Notes from a Sunday: A Wicked Pair of 2005s

Just some thoughts on a couple of great reds for today, enjoyed among friends with supper on a recent Sunday.

Arbois Pupillin (Ploussard), Maison Pierre Overnoy (Emmanuel Houillon) 2005
~$35. 12.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.
There are a good deal of differing opinions in the thread on this one at Wine Disorder (no surprise there), with some finding Houillon's '05 Poulsard spot on, others too young, and yet others oxidized or simply not happening. The winemaker himself was apparently less than thrilled with the 2005 vintage for his red, which went through an uncommonly long fermentation (don't know exactly how long). Even so, it sounds to me like there's a rash of bottle variation and/or poorly handled bottles floating around.

On the night in question, this particular bottle was a pure joy to drink. Insanely direct, tangy and full of mouthwatering red sour patch fruit. This is not about complexity at the moment; rather, it's all about the moment itself. Shining its usual, beautiful green-tinged rose petal color, I could have drunk it all night and been very happy. There were other things waiting, though...

Morey Saint Denis "Vieilles Vignes," Jacky Truchot 2005
~$45 on release. 12.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA
This was rich by Truchot's standards of delicacy and transparency, showing the concentration of the 2005 vintage as well as plenty of promise. Here, though, was the painful youth. It was hard not to like, with its finely detailed fruit and balance, but this one's really needing and deserving several more years of cool, dark slumber. Luckily (for him and occasionally for me), my friend Bill seems to have a near endless stash of Truchot lurking about his various wine nooks. And no, I won't tell you where he lives.

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Pinot Noir de la Loire

I trust you'll all forgive me for taking a short break from Piedmont coverage. Since I returned home, I've been mixing things up a good bit (not a drop of Nebbiolo yet!) and thought I'd put in a good word for a truly pretty red from the Upper Loire that crossed my table earlier this week.

With apologies to the label designer and M. Boulay, those blasted oversized bottles (this isn't one of them) really do a number on other bottles' labels when they're squeezed into cellar bins that were never meant to accommodate their impressive girth.

Sancerre Rouge, Gérard Boulay 2007
$27. 13% alcohol. Cork. Importer: A Thomas Calder Selection, Potomac Selections, Landover, MD.
When last I wrote about Gérard Boulay, I mentioned that startlingly little information is available on the web regarding the man and his wines. Given that, perhaps it shouldn't have come as a surprise that my write-up of his '06 Sancerre rouge has proven to be one of the most frequently stumbled upon posts here at MFWT over the last year. I popped a bottle of his '07 Sancerre rouge a few days back and, though it may not have been quite so vividly fine as the '06, it was immensely pleasurable. Full of oh-so-pretty red fruit (sweet, with just the slightest suggestion of tart) and lively acidity, surprisingly forward yet finishing with a delectable nuance of bright minerality. Very food friendly and very, very approachable, it's hard to pass up right now though I suspect it will also prove interesting with a few years of rest in the cellar.

The title of today's post includes an intentional play on words on my part. Rhyming aside, it's meant to evoke the name of what's arguably the Loire's greatest wine grape, Chenin Blanc, which is locally known as Pineau de la Loire.

Though it will come as no surprise to many of you that are well versed in the lore of the Loire, as a wine retailer, I meet wine lovers everyday, at a variety of interest and knowledge levels, who are stunned to find that such a thing as red (and/or rosé) Sancerre exists. When, in answer to the inevitable question, I tell them it's produced from Pinot Noir, the response is most often one of pleasant surprise. And the most common question: what's it like?

Well, I don't sell this one but, if I did, my response should be obvious from the quick description above. Delicious. While it's considerably more expensive here on the east coast than on the west, Gérard Boulay's version is still a sound value at its price point in the $30 range, and very much worth seeking out.

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Châteaumeillant in Focus

Looking to stump your favorite geek of French wines? Or at least throw him a curveball? The upper, outer reaches of the Loire might not be a bad place to start. Just about any VDQS designated area might do the trick as well. Combine the two and the odds will be stacked in your favor.


Châteaumeillant VDQS “Extra-Version,” Domaine Geoffrenet-Morval (Laure and Fabien Geoffrenet) 2006
$20. 13% alcohol. Cork. Importer: A Thomas Calder Selection, Potomac Selections, Landover, MD.

I went into this one with just enough knowledge to be dangerous. Neither I nor any of my table mates had ever tried a wine from Châteaumeillant. I was pretty sure it was a wine village located somewhere in the Upper Loire, vaguely in the vicinity of Sancerre… or maybe Saint-Pourçain. I knew that the red wines produced there are usually made primarily from Gamay. And that’s about it. One might call it blurry tasting, an idea supported by my rather simple – and slightly questioning – raw tasting notes:

Distinctly mineral, with pretty black cherry and violet/rose petal aromas. Tastes and feels more like a softer, rounder wine from Saint-Pourçain or Côtes du Forez than Beaujolais. Pure Gamay? Gentle, medium acidity. Macerated cherries.

While I do believe there are merits to blind tasting, I’m a much more avid supporter (and regular practitioner) of the importance of contextual tasting. Knowing a little up front about the wine and its frame of reference may indeed create certain preconceived notions but it also helps create a stronger base for understanding and learning. What I expected in this case was a wine that would taste like Upper Loire Gamay. While some of my expectations were met, just as many questions were raised. It sure didn’t taste like Gamay-dominated wine but, just in case it’s not clear, it did taste really good. And it did taste very much like red wine from the Upper Loire – bright, delicate, mineral and full of tangy cherry fruit.

I was right about some things going into our tasting. Situated 70 km south of Bourges, Châteaumeillant is indeed in the general vicinity of both Sancerre, which is roughly 110 km to the NNE, and Saint-Pourçain, about 88 km ESE of Châteaumeillant. (Here's the INAO map of the region.) The reds and rosés from the area – it’s not a white wine zone – generally are dominated by Gamay, with Pinot Noir and/or Pinot Gris sometimes playing supporting roles.

But there were definitely some things to be learned along the way. Technically, though it’s a rather fine distinction, Châteaumeillant is not in the Upper Loire but in the Central Vineyards, an area named for its proximity to the geographical center of France. It’s actually situated between the Upper Indre and the Upper Cher, in the SW corner of the Cher Department. And as it turns out, the “Extra” in “Extra-Version” refers to Pinot Noir – to the tune of 80%. From Domaine Geoffrent-Morval’s website:

"The vintage 'Extra-Version' is made from 10 year old vines of 80% pinot noir and 20% gamay, made into wine in wooden barrels, [then] raised in stainless steel vats. It only represents a maximum of 10% of our production since it does not follow the direction that we wish to give to our Appellation in keeping with the harmony of wines of Chateaumeillant (100% gamay with possibly extra support of pinot noir to a maximum of 40%)."

The Châteaumeillant growers union has recently petitioned the INAO for promotion of the Châteaumeillant appellation from VDQS to AOC status. Though I don’t know what the specific requirements for the AOC, if granted, will be, Geoffrenet-Morval’s notes would tend to suggest that their “Extra Version” may end up falling outside of the AOC guidelines. However, even if the wine isn’t “in keeping with the harmony of wines of Châteaumeillant” – impossible for me to say given that this was my first experience with any wine from Châteaumeillant – it certainly is in keeping with the style, feel and expression of reds from the Central Vineyards and Upper Loire. I look forward to exploring the other wines from this producer and other examples from this, perhaps, soon-to-be AOC.

