aromatic development had occurred in the bottle, with a nose of dried red fruits, fresh tanned leather, curing tobacco and prunes which followed to a supple, silky and well balanced palate. Red currants and intensely concentrated strawberry preserves blossomed on the follow through. Lovely stuff.

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Our work day was done but there was still more to come. Fabrice and his wife Sandrine invited us to return for dinner. It would turn out to be quite the Rabelaisian evening…. So please stay tuned for part three, coming soon.

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On the Farm in Chinon with Fabrice Gasnier

Provided with impetus by the most recent Wine Blogging Wednesday theme – French Cabernet Franc – we return to the midpoint of a European wine junket. It’s late February 2004, on my group’s second day in the middle-Loire. Leaving our morning appointment with Domaine Ricard, near Thésée la Romaine, just east of Chenonceau, we headed west, straight past Tours and toward the western border of the Touraine district, toward Chinon.


After stopping to check into our rooms and freshen up, we grabbed a quick bite to eat – ham and cheese on baguettes from a local café. Our hotel, directly across the Vienne River from the center of Chinon, provided a spectacular view of the fortress that dominates Chinon’s profile. No time to sightsee though. We were right back to it. Heading across the river and turning immediately right, we avoided the town center entirely, instead following the path of the Vienne back eastwards, against its flow, to the commune of Cravant Les Coteaux. It was there, in the small hamlet of Chezelet, that we were scheduled to visit Vignoble Gasnier.

We discovered Fabrice Gasnier at work in his vineyards, pruning his vines in preparation for the coming of spring. Fabrice began his work at the property during the benchmark vintage of 1989. He and his father Jacky, who has since retired, incorporated the Domaine as it now stands in 1993. Their family has owned land and farmed here in Chezelet for four generations, during which time the estate has grown from its original three hectares to its current 24. All of those 24 hectares – 23 planted to Cabernet Franc and one to Cabernet Sauvignon – are located on the flat portions of the Cravantine landscape, within a two kilometer radius of Chezelet. Finding Fabrice in his fields presented the perfect opportunity to really gain an understanding of his farming techniques and of some of the peculiarities of his terroir.

All of Gasnier’s vines are Simple Guyot trained, with one main baguette producing seven eyes. A second, smaller baguette is pruned to two eyes and trained in the opposite direction, the intention being both to begin the growth cycle for the following year’s season and to prevent bunch clustering. Farming is entirely organic (the estate is now in the process of organic certification through ECOCERT), using only natural products and homeopathic principles, practices which Fabrice describes as preventive rather than curative viticulture. Predator insects and bio-organisms are relied upon for pest control. As we can see, standing in a freshly plowed 2.5 hectare plot of vines planted by his grandfather 50-60 years earlier, the earth is turned regularly to promote deep root systems and a maximum expression of terroir. Following pruning – and completing the cycle – vine cuttings are mulched and returned to the soil to reintroduce their stored energy to the vineyard.

Fabrice typically conducts a green harvest – vendange verte – in July in order to reduce the farm’s yields to the desired number of bunches per vine. At harvest, his aim is always for medium ripeness. As natural as Fabrice’s farming is, we were surprised to learn that he machine harvests, a practice that many view as an impediment to creating truly natural wines. He explained his reasons in simple terms. With 24 hectares (nearly 60 acres) and a mere six full-time staff members, of which only three are dedicated to the fields, machine harvesting is an economic necessity of scale. On the plus side, mechanical picking allows for the entire estate to be harvested in just two days, ensuring uniform ripeness levels across the various parcels of property and decreasing the risk of damage by fall rainstorms.

A plot of Gasnier's Vieilles Vignes waiting for pre-season pruning.
Soil is of two basic types on Gasnier’s property. Here at the heart of the estate, the primary makeup is of argilo-siliceous clay, to a depth of approximately 1.5 meters, below which lies rock. Closer to the river Vienne, the vineyards are planted on gravelly terraces. Given the proximity of the river and the northerly situation of Chinon in general, spring frosts can be a major danger. A day earlier and only a few kilometers away, we’d learned of severe frost damage to Francois Chidaine’s Montlouis vineyards at the beginning of the 2003 growing season. To combat the problem here in Chinon, Fabrice relies on a system of human nighttime weather watchers to sound the frost alarm and three different frost prevention mechanisms. Wind circulators, which look like small turbine engines mounted on flagpoles, are scattered at intervals throughout the vineyards, their aim being to move warmer air from above down to the cooler ground and vine level. Paraffin pots are burned amongst the vines to ward off the cold. Lastly, water may be sprayed on the vines to form a protective outer coating of ice that will prevent frost from penetrating the plants.

