There is no doubting that among the world’s most treasured wines, Chateauneuf du Pape is rightfully positioned as among the most sought after and adored wines consumers and collectors routinely seek out. The multi-dimensional examples from this region’s top producers compete with the most elite wines from Europe’s premium Chateaux, Domaines and Estates, yet often times fetch prices that seem paltry by comparison. Moreover, tasting a mature Chateauneuf alongside vinous piers from Bordeaux or Burgundy offers the taster a truly unique cornucopia of flavors, which once experienced further establish the region’s dominance.

But just as it is with all other wine regions throughout the world, Chateauneuf du Pape experiences vintage variations. As a professional who has followed this region’s wines since the 1980s – additionally tasting older examples dating to the 1960s – I can personally attest to this regions highs and lows. Through the 1980s, for example, there was the otherworldly vintage 1989, a harvest whose wines continue to be a reference point even for modern day efforts. And while the 1980s witnessed such disasters as the back to back wash-outs of 1986 and 1987 in Chateauneuf, even those years offered consumers some worthwhile treasures from the leading producers – Henri Bonneau, anyone?

Fast forwarding to modern times, the 1990s gave us 1990, 1995, 1998 and 1999 as some of the greatest vintages this region had yet experienced. Yet it would be the modern era, these 2000s, which would set a new course for Chateauneuf and its wines. With a new generation taking over, and a consistency in weather unmatched in times past – with the exception of the disastrous 2002 vintage – the region of Chateauneuf du Pape has enjoyed an unparalled string of top-flight harvests and exceptional offerings from an ever increasing number of producers than practically any other appellation in France, perhaps Europe. To say that this sun-drenched part of France is enjoying its time in the sun is indeed absolutely appropriate.

Taking a step back, though, it is wise for consumers to recognize that Mother Nature has a way of bringing all things back into balance. So it is with the currently available set of vintages now entering the market from this wonderfully sun-baked area of France. I’m speaking specifically of the 2008s and 2009s. A recent tasting of dozens of the 2009s, most specifically, offered a sobering and eye-opening experience. While most folks familiar with this region were long-ago made aware of the inconsistencies of 2008 – to put it nicely – consumers and professionals alike were led to believe that 2009 was going to bring along our much needed relief. I’m here to announce: not so fast.

What prompted me to begin pulling corks on these newly arriving 2009s was the also newly arrived Parker review, issue 197. While Parker DID dub the finished wines “great” (whatever that means), he also went on to reiterate that they resemble a “hypothetical blend of 2003 and 2000.” Considering the former of these two vintages produced a bevy of stewed and “hot” examples, while the latter was Parker’s vintage of a lifetime (until the 07s rolled around), one can understand the mixed messages and need for personal understanding; hence my pulling of roughly 2 dozen corks this week past.

In conclusion, after tasting through a wide cross section of “in the market” 2009s from Chateauneuf, my advice to consumers is to begin back-filling with 2007s. Furthermore, it is my opinion that Parker’s greatest piece of wisdom regarding the currently available Southern Rhone is one bit of advice I’ve been preaching for a few years now. Hidden within the crevices of his most recent article on the 2009s, Parker had this to say:

“While all appellations have done well in this consistently fine year, one AOC that is exceptional is Vacqueyras. This is an up-and-coming star in the southern Rhône. Chateauneuf du Pape has already arrived, and the younger generation that has emerged over the last two decades has made it one of the great winemaking appellations of France as well as the world. Vacqueyras is not far behind and the overall quality of the 70-80 domaines I tasted was impressive as well as consistent. Moreover, Vacqueyras sells for less than half the price of Chateauneuf du Pape.”

That’s right readers, Vacqueyras; the one region whose wines fill nearly as many spaces in my personal collection as do those from Chateauneuf!

As for a 2007 from Chateauneuf to seek out, here’s this week’s tasting note:

2007 Chateau de Vaudieu Chateauneuf du Pape

Stunning, nearly opaque, purple in color. A cornucopia of the most exotic fruits on the nose: super ripe plums, macerated black cherries and a whiff of dates. The fruits are combined with sweet spices and a penetrating perfume that captivate the senses. What an aromatic profile! On the palate, this is very full bodied, sweet, exotic, complex, mouth coating, packed with sweet black fruits, seamless, and the tannins are totally buried by the fruit. The power of the fruit and expressiveness of this wine speak volumes as to the superiority of the 2007s over their 09 counterparts! This is both silky as well as grippy on the tongue and the finish goes on for minutes. This wine has filled out since bottling and is even better today than a year ago! Opened and decanted for 48 hours, this wine never oxidized.

Outstanding! 93 points

Sundays appear to be the day for catching up here at the old blog and this particular first day of the week is one of the more beautiful ones we’ve had here in the Bay area. Naturally, with temperatures in the low fifties and the air outside as crisp as the bacon on my breakfast plate, there can be but one type of wine on my mind. Truth be told, there’s only ever one type of wine on my mind, right?