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Sancerre Rouge, Gérard Boulay 2006

Alarmingly little has been written about the wines of Gérard Boulay around the vInternet. Jim Budd sums the situation up succinctly: “Gérard Boulay [is] a very good Chavignol producer a little in the style of Cotat and… deserves to be better known.” Boulay has no website. The smattering of blog posts I stumbled across in the scope of my research included only glancing reviews of one or another of his Sancerres Blancs. One of the few really informative pieces I found comes from Jancis Robinson who, in writing of Boulay’s 2006 Sancerre “Les Monts Damnés,” includes some useful information about the estate and also takes some time to laud the efforts of the importer bringing Boulay’s wines into the UK market.

I must say I’m equally impressed with Gérard Boulay’s wine, and with my recent experiences with one of his US importers – Potomac Selections, based in Landover, MD. Their portfolio absolutely offers more to explore; however, their book is not available in PA, so I’ll have to make the occasional trip south of the Mason-Dixon Line to continue the exploration.


Sancerre Rouge, Gérard Boulay 2006
$27. 13% alcohol. Cork. A Thomas Calder Selection, Potomac Selections, Landover, MD.
Gérard Boulay owns and farms nine hectares of vineyards in Chavignol, most of them planted on the chalk and limestone rich Kimmeridgian “terre blanche” soils for which the area is best known and from which some of the best wines of Sancerre stem. Boulay’s neighbors in Chavignol include Edmond Vatan and the Frères Cotat; like them, he works his vines and earth completely by hand and makes his wines with minimal manipulation, ambient yeast fermentation and only the smallest possible doses of sulfur dioxide.

Boulay’s 2006 Sancerre Rouge shows the elegance of the vintage. Entirely transparent in the glass, pale at the rim and light ruby at its core, the wine brims with sinewy cherry pit fruit, a suggestion of cola (without the sweetness that often accompanies it) and a furry, herbal aroma – sage, perhaps. There’s a spice cabinet element on the nose; I’m guessing this sees partial aging in older barrels (as do some of his whites), though I have no hard data to support that feeling, just my gut reaction. It’s one of the more forward-fruited Sancerres Rouges I’ve had – there’s no lean, green machine here – yet it’s still entirely finesse-driven wine. I found background aromas of lime rind, acidity that’s at once gentle and slightly tangy, and the expected minerality of classic Sancerre, even if it didn’t jump out and beg to be noticed.

The wine sallied effortlessly into its second day, maintaining its fresh structural aspects and revealing rounder aromatic and flavor components. Orange peel and sandalwood on the nose; dried cherries and raspberry confiture on the front and mid-palates; cranberries and apple sauce on the finish. Lovely stuff. A shockingly good match with lightly steamed (and pristinely fresh) broccoli, of all things. And relative to its peers, quite a sound value.

Lucie and Gérard Boulay in their plot of the “Clos de Beaujeu.” The image is borrowed, with my thanks, from Polaner Selections (another of Boulay’s importers), as is this well-worn quote from Monsieur Boulay himself, “C’est la nature qui fait le vin.”

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Pif Night Wines

As promised, here are a few thoughts on the wines we opened at "Pif night" on a recent trip to Ansill. The great thing about BYOs (or BYO nights at normally non-BYO restaurants) is the opportunity they afford to open and enjoy several wines at dinner without running up an astronomical tab. Given the $15 corkage policy on regular evenings at Ansill, I'd be inclined to carry my own juice on any night of the week, not just Tuesday or Sunday.


Vouvray “Cuvée de Silex,” Domaine des Aubuisières (Bernard Fouquet) 2007
$16. 13% alcohol. Stelvin. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA.
Where has this been all my life? Really delicious young Vouvray, just about all you could ask for from a wine at this price point. In terms of both aroma and palate, it displayed a classic up-front profile of d’Anjou pear, honeysuckle, honey-laced apples and a touch of succulent stoniness. Its sec-tendre style (just slightly off-dry), along with visceral, shimmering acidity, makes this an ideal aperitif and a solid choice for shellfish dishes (think scallops) or a cheese course. It should also be quite suitable for mid-term aging.

By odd coincidence, given that I had carried this from home and bemoaned the absence of anything interesting on the wine list at Ansill, it turned out that one of my coworkers was sitting in another restaurant about eight blocks to the north, at the very same time, and ordered this exact wine from the restaurant’s list. If their wine list is any indication of what they’re up to, I’ll need to give Fork a revisit sometime soon. It’s a spot I frequented when they first opened but have neglected for many a year now.


Bourgogne Rouge “Cuvée Prestige,” Domaine Philippe Charlopin-Parizot 2005
$32. 13% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Elite Wines, Washington, DC.
I’m not sure how to explain the fact that, to the eye, this looked transparent and pale in the bottle but inexplicably dark in the glass. My other sensory abilities, though, told me that this was probably a little heat whacked. Soft, even a little spongy in texture, with sweet red fruit and an almost Port-like nose. The alcohol stood to one side, the wine to the other, with a gap in between. Hardly the epitome of Burgundian grace. When all was said and done, it was short and simple. Almost certainly a compromised bottle.

Marsannay “Langeroies,” Domaine René Bouvier 2005
$38. 13% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Elite Wines, Lorton, VA.
Sniff. Ahh, that’s more like it. There were some definite modern evocations at play but plenty of interest as well. Oak was evident but well knit, allowing the bright, gamy and wild red-fruited character of the wine to leap up and strut its stuff. Cherry stones, blackberries and thyme all came to mind. Excellent balance and quite food friendly, there was a very attractive sappiness – a sense of green energy – at the wine’s core. Definitely worth seeking out, this is offering plenty of drinking pleasure already but should only get more interesting in a few years. A pretty solid value given the economics of the vintage.

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Exploring Burgundy: Bourgogne Passetoutgrain

In one sense, Bourgogne Passetoutgrain is one of the easiest to understand of Burgundy’s multitude of appellations. Just follow the typical blending recipe of around 1/3 Pinot Noir and 2/3 Gamay – the fruit can be grown anywhere in Burgundy – and you’ve got the basics covered.

Of course, there’s at least a little more to it than that. Passetoutgrain (sometimes written as Passe-Tout-Grains) is a regional appellation spanning over 1200 hectares of potential vineyard area from the Yonne Department in the north to the Mâconnais in the south. Unlike Bourgogne Rouge, which is nearly always varietal Pinot Noir, Bourgogne Passetoutgrain must always be a blended red wine. The AOC discipline requires at least 1/3 Pinot Noir and allows for up to but not more than 2/3 Gamay. Additionally, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris may be included up to a cumulative maximum of 15%. All varieties are typically co-fermented. The wines are generally designed for early, casual drinking.

As with the misleadingly apparent simplicity of understanding Bourgogne Rouge, there can actually be much more to Passetoutgrain than the above definitions suggest. Stylistic expressions of Passetoutgrain don’t tend to be as diverse as with Bourgogne Rouge. However, as with Bourgogne, a Passetoutgrain from a large négociant house may include fruit sourced from throughout all of Burgundy, truly a broadly regional expression. The wine from a small grower, on the other hand, may come solely from one village or even one vineyard. While I’d never hold up a Passetoutgrain as an exemplar of the typicity of, say, Gevrey or Chambolle, a PTG sourced purely from one of those villages is likely to have different character than one from the Mâcon or from one that represents a hodgepodge of sources. Add to that the available blending options, not to mention the question of quality, and there’s actually quite a range of possibilities. If such things matter to you – hence much of the conundrum with understanding Burgundy – the only real way to begin to know the wine is to get to know the producer.