Not only did Fabrice manage to avoid any frost damage in 2003, he was also the only vigneron we met on our entire trip who laid claim to a problem free 2003 growing season. Given the extreme heat and drought of the summer, which continued right up to harvest time, that’s a big statement. He attributed the success to the deep root system and general good health of his vines. Nonetheless, 2003 was not without its natural effects. Following 2002, a great vintage in Fabrice’s estimation, the dry heat in 2003 produced fruit with the highest natural sugar levels – approaching 14% – on record in the area. Acidity levels were normal, while tannin levels were greater than usual, helping to balance the high sugar levels.

Our walk through the vineyards and tour of the Cravant Les Coteaux hillsides complete, we headed to Fabrice’s cellar and winery to learn what happens indoors and to sample what he had wrought from the last couple of vintages….

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Editor’s note:
To avoid creating the longest posting in the history of the blogosphere (at least that’s where I feel like this was heading), the rest of this Vignoble Gasnier trip report will appear in installments. Stay tuned for parts two and three.

Part Two: Tasting Chinon with Fabrice Gasnier
Part Three: Celebrating the Chevaliers de Chezelet

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WBW #44: French Cabernet Franc

Today marks the monthly meeting of the meme called Wine Blogging Wednesday, which was originated by Lenn Thompson of LennDevours back in the autumn of 2004. For the theme of this 44th edition, this month’s host, Gary V at Wine Library TV, chose French Cabernet Franc. For many of the participants, I expect this might open the door to new tasting experiences. For me, on the other hand, it’s a no-brainer.

Sure, there’s the occasional Bordeaux blend that’s dominated by Cabernet Franc, particularly in the northern crescent of Saint-Emilion. Think of Châteaux Cheval Blanc, Jean-Faure and some of their neighbors, for instance. And for those who go out of their way to find them, there’s the occasional oddball Franc from the hinterlands of the southwest corner of the country. In fact, I could have just taken the lazy way out of today’s assignment by recycling an old post on Irouléguy Rouge. However, when one thinks of French Cabernet Franc, all roads ineluctably lead to the Loire Valley, the undisputed center in France – and the globe for that matter – for the cultivation of Cabernet Franc.

Not only am I a Loire enthusiast, I’m also a Cabernet Franc adulator, a certified Breton-head and a firm believer in the vine’s overall merits. It gives birth to some of the most food capable red wines out there. I drink Chinon, Bourgueil and St. Nicolas de Bourgueil, not to mention various reds from the Anjou-Saumur, on a pretty regular basis. So the challenge for this event was not in finding a wine to review; it was deciding which ones to review. Again, I could have just recycled an old post, maybe the one from a tasting with F.X. Barc of the Chinons of Domaine Charles Joguet. In the end, however, I decided to write two new notes: the first because it ties into another posting I’m working on and the second just because I felt like it.


Chinon “Cuvée Fabrice,” Jacky & Fabrice Gasnier 2003
I’ll be pleasantly surprised if any other participants choose a wine from this estate, as Fabrice Gasnier produces some of the least talked about, most underappreciated wines of Chinon. This is his top red, produced from a specific vineyard of 60 year-old vines, a blend of 95% or more Cabernet Franc with just a peppering of Cabernet Sauvignon. It undergoes primary fermentation in cement vat, followed by Malolactic fermentation and aging for 12-14 months in barriques, 50% new and 50% from wines of one year. As such, it’s also the estate’s only modernist cuvée, new barrels being a relative exception to the traditional rule in Chinon.

I chose the 2003 from among the several vintages in my cellar because it comes from the growing season which immediately preceded my visit to the estate in February 2004 (a report on which will be coming soon). Also, I wanted to check in on the progress of a wine grown in the notoriously hot and dry conditions of 2003. I wasn’t completely happy with or terribly surprised by the results.

Aromas are of ripe red fruit, cocoa and dark baking spices. There’s plenty of red cassis and chocolaty richness in the mouth, and even a decent amount of muscle. But it’s all covered with a squishy layer of baby fat that makes the wine feel unfocused and atypical. Alcoholic warmth, both on the nose and on the finish, doesn’t help. It’s not the burn that comes from overly high alcohol but rather a slightly unbalanced glow, driven by alcohol that’s not fully interwoven with the wine’s physiological structure. I know from my barrel tasting notes that the alcohol is close to a degree higher than the listed 13%. While 14% (13.8, actually) may not sound high by modern international standards, it’s awfully high for Chinon, where the typical degree averages 12.5 to 13. In spite of all this, there’s an element to this cuvée, mainly in its round texture and gushing red fruit, which a lot of people might find easy to like. Though I enjoyed it on release, this is now just not singing. All things considered, a strong sign that 2003 is a vintage to drink up rather than hold. $20 on release. Labeled at 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Imported by Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.

Chinon “Beaumont,” Catherine & Pierre Breton 2005
No technical notes for this one. I’ll leave that to someone else, as I expect to see one or the other of Catherine and Pierre Breton’s Bretons (yep, I had to do it) in any number of this month’s WBW submissions. Heck, I’ve already noticed this exact cuvée among Dr. Vino’s notes. The Breton’s, who produce wine in both Chinon and Bourgueil, are among the current crop of natural wine growers who have been attracting a lot of high energy attention of late.