Today’s tasting glass is again graced with the sublime efforts of Christophe Perrot Minot. But before I get to the discussions of this specific example, I thought I’d share the tale of the estate. It’s a story I first researched when I purchased these Burgundies many years ago for my own wine company, and the tale of vinous perfection that spans multiple generations explains Parker’s sentiments. After first tasting the efforts of Christophe, way back in the 1990s, Robert Parker would write,

“Speaking of superstars, Christophe Perrot-Minot is a name that may become as famous as Lignier, Dugat, Lafon, Roumier, and the like. I was as excited when I left this Domaine as I was when I walked out of Arnauld Ente’s in Meursault. There is nothing more gratifying and invigorating than tasting a young person’s wines for the first time and finding them to be superb.”

From the birth of what is today known as Domaine Perrot-Minot, this has been one of the most impeccably run, well-organized, cutting-edge and uniquely fashionable properties in the whole of the region. Initially known as Merme-Morizot – after the marriage of M. Merme to Esther Morizot, heiress of the Sigaut and Morizot vines in Chambolle and Morey – this estate dates to the mid-19^th century, establishing it as one of the very oldest in all of Burgundy. Monsieur Amedee Merme was known as a gentleman farmer. He was as comfortable tending the domaine’s vines as he was frequenting France’s fashionable salons. It would be Amedee who would establish the domaine’s wines as centerpieces in France’s most exclusive restaurants; his dedication to quality was the foundation Perrot Minot was built upon.

The next generation of Mermes would take over responsibility of the Domaine after the end of WWII, when the affable and energetic Armand Merme assumed duties of the estate. Dedicated to further advancing the family’s reputation, Armand instituted the most advanced viticultural techniques known, implementing improvements in vine growing and fermentation. In addition to modernizing the techniques at the Domaine, Armand would greatly expand the family’s holdings, acquiring additional vine plots in some of the most prestigious AOCs in the Cote D’Or.

Armand’s marriage to Yvonne Aubelle led to the birth of four daughters. Their eldest, Marie-France, acquired her father’s love of the vine and vineyard and chose to follow in her father’s footsteps. Her marriage to Henri Perrot Minot in the 1960s established the modern day Perrot Minot Domaine. During the first years, Henri, Marie-France and M. Merme worked collaboratively to further modernize and expand the estate, adding additional holdings and beautifying the property. Upon the death of Armand, Henri and Marie-France took full control of the estate, fully dedicated to maintaining the quality as had been established over the generations.

Henri and Marie-France’s son, Christophe Perrot-Minot returned to his parent’s estate in 1993 at the age of 28, having spent 7 years as a fine wine broker, to assume the position of manager of the Domaine. Christophe’s experience in the trade, working with, tasting, selling and buying the very finest wines of Burgundy and the world brought an entirely new facet to Domaine Perrot Minot. Christophe, trained to recognize vinous greatness, and with three generations of dedicated wine-growers preceding him, set about to further perfect the profound wines emanating from his family’s holdings.

As the vintages bearing Christophe’s signature have made their way into bottle, the subtle changes in the cellars at Domaine Perrot Minot have become evident. The most obvious change has been in the labeling process. Gone are the perplexing and often times confusing labeling practices as were once customary chez Perrot-Minot. No longer do consumers have to ponder their choices; there is one label: Domaine Perrot Minot (just a few years ago, one would find labels that included Henri’s name, Perrot-Minot’s name, Vieilles Vignes, or simple vineyard designations – quite confusing indeed).

But perhaps the most impressive, albeit subtle change chez Perrot-Minot is Christophe’s near decade long experiment in the cellar that has resulted in a more expressive terroir note in his wines. Where once a pronounced new oak signature dominated these profoundly structured wines, Christophe’s taming of this quality – through the reduction of the use of new oak during the aging process – has resulted in wines of an exquisite nature. The wines of Perrot-Minot have always been among the most structured and age-worthy in Burgundy. But now they also include a classic sense of place that make them truly worthy of their moniker, “genuinely sensational” – as Burghound has recently so dubbed them.

2008 Perrot-Minot Gevrey Chambertin “Champerrier” Vieilles Vignes

This lieu-dit is one of the oldest planted vineyard sites in Gevrey, yet only carries a Village designation. This bottling by Perrot-Minot is brilliantly ruby red. Aromas of crushed black cherry combine with tell-tale Gevrey minerality as well as an elegant perfumed sense not generally found in most Gevreys. The perfumed nuance is more floral with air; perhaps a rose-petal sense best describes it. On the palate, the wine is classic dark Pinot; with plum and currant flavor. The tannins are pronounced but integrated, with the structure also quite impressive. The finish, very long and quite grippy, suggests an easy 5-8 years of further development. A serious and age worthy wine. A Village wine very much worth a look. 90 points.