Bourgogne Passetoutgrain “L’Exception,” Domaine Michel Lafarge 2004
Domaine Lafarge, a twelve-hectare property situated in Volnay, traces its history back to the early 19th Century. Frédéric Lafarge, working alongside his father Michel, converted the estate to completely biodynamic practices as of 2000. Lafarge’s “L’Exception” is a special cuvée, produced from very old vines, which has built a reputation for being more cellar-worthy than most other Passetoutgrains, including the estate’s regular bottling. This 2004 would seem to speak to that, as it’s still carrying plenty of vitality and should live at least a few more years before beginning its decline. It’s medium-bodied, lean and edgy in texture, with granitic minerality and a spicy, smoky personality. Clove, corned beef and pipe resin dominate the nose, while a stemmy, red berry character buzzes through on the palate. A classic Passetoutgrain sparring match between high-toned background notes and a rustic exterior. It’s also very food friendly. $25. 12.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Wine Cellars Ltd., Briarcliff, NY.

Vineyard image courtesy of Domaine Michel Lafarge.

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Exploring Burgundy: Irancy

Irancy is a small hamlet, with little over 300 inhabitants, situated roughly equidistant from Auxerre and Chablis, within the viticultural heart of the Auxerrois district of the Yonne Department. As in the neighboring wine villages of Chitry and Saint-Bris, the wines of Irancy make relatively rare appearances on the export market but can be extremely characterful when at their best. Formerly labeled as Bourgogne Irancy, the village was granted full communal AOC status, only for red wines, in 1998, its titular subjugation to Bourgogne thenceforth becoming unnecessary.

At latitude 47° 43' North – similar in position to Seattle, Washington or St. Johns, Newfoundland – Irancy is situated at such a northerly location that the wines can vary significantly from one year to the next, reflecting changes in vintage character even more obviously than the reds of the Côte d’Or. What really sets Irancy apart, though, is the autochthonous vine César, originally planted by the Romans.

The amphitheater-like lay of the Irancy landscape helps protect the vines from frost and ensures enough sunlight for fruit to ripen in this otherwise peripheral location.
Jancis Robinson, in her typically phlegmatic fashion, dismisses César with a quick wave of a hand in her tome, Vines, Grapes & Wines. Nonetheless, I am indebted to her for a thorough cataloging of César’s synonyms, which include Céear, Célar, Romain, Ronçain, Picargneau, Gros Monsieur and Gros Noir. And here’s a little more Césarian trivia for you. To my knowledge, Irancy is the only site specific AOC in Burgundy where the inclusion of a variety aside from Pinot Noir is considered traditional (though it’s still not required). It’s allowed – essentially as a seasoning variety – only up to 10% but, when used, offers enough of a peppering to make its personality known.


Irancy “Vieilles Vignes,” Domaine Anita, Jean-Pierre & Stéphanie Colinot 2004
Jean-Pierre Colinot should appear on just about every short list of the top producers in Irancy, not that there are many such lists given the relative obscurity of the AOC. He, his wife Anita and their daughter Stéphanie tend 12.5 hectares of vines, producing roughly 5,000 cases of wine per year. There’s a lovely profile of his estate in the Fodor’s Rivages volume, Wines and Vineyards of Character and Charm in France. The authors describe Jean-Pierre as “A magnificent raconteur who tells you about his village… and champions the César, ‘the archaeological grape variety of Irancy’…. Like the man, the red wines here have character and they talk back.” As I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting M. Colinot, I can’t speak to his garrulousness; however, having drunk his wines over the years, I can vouch for the character of his wines and his championing of César.

Colinot’s Irancy are always more deeply colored than most other reds of the Yonne, no doubt due to the inclusion of the dark fleshed César in most if not all of his cuvées. The César also tends to lend a rustic, spicy character to the more delicate inclinations of Auxerrois Pinot Noir. It shows in the estate’s 2004 Irancy “Vieilles Vignes” via immediate aromas of black pepper, burnt rubber and rhubarb. This is not your silky, sexy rendition of red Burgundy but it does deliver plenty of character, as promised. After about 15 minutes of aeration, its reductive tendencies subside and a sweet and sour, glazed red fruit element emerges which, with further air, develops into more clearly focused aromas and flavors of sweet red raspberries. Firm grip and tensile acidity, along with relatively lean fruit and those initially wild aromas, add a foreboding character to the wine as a stand-alone sipper but help it to really come alive in the presence of food. It is still showing plenty of freshness and should develop positively for another three-to-five years and continue to hold its own for up to ten. $18 on release. 13% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Wine Traditions, Falls Church, VA.

* * *
For those whose French is passable, or for those like me who are in dire need of practice, the Syndicat des Viticulteurs d’Irancy maintains a well designed and informative website, including a neat profile of Domaine Colinot. I’m indebted to the Syndicat for most of the photos used here, save that of the bottle with le chien qui s’appelle Luc, which is my own.

Referenced texts:

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Quick Sips

Recently, I had a chance to revisit Jacky Truchot’s 2005 Bourgogne Rouge. Really, it was everything you could ask for in a glass of young Burgundy. Purity of aroma, finely detailed texture and totally focused flavors. I blinked and missed the opportunity to buy any of Domaine Truchot-Martin’s ‘05s. A shame, as I love the wines and it was Jacky’s last vintage before retiring, with no heirs to continue his work. The man’s wines will be missed. Luckily, I have a good friend who caught the train and who’s generous enough to share. With each sip, it seems a little like drinking history. But then, I suppose you could say that about all real wine.

On a lighter note, Movia’s 2005 Tocai Friulano, which I wrote up on Friday, held up beautifully into its second day. Taking on a rounder, slightly softer feel, it also picked up a seductively sweet herbaceousness that was hidden on day one. Exactly what I imagine cannabis honey would taste like. Does anyone produce such a thing?

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Brooklynguy Cooks

WARNING: This is a happy post. Read with caution, as it may engender good feelings.

One of the most beautiful aspects of my recent sojourn to New York was the opportunity it provided to meet up with some of my fellows in the New York wine and food community. It’s unfair to pick highlights, but I’m hard pressed not to reflect upon the invitation to sup Chez Brooklynguy as a wonderful occasion. Such hospitality, extended to a stranger outside of the kinship we’d developed in the blogosphere, was heartwarming – and bellywarming. I knew Brooklynguy (aka, Neil) loves wine; it turns out that he also loves to cook. And he cooks damn well, with far more heart and soul than I’d experienced in the food at Del Posto the night before.


The floral and savory intensity of his pasta tossed with marjoram, ricotta and sautéed zucchini captured the essence of a summer garden. Kebabs of grilled pork, marinated in green garlic and Brooklynguy’s secret spice rub, provided the pièce de résistance.


While we were at it – surprise, surprise – we managed to taste a few wines. We opened with a bottle of Champagne I’d brought along from the home cellar just for the occasion, knowing of the predilection that both Brooklynguy and Brooklynlady share for the bubbly stuff. For details on that, though, you’ll need to wait, as I’ve been invited to guest blog this week’s edition of Friday Night Bubbles. Stay tuned for it over at Brooklynguy’s blog. For the rest of the evening, Neil made a point of trying to select wines I might not drink regularly. He succeeded.