This is classic if young and slightly disjointed Chinon. Electric energy flows through the fruit, letting your palate know it’s alive. There’s lean sinew here; no baby fat. Wild red berries, rhubarb and red cassis ride a frame of crackly acidity and firm yet light-handed tannins. Its sense of disjointedness stems not from any imbalance but rather from a feeling that the wine’s parts have yet to harmonize into a whole, a feeling that’s exacerbated by a slightly plastic flavor that snakes its way through the wine’s center. I need to try this again in three months, maybe six, or even twelve. Why not just make it all of the above. There’s promise here, assuming everything integrates and resolves, for serious mid-term enjoyment. $16. 12.5% alcohol. Nomacorc. Imported by Louis/Dressner Selections, New York, NY.

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Vino Rosso di Langa e dell’Alto Piemonte

When one of my ODPs (occasional dining partners) Philadining asked what I’d be drinking to celebrate the first anniversary of this obsessive venture earlier this week, I hadn’t even stopped to think about it. Even though I hate to consider sparkling wines only in the context of celebratory events, my first thought went to the bottle of Vouvray Pétillant Brut from Huët that has been whiling its time away in my wine fridge, waiting for a suitable moment. As it turns out, it was not yet the Vouvray’s time. Instead, a spur of the moment invitation from a pal who stopped by the shop turned the evening into an opportunity to share some leftovers and taste a few reds from the Langhe and Alto Piemonte.

Coste della Sesia “Orbello,” Aziende Agricole Sella 2004
I’d been looking forward to trying more from Sella ever since the last time I tasted their regular Lessona bottling. “Orbello” is a simpler, more jovial wine that falls under the more flexible Coste della Sesia DOC. It’s a blend of 50% Barbera, 25% Nebbiolo and 20% Cabernet Franc, with 5% Vespolina rounding out the pack. Pale ruby with the tinge of orange around the rim that seems typical to wines, both reds and rosés, of the region. Bright, lithe, juicy and refreshing, this could be a solid choice for a versatile, every day pour. In spite of its modest percentage in the blend, Nebbiolo asserts itself on the nose, which is dominated by early season raspberries and a touch of red licorice. With aeration, a leafy, slightly earthier element emerged. $16. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork. Imported by Selected Estates of Europe, Mamaroneck, NY.

Dolcetto d’Alba, G.D. Vajra 2006
Plummy, with bing cherry and blueberry fruit in spades, followed by a hint of cocoa. This is as forward a vintage of Aldo Vajra’s Dolcetto as I’ve tasted in some years. Its tannins are so fresh and grapey that they impart a feeling of actually holding just-crushed grape skins against your teeth. If only we’d had some carne cruda to complete the picture. If there’s a downside to the simple beauty of this wine, it’s a recent move in its price point. For years, it hovered in the mid-teens, making it one of my favorite characterful, food-friendly reds for regular drinking. The current strength of the Euro has pushed this Dolcetto’s price point into the low $20s, making it somewhat less casual in application. $21. 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Imported by Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.

Langhe Nebbiolo, G.D. Vajra 2006
Vajra’s Nebbiolo can often be extremely tightly wound when first released. Aromatically, this 2006 is no exception to that rule. However, it is already open-knit and unfurling wonderfully on the palate. Fresh, soft raspberry fruit, with nuances of rose petals, five spice and cinnamon. Firm acid lends a slight tanginess that is followed by delicate yet firm grip and excellent persistence, suitable for mid-term cellaring. I visited Vajra’s estate, located on the hillside above the hamlet of Barolo, two years ago. I’m so far behind on writing up winery profiles, which I’m trying to do chronologically, that for now I’ll have to fall back on the occasional tasting note. $27. 13.5% alcohol. Natural cork. Imported by Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.

Lessona “Omaggio a Quintino Sella,” Aziende Agricole Sella 1999
This is Sella’s top wine, made only in strong vintages from a selection of the estate’s best barrels of Lessona. A blend of 80% Nebbiolo and 20% Vespolina, it spends a full three years in large barrels of old wood before bottling. When first opened, it reminded me immediately of a slightly sterner, more brooding version of the regular Lessona from 2001 (see link in the “Orbello” note above). Dried cherries and rosemary aromas hovered above an integrated wood-driven structure. Leather and wild cherry fruit followed in the mouth, with supple tannins, a rather narrow mid-palate and somewhat short finish. First impressions changed quickly with a bit of time in the glass, as the wine took on greater breadth and body, with a much rounder, purer mid-palate. Fuzzy red berry fruit and a little dusty attic kicked in on the finish. There’s plenty of life left here. Decanting would certainly be appropriate. $50. 12.5 % alcohol. Natural cork. Imported by Selected Estates of Europe, Mamaroneck, NY.

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