Anjou Blanc “La Lune,” La Ferme de la Sansonnière (Mark Angéli) 2005
This was my first exposure to any of the wines from Mark Angéli’s estate, La Ferme de la Sansonnière, and I hope it won’t be my last. Angéli’s 2005 Anjou Blanc “La Lune” is totally Rubenesque, displaying feminine delicacy of aromas and fruit while feeling entirely voluptuous in the mouth. Sec-tendre, meaning just slightly off-dry in style, it shows both the concentration and underlying structure, via its very grippy texture, of the 2005 vintage. Initially very closed on the nose, it gave up only hints of honeysuckle and white grapiness. Painfully young Chenin. Delicious stuff to drink, though. With air, greater mineral intensity and layered complexity emerged. A producer I’ll have to watch.

As a note of interest, if you take a close look at the photo of the bottle, you’ll see that Angéli has joined the ranks of artisanal, natural producers choosing to provide detailed info on their labels – “Composition: Fermented grape juice and 42 milligrams per liter of volcanic sulfur dioxide.” It’s also certified biodynamic via Demeter. Price unknown (~$25). 14% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.


Yamhill-Carlton District Pinot Noir “Belle Pente Vineyard,” Belle Pente Wine Cellars 2005
Smarts the likes of Brooklynguys’s weren’t necessary to figure this one out. In the history of MFWT, I’ve never before written up an Oregon wine. I do taste Oregonian juice in the line of duty from time to time but I rarely if ever buy any. Be that as it may, I could see a bit of disappointment come across BG’s visage when he first tasted the wine, as I think he was keeping his fingers crossed for something more compelling. He need not have feared. I liked the wine.

Belle Pente ferments their wines using indigenous yeasts and that telltale wild, earthy aroma was plain as soon as I put my nose in the glass. Simple it may have been, dominated by typically black cherry cola fruit, but the wine was balanced, bright, forthright and not at all domineering. It was even a reasonably good match with my host’s wonderful pork kebabs. I’m not sure I’ll rush right out to buy more but I can say that it delivers greater pleasure than most other $30ish Oregon Pinot Noirs I’ve tried in recent years. Price unknown (~$30). 13.3% alcohol. Cork.

I’d love to coax Neil and some of the other pals I had a chance to visit down to Philly, as I’d love to return the favor and share in more good food and wine. But I’ll be hard pressed to live up to the generosity I was shown in New York. It was a great time, plain and simple.

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Notes from a Sunday: Memorial Weekend Edition

In between the two sessions of grilling covered in my last post, I accepted an invite from friends for a slightly different vein of Memorial weekend dining. Bill was planning to roast a leg of lamb from the highly acclaimed Jamison Farm. I was only too happy to oblige in helping to put a dent in said leg. As it turned out, he also had his mind set on pulling corks from a few heavy hitters and some bottles with sentimental associations. We actually dove straight into a Grand Cru Chablis. After a cursory taste, however, we opted to retreat temporarily toward something simpler, certainly of interest but a touch less daunting as an aperitif – and no cork involved.

Pfalz Weißer Burgunder Kabinett trocken, Weingut Münzberg (Lothar Kessler & Söhne) 2006
Along with their full range of other specialties, the Kessler sons, Gunther and Rainer, turn out pure, vibrant examples of Pfalz Weißer Burgunder (aka, Pinot Blanc) from their family estate, Weingut Münzberg. There’s an aspect right up front in this wine that The VLM and, apparently, David Schildknecht, writing about Weißer Burgunder in general, both nailed: creamed corn. While I’ve cited that flavor in a negative context in a past tasting note (on Tocai, not Pinot Blanc), here it’s an integral part of the wine, forward at first but eventually fading and intertwining with the wine’s more elegant facets. Those facets of elegance are expressed by the white peach and yellow apple fruit and the fine mineral character that emerge with aeration. There’s an overall impression of medium acidity and clean, crisp framework. The integrated nuance of corn adds freshness as well as a sweet, starchy flavor snap, which is finished off by a tactile suggestion of white grape skins. A good quaffer and quite food friendly, it’s only a shame that it no longer sells for the $15 price tag of a couple of years ago. $20. 12% alcohol. Vinolok. Importer: Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.

Chablis Grand Cru “Les Clos,” Vincent Dauvissat 2005
Right out of the barrel, so to speak, this showed classic Dauvissat flavors of lemon rind dusted generously over white river stones that have yet to be polished to complete smoothness. Along with good persistence, there’s a very sapid wood element, already well integrated. In fact, as far as integration goes, I was surprised at how well this terribly young wine was showing already. Plenty of lime pith and mineral laced fruit on the palate. I got the sense as the wine warmed and aired a bit that, wrapped up by its currently gripping acidity, there’s a richer, more voluptuous wine waiting to emerge. At this point in its evolution though, I was surprised by its overall lack of concentration and muscle. Very good wine but not clearly elevated above or differentiated from Dauvissat’s Premier Cru offerings. Price unknown; currently sells online for $125-225. 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL.


What goes well with purple fingerlings? Truchot's Gevrey-Chambertin worked out quite nicely.
Gevrey-Chembertin Premier Cru “Aux Combottes” Vieilles Vignes, Jacky Truchot-Martin 2003
Even though I sold Truchot's Burgundies for a short period many years ago, I owe the majority of my more recent experiences with Jacky Truchot’s wines to Bill; he’s got to be one of the now retired producer’s biggest fans. This one was a showstopper. Say what you will about the ripe-fruited or even atypical aspects of 2003 Burgundy, here the quality of the vintage brought sheer loveliness into play. Immediate impressions were of pickled plums and Christmas spice cake, with signature Truchot aromas of wild cherries and clay lurking beneath. There was another element that took me a few moments to nail down: sarsaparilla (sasparilla, if you prefer). Really beautiful wine. Silky, fine tannins, balanced acidity, sweet, nuanced fruit; it had the whole package and then some. I hope, for Bill’s sake, not mine, that he has more of this stashed away for another day. Price unknown; most likely $70-100. 11-14% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Weygandt/Metzler, Unionville, PA.

Sancerre “Clos la Neore,” Edmond Vatan 2006
After the Gevrey-Chambertin and a wonderful plate of roast lamb, fingerling potatoes and sautéed chard, I’ll admit to having a hard time giving Vatan’s Sancerre the attention it was due. Good company and good food put it into perspective as something that was opened just for pure enjoyment – not that the other wines weren’t as well. What I can say is that Vatan’s Sancerre is like few others. It lacks the fresh, fruity attack of lemon and grapefruit tones of much other Upper Loire Sauvignon. However, it makes up for that with intense stoniness – more round than racy – a highly perfumed aspect of lime oil and muscular, fleshy acidity. The wine’s intense physiological extract suggests both very old vines and very low yields. Though I’ve never had a mature bottle, I expect that this could get very interesting with age. Regrettably, if my understanding is correct, 2006 was Vatan’s last vintage. It’s not cheap for Sancerre but, if your budget allows, it would be worth snagging a bottle or two while the possibility of doing so remains. $49. 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Wine Cellars Ltd., Briarcliff Manor, NY. “Acquired from a Private Collection.”

Loazzolo “Piasa Rischei” Vendemmia Tardive, Forteto della Luja 2003
Given that fresh berries are coming into season, it seemed to make sense to open something sticky as accompaniment. Mr. and Mrs. Bill visited Forteto della Luja on their honeymoon and haven’t stopped raving about the Scaglione family’s wines. Loazzolo is a small DOC zone situated in the Langhe hills near Asti, Alba and Acqui Terme. The single vineyard “Piasa Rischei” is a blend of 95% Moscato and 5% Passula, one of several wines produced at Forteto della Luja but the only one that falls under the Loazollo DOC. It’s not just a late harvest wine but also a long harvest wine; picking begins in late September and continues into November. At each tri, harvesters select only fruit that is showing early signs of being affected by botrytis. About 15% of the fruit goes through the passito process, being partially dried on canvas mats.

The end result is a still wine with surprising density and concentration. Given the relatively dark flavors and lower than typical frizz of their Moscato d’Asti, which I’d tried on an earlier occasion, I shouldn’t have been surprised. Ripe, musky melon and honeyed peach fruit intermingle with the golden aromas of autumn leaves in a dry forest. Sweet, loamy and spicy, this was as contemplative as it was easy to enjoy at the end of a lovely evening. Price unknown. 11.5% alcohol. Natural cork. Purchased in situ.

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Notes from a Sunday

The first wild salmon of the season, from the Columbia River I believe, provided ample reason to get together with some of the usual suspects last Sunday to enjoy a meal, watch the finale of the first road stage of the Giro d’Italia, see the Flyers lose to the Penguins in NHL playoff action, and pull a few corks along the way. A mostly unplanned Pinot Noir theme turned out to pay dividends at the table.

Marsannay Rosé, Domaine Collotte 2007
Salmon pink, with just a tinge of copper and rose petal at the edges. Clean and fruity in style, with aromas of spring peas and strawberry. Simple, feminine, very pretty and eminently quaffable, this bears – not surprisingly – more in common with other cool climate rosés, such as Sancerre and Chinon, than with the more herbaceous and often sturdier rosés of Provence and other sunnier climes. Choice as an aperitif, I could also see this pairing nicely with a picnic of cold chicken and crusty bread. $18. 12% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA.


Arbois Pinot Noir, Jacques Puffeney 2004
Though I think any of the evening’s wines would have worked well with the dee-lish dish of wild salmon, braised corn and shiitakes served up by my generous host, Puffeney’s Pinot Noir was serendipitously perfect. Twangy, edgy and full of savory acidity, with cherry pit and mineral elements on the palate. Initial aromas of wintergreen and sous-bois led with aeration to sweeter aromas of strawberry-rhubarb crumble, all finished off by a hint of seashell, solid mid-palate feel and pretty decent length. Excellent food wine and, while not inexpensive, a pretty solid value as it stands right up to most red Burgundy at the same price point. Plus, it’ll earn you more wine geek bonus points. $25. 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchants, New York, NY.

Nuits-Saint-Georges “Vieilles Vignes,” Domaine Robert Chevillon 2004
Some of the foremost authorities on the wines of Burgundy write of Chevillon with words of reverence. To quote just one, Matt Kramer writes:

“Simply put, this is the supreme domaine in Nuits-Saint Georges…. This is Nuits-Saint Georges as it should be but so rarely is: concentrated, tannic, almost painfully intense, yet with no apparent winemaking signature.”
- from Making Sense of Burgundy, 1990

That the painful intensity and tannic structure have already subsided in this ’04 from Chevillon – if they were indeed there earlier on – goes hand in hand with my other immediate impressions. This is delicate, graceful and deep, far less dark and brooding than I would normally expect from Nuits-Saint-Georges, even in a lighter, livelier vintage. It is indeed free of discernible signature. Medium garnet color, with a nose of cloves and brambly wild blackberries. Fine, gravelly tannins provide lovely texture that, along with excellent acid balance, shoot sparks of red and black fruit across the palate. Another excellent food wine. Lovely contrast between precocious fruit and accents of sweetness. If only I had a few more for the cellar. $50. 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Wine Cellars Ltd., Briarcliff Manor, NY (“acquired from a private cellar”).

Coteaux du Layon “Carte d’Or,” Domaine des Baumard 2004
While the prices of Baumard’s Savennières and Quarts de Chaume have crept up steadily over the last few years, his Coteaux du Layon wines have held relatively steady. Like those of Château Soucherie, one of which I wrote up in the last installment of Notes from a Sunday, they remain solid values. Its aromas include peach blossoms, mango and clover honey. Scintillating acidity delivers waves of intensely concentrated pear fruit across the palate. Very primary at first, only with substantial air did the expected minerality emerge, accompanied by an accent of miso. Paired admirably with strawberries macerated with fresh mint (as did the Puffeney, oddly enough). $20. 12% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Ex Cellars, Solvang, CA.

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Dueling 2005 Auxey-Duresses Rouges

Along with lots of wines from Germany and the Loire, I’ve been on a wee Burgundy kick of late. That’s a good thing in my books, as Bourgogne, both white and red, can be some of the most compelling juice out there. It can also be a dangerous passion to pursue, as bargains are hard to come by in the wake of the currently dreadful performance of the US dollar. Luckily, there are still a few relatively obscure villages capable of producing solid values in both red and white Burgundy. One such AOC is Auxey-Duresses, a small commune located in the shadows of Meursault on the Côte de Beaune. As an increasing number of basic Bourgognes Rouges are breaking the $25-30 price barrier, it’s refreshing to find village level Burgundies available at that same price point. I checked in on a couple recently – one an old friend, one a new find.


Auxey-Duresses Rouge, Domaine Diconne 2005
I’ve been a fairly regular imbiber of the wines of Jean-Pierre (père) and Christophe (fils) Diconne for many years now. Both their rouges and blancs from Auxey-Duresses are typical expressions of their terroir. The red is usually pale to medium rosy red, lean and taut, with fine acidity, soft tannins and elegant perfume. When the 2005 first came ashore several months back, its darker than typical color bespake the generous climatic conditions of the 2005 vintage. Nonetheless, the wine was drinking well right off the bat, with silky, supple textures and fruit concentration to match its darker colors. Several months on, the wine seems to be going through a clumsy phase. The dark color and fruit are still plain to the eye and mouth but the wine’s acidity has become more jagged and frontal in its assault. Tannins, too, are more in evidence than earlier. A gravelly, wild black cherry character dominates but aromas have shut down and the fruit and overall balance are a touch disjointed. I think things will come back together with some time but this is definitely not giving the early drinking pleasure that it often does in more typical vintages. $26. 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.

Auxey-Duresses Rouge “Les Jonchères,” Domaine Billard Père et Fils 2005
I’d not had this in the past or heard anything about it for that matter but was comfortable in selecting it as I’ve had excellent success overall with the wines in the portfolio of its importer – Wine Traditions. If you’re looking for drink me now satisfaction, this delivers. Its color in the glass is more typical to Auxey, bright, pale and shimmering. Aromas of pure red cherry, red cassis and ripe raspberry are followed by similar flavors on the palate. Silky texture and graceful, medium acidity bring it all home. Excellent balance. This would work at the table with anything from baked salmon to roast chicken to simple pork chops. Nice stuff. I don’t think it will have the lifespan of Diconne’s A-D but it’s delivering far more immediate pleasure today. I’ll be headed back for more. $24. 13% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Wine Traditions, Falls Church, VA.

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Notes from a Sunday

This past Sunday was to have been a night out with friends for dinner in Philly. When crossed signals decreased our group by one, the rest forged ahead. We ran into a road block, though, when we realized that Sunday was the opening night of Philadelphia Restaurant Week (which ends today, by the way). Fixed price specials at spots all over town, along with a promotional media blitz, seemed to have brought the hungry out of the woodwork. Spur of the moment reservations were simply not to be had.

Rather than resulting in frustration and frowns, our thwarted plans simply made for a lovely alternative: dinner at home with friends and a few bottles of wine to try. While my hosts seasoned a rack of pork, cleaned and sliced potatoes for the roasting pan, and prepped some broccoli rabe to be sautéed, I uncorked a couple of whites.


Savennières “Clos du Papillon,” Domaine du Closel 2001
I’m a Savennières lover. There’s a bunch in my cellar and I wish there were room and budget for more. After trying the 2000 “Clos des Perrieres” from Château Soucherie earlier in the week, I was keen for more. The “Perrieres” was intriguing but left some questions in its wake; it was showing depth and layered flavors but also a significant level of oxidation. Maybe it was just a less than pristine bottle. Or perhaps it was just the wine, as I’ve seen other Loire Chenins suggest oxidation at mid-life and then somehow recover with more time in the bottle.

In any event, Closel’s 2001 “Clos du Papillon” was showing beautifully. We drank it as an aperitif – I’d love to have tried it with some oysters or scallops – and it showed loads of feminine grace. At first, it was extremely subtle, almost completely shut down on the nose. Very soft, round textures greeted the mouth, like letting a perfectly polished river rock roll about on your tongue. No oxidative tones here. It was still showing structural youth. Peach butter, lime minerality, toasted marshmallows and a little mango all came to mind. Soft but balanced acidity carried through to a persistent finish. A touch of heat emerged as the wine warmed in the glass but hardly enough to diminish its pleasures.
$23. 13.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis-Dressner, New York, NY.

Mâcon Solutré Pouilly, Domaine de la Chapelle 2006
The least elevated of the whites of Pascal and Catherine Rollet, the rest of which hail from Pouilly-Fuissé, this is a strong value in unoaked white Burg. With loads of clean pear fruit right up front, it smells like classic Mâconnais Chardonnay. Fresh, lively acidity gives a crunchy, toothsome mouthfeel that marries well with the wine’s interplay between sweet and tart apple fruit. Mint, tarragon and a touch of chalkiness emerge with aeration. At just over $15, I’d be happy to give this a spot in my regular rotation.
$16. 13.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA.

Marsannay “Les Longeroies,” Domaine Bruno Clair 2004
As this had been opened the day before, it was more of a taste for the purpose of satisfying curiosity than it was a drinker for dinner. Pale and bright in the glass. Sour wild cherry fruit, lean and green on the palate. Skin-driven astringency, high acidity and a vegetal mid-to-rear palate all suggested unripe fruit. Interesting from an academic perspective but not something I’ll go looking to buy, particularly at the $40ish price point.
$40. 13% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL.

With the pork roast and potatoes about to come out of the oven, we moved on to extracting corks from a couple of suitable reds.

Bourgogne, Bernard Dugat-Py 1999
As the condition of the label in the photo suggests, this bottle had come in and out of my cellar on more than one occasion. For whatever reason, I’d always been talked out of opening it. At around $25 on release, it wasn’t the price barrier but rather the hard to find nature of Dugat-Py’s Burgundies that had always made dining companions uncomfortable with its presence. On this night, I was committed to shrugging off any such objections.

As it turned out, the bottle’s previous return visits to the cellar had been propitious as this was showing very well at eight years of age. Deep garnet red in color, going just limpid around the edge of the glass. Plenty of chewy tannins suggest further aging potential but the medium-bodied, clove inflected, brambly black cherry fruit was hard to resist now. Beautifully aromatic, with spice, earth and black fruits galore. A solid pairing with the roast pork and taters.
$25 on release. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA.

Lessona, Aziende Agricole Sella 2001
Little known Lessona is nestled in the northeastern corner of Piedmont alongside Ghemme and Gattinara. The Nebbiolo-based wines grown here bear more in common with the wines of Valtellina, to the east in Lombardy, than with Barolo and Barbaresco, Piedmont’s more famous Nebbiolo zones. Sella’s Lessona makes for a worthy introduction to the typicity of wines from this high altitude, semi-mountainous growing region. Brisk acidity and sinewy structure combine with aromas and flavors of tar, raspberries, red licorice and stony minerality. Also a solid pairing with the evening’s meal. I’d like to see this come in closer to the $20 price point but it’s certainly compelling enough to make me want to try the estate’s other cuvées.
$27. 13% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Selected Estates of Europe, Mamaroneck, NY.

“Aurore d’Automne,” Domaine de Bellivière 2005
The wacky wine of the night for sure, “Aurore d’Automne” is also an intriguingly delicious sticky rosé from Le Loir, made from a blend of partially botrytized and partially dried Pineau d’Aunis and Grolleau. This was pulled out of the cellar primarily for something to check out and sip after dinner although it did acquit itself admirably with our simple dessert of chocolate/hazelnut gelato. The color of a new penny, with a nose that hit me right off with a whiff of curing tobacco. There was a barn used for exactly that purpose not far from where I grew up, so it’s one of those strong aroma memories left over from my childhood. Not far behind the tobacco came aromas of Douglass fir and red fruit confit. Sweetness is obvious but well balanced by firm acidity. Resin, sherry-like characteristics and rosemary all emerge as the wine develops, along with more delicate flavors of orange oil and rosewater. Even the napkin I used to wipe up a few drops lost to the table top smelled awfully good.
$48 (500ml). 11% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis-Dressner, New York, NY.

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Recent Tastes: Loire Chenin and Bourgogne Rouge

Vouvray "La Cuvée des Fondreaux," Champalou 2005
Toeing the line between sec-tendre and demi-sec, I would enjoy drinking this casually and regularly, particularly if it were $15 rather than $19-20. However, I can easily see, through this wine and others like it, why so many people seem perplexed by Vouvray, as its charms can be overshadowed by the perception and popular misconception of sweetness. Clover honey and pear nectar dominate, followed by relatively low acidity and soft, round texture. Reasonable length is delivered, helped along by the unctuous nature of the wine’s residual sugar, but this lacks the minerality and layered depth of more interesting Vouvray.
$19. 13% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Kermit Lynch, Berkeley, CA.

Savennières "Clos des Perrieres," Château Soucherie (Pierre-Yves Tijou) 2000
Immediately oxidative notes give way to beeswax intensity as this opens in the glass. Pear and quince follow, along with aromas of preserved lemons and verbena. It’s intensely stony in the mouth, a sensation that is magnified by the wine’s tooth-aching acidity. Hints of madeirization persist but more aromas – clover blossoms and crystallized ginger – continue to emerge. Texturally, it’s generous up front, firm and steely on the finish. If you’re holding several bottles of this vintage, it might be worth keeping a couple to track development; otherwise, drink up.
$25. 13% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Rosenthal, New York, NY.

Bourgogne "Pinot Noir," Domaine Heresztyn 2005
Lovely, fresh red fruits and tangy acidity. A slightly stewed nose also shows hints of sweet red cherries and vanilla, yet there’s no suggestion of heat damage or of woodiness. This is a pretty solid value in the increasingly untouchable world of Burgundy.
$20. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Kysela Père et Fils, Winchester, VA.

Maranges Premier Cru "Clos de la Fussière," Xavier Monnot 2005
Translucent yet a good deal darker in the glass than Heresztyn’s Bourgogne, this is showing firm, slightly astringent tannins… at least at first. It actually fluctuates, over the course of an hour, between generous and sinewy textures. Portobello mushrooms, espresso, black cherry skins, cinnamon bark and brambly herbaceous qualities all show up as the wine opens. This is interesting now and should develop well over the next few years. Another pretty good buy, from an importer whose wines I’ve tended to overlook for the past several years.
$25. 13.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Robert Kacher, Washington, DC.

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BYOB: Wines at Marigold Kitchen

Lest ye despair, faithful readers, that I have foregone the pleasures of wine at repast, fear not. I have just been focusing of late on catching up with things on the Philly front. And along the way, I’ve decided that when writing up BYOB restaurants, it would be best not to intertwine wine notes into the restaurant report. After all, wine at BYOs, though hardly an afterthought on my part, is not selected nor purveyed by the establishment.

One of the beautiful benefits of the BYOB culture so prevalent in Philadelphia is the opportunity it affords to sample several bottles over the course of a meal. Leftovers can always be carried home or, more magnanimously, shared with the service and kitchen staff or even with neighboring diners. At a licensed restaurant, one might be more likely to scrimp or hoard, as high mark-ups can quickly and quietly change an evening’s outing from comfortable to extravagant. When dining in spots with liquor licenses, I’ll continue to include wine and beverage commentary in the central report, as I consider the wine list an integral element of the overall full-service restaurant experience.

So, consider this episode one of a new thread: the BYO wine list. During a recent meal at Marigold Kitchen, my dining partners and I enjoyed...

Champagne Grand Cru “Cuvée Rosé,” Delavenne Père et Fils NV
Delavenne is a small grower producer (RM) Champagne house located in Bouzy, with vineyards there, in Ambonnay and in Cramant. Their “Cuvée Rosé” is not a rosé de saignée but rather a blend of 50% Chardonnay and 38% Pinot Noir (white juice only) made pink by the addition of 12% Bouzy Rouge, a still wine made from 100% Pinot Noir. Fresh and fruit forward, bursting with delicate aromas and flavors of raspberries, strawberries and orange peel, hinting only ever so slightly at an underlying yeastiness, it made for an excellent aperitif. By sheer stroke of luck, it turned out to be pretty tasty with our beet and almond amuse bouche.
$48. 12% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.


Kremstal Grüner Veltliner “Holzgasse” Qualitatswein trocken, Weingut Buchegger 2006
Austrian wine seems to have achieved a renaissance in the popular mind over the last few years, with the unfortunate side effect of sky-rocketing prices. A Federspiel from a good producer now often costs what a Smaragd from the same grower did only two or three years ago. That inflation has put an awful lot of tempting wines up in the $30+ starting price range. So when I found a Qualitatswein Grüner Veltliner priced in the mid-teens during a recent trip down to State Line Liquors, it caught my eye. The producer, Weingut Buchegger, was an unknown quantity to me; its importer, though, is on my short list of most trusted back labels. I snatched it up posthaste. Was it worth the money? Yes. Was it worth the enthusiasm? No. , Buchegger’s GV “Holzgasse” paired well enough in a neutral sense with appetizers ranging from sweetbreads to tuna carpaccio to celery root and hazelnut soup, yet it added little in the way of spark or nuance, serving mainly as clean, proper refreshment. Simple and slightly fat in texture, it was reasonably well balanced but lacked the nerve and peppery, citrus and floral characteristics I crave in a better example of Grüner Veltliner.
$17. 12.5% Alcohol. Stelvin closure. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler Importing, Unionville, PA.

Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits, Domaine Olivier & Anne-Marie Rion 2004
This turned out to be one of those wines that justified my practice of toting a half dozen bottles with me when I go to a BYOB. One reason for the heavy baggage is to allow for a range of choices to match the dishes that I and my dining partners select. The other primary reason is insurance. It’s extremely frustrating to arrive with only one bottle in hand, open it and find that it’s corked or otherwise flawed. It’s happened to me in the past and I won’t let it happen again.

This bottle wasn’t corked but it had clearly leaked. I immediately suspect heat damage in this scenario. However, this bottle was purchased at a temperature controlled wine shop which procures its goods through a climate controlled supply chain. It then slept for a year or two in my temp controlled cellar. Nonetheless, the cork was stained up and down its sides and oozing wine had formed a sticky mess under the capsule. Most likely, then, this was simply a faulty cork or a bottle that had been laid down in its box on the bottling line before its cork had time to expand and form a perfect seal. The end result, though the juice was still quite drinkable, was a wine that had been robbed by slight oxidation of both freshness and clarity of color. When last tasted, it was lively, bright and just coming into its own. This bottle was round, generous in texture yet dull in its acidity and features, like bland cherry compote. It was just alive enough to make an adequate mate to my pork loin and the olive oil poached salmon selected by one of my pals; it just wasn’t all it could have been.
$19. 13% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon “Estate Grown on Mount Veeder,” The Hess Collection 1997
Opened vaguely to accompany our cheese course but primarily as something to taste as we relaxed after dinner, this was also the sentimental selection of the evening. Our dining partners, visiting from California, had brought this bottle to me as a gift several years ago. It’s a shame that California Cabs built along this scale are all but a thing of the past. Though not as brooding and briary as wines more redolent of their Howell Mountain origins, this was well balanced, eminently drinkable and food friendly Cabernet. Its 13% alcohol is all but a thing of the past. Still showing potential for several more years in the cellar, there was plenty of freshness, with tannins full and plush. Black currant and blackberry fruit dominated with a touch of black cherry, cedar and spice rounding out the package.
Release price unknown. 13% alcohol. Natural cork closure.

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Pale at Heart

What is Coeur Blanc? Why is Coeur Blanc Special? How is Coeur Blanc Made? Why is Coeur Blanc Made?

These are the questions posed in the context of a full page ad which appeared in the December 15, 2007 edition of Wine Spectator. They’re repeated in similar terms on the branding page for Coeur Blanc, the latest stroke of genius from Oregon’s Domaine Serene. The last question is actually my snidely paraphrased version of another question posed on the product’s website, “Why do we make Coeur Blanc?” Why indeed?

“Coeur Blanc (White Heart) is a one-of-a-kind, barrel-fermented white wine made exclusively from mature Pinot Noir grapes. Gently pressing whole clusters limits contact with the red grape skins so that only the purest essence, or “white heart” juice, is expressed. This delicate approach creates an unprecedented dry wine from red grapes. Coeur Blanc is aged for 15 months in French oak barrels and a further 12 months in bottle prior to release. Enjoy!”
– Tony Rynders, Winemaker

Domaine Serene has already glommed plenty of attention for marketing the most expensive Oregon Pinot in history, the 2002 “Monogram,” released and sold-out at $200 per bottle. With the introduction, and subsequent sell-out, of their latest "new idea," I can’t help but believe that Serene is pulling the wool over its customers’ eyes. In the estate’s own cleverly spun words, “Less than half of the available juice is taken from each grape for Coeur Blanc, making it a rare and delicate style of Pinot Noir.” Hmmm, why didn't Roumier think of that? Or Domaine Romanée-Conti? The whole concept strikes me as suspiciously similar to one of the most typical ways of producing rosé wines, the saignée method, which has the inherent bonus of further concentrating the red wine from which it is bled via an increased ratio of skins to juice. Coeur Blanc is intentionally bereft of pinkness, through a total avoidance of skin contact. But do you really think they’re tossing more than half of the “available juice,” along with all those Pinot Noir skins and pips? I seriously doubt it. What better way for Domaine Serene to beef up a batch of red and build upon its reputation for producing a big, opulent style of Pinot Noir?

If Coeur Blanc was indeed Coeur Rose, and sold for – given US pricing standards – around $25 per bottle, I’d be absolutely fine with it. Willamette Valley Pinot Noir rosé? Why not? But a “barrel fermented white wine from Pinot Noir grapes” that is “extremely limited” and sells for sixty bucks? With that I take issue.

Lest I be accused of going on an unjustified slamming spree, let’s do a little research. According to the Spectator’s Harvey Steiman, writing on Domaine Serene’s own website, “The idea [for Coeur Blanc] came from a northern Italian vintner who makes a dry white wine from Pinot Noir by pressing the grapes, barrel fermenting them like a white wine, and letting them age on the lees like a Chardonnay.” The north, especially the northeast, of Italy happens to be one of the globe’s hotbeds of vinicultural experimentation. A cadre of wine makers there seems intent on trying out new and unusual things, or upon returning to the traditions of long ago. It’s also an area, particularly in the far north, where in a difficult year Pinot Noir might not darken sufficiently to make a satisfactorily colored red wine. So why not give white a try? It’s been done in Champagne for ages, after all.

Oregon, though, is hardly known for its place on the cutting edge of the wine frontier. Its producers are not, as in northern Italy, growing a dizzying array of autochthonous vines – they don’t have any – and experimenting with vinification techniques in an effort to produce wines of either regional character or international appeal. Oregon is known, however, for a growing group of small to medium-sized producers who are attempting to push the esteem level of their wines by styling increasingly rich, heady (and expensive) red wines from a grape, Pinot Noir, which is more naturally inclined toward high acid, moderate alcohol and delicacy of color and aroma. It’s also known for its white wines, usually slightly more moderately priced, from varieties like Pinot Gris, Riesling and Chardonnay.

But white wine, barrel fermented, from Pinot Noir, marketed as a great, new, stand-alone concept? Perhaps it’s just Tony Rynders’ way of saying that Chardonnay does not have great potential in the Willamette Valley. However, it strikes me more as an extravagant demonstration of wine making ego, as the epitome of human interventionism, done simply for the sake of being able to market a new, luxury product. Some might think it’s the wine making equivalent of being the first person to step on the moon. But it’s hardly a giant step for mankind. And I’m not buying it.

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Notes from a Sunday

Sunday’s seem to be ideal for getting together with friends to relax, cook a good meal and sit back and taste. Our host for the most recent edition of Sunday Evening Tasting was eager to prepare various cuts of the half a lamb he’d procured from a local farm (already “processed,” mind you) and equally ready and willing to sample some bottles he’d recently ordered from Chambers Street Wines. I countered with a few things from my cellar, just to make sure it wouldn’t be a one-importer night. The proceedings:

Champagne “Les Vignes de Vrigny” Premier Cru Brut, Egly-Ouriet NV
“Issu de Vignes de Pinot Meunier situées sur le Terroir de Vrigny”
This one was calling my name from its place on the shelf during my last visit to Chambers Street. I’ve long dug the Champagnes of Egly-Ouriet but I’d never come across a bottle of this, a cuvée made from 100% Pinot Meunier – the decided underdog in the Champagne triptych. Aromas of peach and brioche were carried by a brisk, fine mousse. Fresh apricot, clover blossoms, hay and a hint of orange oil unfurled in the mouth. ‘Twas fruit forward and round, with perfect balance and a long finish. Though not the most elegant Champagne out there, this was damn tasty and represents a solid QPR.

Egly-Ouriet is to be saluted for noting the lees-time and disgorgement date (respectively 36 months and July 2006 for our bottle) on the back of every one of their wines. If only every house would follow suit, especially with their basic NV bottlings. But then everyone would know how much stale bubbly is floating around the market….
$42. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Michael Skurnik Imports.

Cour-Cheverny “Cuvée Renaissance,” Le Petit Chambord (François Cazin) 2004
I had just read about the 2002 vintage of this wine on Brooklynguy’s blog, so I was pleasantly surprised when the 2004 showed up in our line-up for the evening. “Cuvée Renaissance” is Cazin’s demi-sec bottling, produced only in vintages which give adequate ripeness, helped along by either botrytis or passerillage. The wine’s sweetness is both forward and graceful, delivering guava, limestone and lemon curd, all cut through by bright acidity. A little whiff of lavender emerged as the wine’s aromas curled up through the sinuses. This is not terribly complex at the moment but is still showing very youthful structure. It should be interesting to revisit in another three to five years.
$18. 13% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Cour-Cheverny, Le Petit Chambord (François Cazin) 2006
I’ll be more than happy to make due with Cazin’s regular Cour-Cheverny while waiting for the “Renaissance” to come into its own. The sec cuvée is nervier in feel and more subtly perfumed than its semi-sticky brother. Bananas, golden delicious apples, honeysuckle and acacia all emerged on the nose, supplemented by distinct and racy minerality on the palate.
$15. 14% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Coteaux du Loir “Rouge Gorge,” Domaine de Bellivière 2005
Pinot what? That’s Pineau d’Aunis, baby! This is idiosyncratic juice; varietal Pinot d’Aunis from the northern Touraine AOC of Coteaux du Loir, where Eric Nicolas’ Domaine de Bellivière occupies nine hectares of the tiny CdL and Jasnières vignobles. Black pepper – unmistakably – jumps from the glass, along with what strikes me as the scent of fresh haricots verts. One of my companions also noted a certain air of the auto shop; I couldn’t argue. Rustic, oddball and absolutely delicious. I’m usually pretty tuned in to alcoholic strength, but the 15% this was packing snuck right by, a virtue perhaps of its slightly cool serving temperature.
$23. 15% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Coteaux du Loir “Hommage à Louis Derré,” Domaine de Bellivière 2005
“Hommage à Louis Derré” is Bellivière’s more ambitious bottling of Coteaux du Loir, again a varietal expression of Pineau d’Aunis. It has a more tannic structure, bolstered by a bit of oak that lends aromas of baking spices. The black pepper and string beans still come out to play, joined by thyme and black cherries. There’s a bit more nuance, along with deeper concentration, but the alcohol, even though labeled as lower than the “Rouge Gorge,” displays some heat on the finish. Wide-knit tannins provide a seriously mouth wakening charge.
$33. 14.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Graves, Château du Grand Bos 1997
I’ve noticed bottle variation with the ’97 Graves from Grand Bos in the past; this bottle fell on the down side of the curve, I’m afraid. I kept thinking there was a background whiff of cork taint but nope, it just wasn’t showing well. Red cassis and a leathery, herbaceous character were all wrapped up in a damp, clay-like sense. I’d hoped this would be a great match with our final course of pan-grilled lamb chops, as a bottle on the up side of the curve should have been. No such luck. But hey, it led us on to a good red Burg which might otherwise have gone unopened.
$23. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Wine Traditions.

Chassagne-Montrachet Premier Cru “Les Macherelles” (Rouge), Jean-Marc Pillot 2000
I picked this up during a visit to Rosenthal Wine Merchants back in the spring. I was taken by surprise by this bottle, not because it didn’t show Chassagne typicity but because it wasn’t nearly as rich and forward in style as earlier vintages of the same wine from Pillot. The 2000 was lively and tight, with dried sour cherry and pronounced sous-bois aromas. Still very solid, even a bit shut down at the moment.
$40. 13.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchant.

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