Today marks the end of October, 2011 and the beginning of so very much more. Personally, the past couple of years have witnessed some truly tumultuous times in my life. Professionally, thanks to a reversal of fortune of late, I have witnessed a re-birth. As determined as I was to make a real name for myself in the wine trade while remaining on my home turf, I knew it was inevitable. The real players in the biz – those who truly change the landscape and alter the playing field – more times than not will find themselves doing so from California. And sure enough, just months before my 45^th birthday, I would relocate to this Golden State (vinously speaking) to begin anew my quest to be the best.

With dueling glasses of my favorite beverage – Pinot Noir – beside me, as I once again contemplate penning a vinous note (or two), my thoughts drift to and fro; these past four months in my new locale have surely flown by. And while I cannot guarantee that time will allow for regular updates to this blog as it did it times past, I will consider the infrequent down times as opportunity to share thoughts as they pertain to my vinous encounters.

My new position as Buyer began in July. I was interviewed over the phone from my office in Dallas where I had taken a half day from my duties as Manager and Buyer from a recently acquired position for Central Market. I cannot explain how amazingly odd it felt to have TWO opportunities from which to select from in less than a few months span; this after two years of NOTHING.

In no time flat, I was on a plane (at 5 AM), in a meeting with the owner, and back on a flight to Dallas. By mid-July, I would board another flight – this one a 1-way flight – and my career would begin anew. To say that everything transpired in a whirlwind is quite the understatement! The family packed up, travelled across country from Texas to California, and we now call the Bay Area home. Transitioning has been easier than I ever imagined for my family; and I have settled into my role as Buyer – covering the wines of France and Italy for my new employer (a role I’ve come to know intimately these nearly 30 years in the trade) – as comfortably as I had hoped.

Today, I have before me two of my all time favorite producers. And while the procuring of the products from one of them doesn’t fall under my umbrella, the tasting of his wines most certainly continues to bring me pleasure. Comparing and contrasting these two wines is a fantastic study in the absolute differences between New and Old World – and the pleasures to be found in both.

2007 Scherrer Russian River Valley Pinot Noir

From Fred Scherrer, the man who brought to fame the great Dehlinger wines, we have this fantastically complex version of his multi-plot Russian River Pinot. The 2007 RRV is deep crimson red to the core and beautifully aromatic. This showcases classic Scherrer aromatics of sassafras, cola and dark Pinot fruit nuances all married to additional, intense and room filling aromas of black cherry. As with most Scherrer Pinots, this is immediately approachable, medium to full-bodied on the palate, with the cola and dark Pinot nuances from the aromatics being showcased on the palate. This is delicious now and promises another 3-5 years of continued improvement and drinkability. 90 points

2008 Domaine Perrot-Minot Charmes Chambertin Vieilles Vignes

DECANTED 72 HOURS EARLIER. Christophe Perrot Minot was first reviewed in these pages here: http://bit.ly/tZugMQ and has been a regular in my personal cellar since the 1990s. To say these are stunning examples of Burgundy is not an overstatement. Beautiful ruby, crimson in color. Clarity to the rim, no sign of oxidation in color or aromatics even after 72 hours of decantation. Stunning aromatics to include baking spices: clove, ginger, cardamom, star anise; and fruit skin: orange zest. Dark Pinot fruit combines on the nose with mineral and hints of slate to offer an unmistakable Burgundian impression, yet with the time in decanter, the sweetness of the fruit has opened up to suggest what this wine will be with a decade in the cellar. On the palate, this is still youthfully gripping and stern, but the sweet, dark Pinot fruit is prominent. The finish lingers a minute plus and the impression on the palate is stunning. A 25 year wine, easily. 94 points

In closing, I hope to find more time to share with my long time readers and friends some of the magical wines that daily come across my desk.

And I hope to hear from more of you with your thoughts and ideas as these days unfold…

All the best in wine and life.

GREAT stuff!

I suppose the one aspect of being a wine shop owner I miss most, aside from all the fabulous new wine discoveries, would have to be the trips I made to France so often. Being the die-hard French wine fan that I am, my first trip to France would not be to focus on the trappings of Paris but to trudge around the damp recesses of Burgundy and the Cote … Read More

via Cepage Noir

Back in 1994, I joined a small, dedicated French-wine import company that would later change its name from International Gourmet Corp – as we moved away from including olive oils and vinegars in our offers – to European Wine Group. Our focus was bringing to America what we discovered in the artisanal, family-owned and operated estates of Fra … Read More

via Cepage Noir

The Big-Box Retailers are just as guilty!

Tom Wark’s poignant report reminds the wine loving public of the ever present threat to unrestricted commerce we face – even today – more than 80 years after the end of prohibition. And while these archaic threats to the unencumbered flow of wine between producer and consumer primarily result from the monopolistic actions of the powerful liquor distributors throughout the most populous states, there can be no doubt that the mall-sized “big-box” chain liquor stores have a serious role in this game, too.

Acting in tandem with liquor wholesalers that often span multiple states, these big-box chains act as gatekeepers to the vinous world, serving as judge and jury for boutique producers and their wares. Consumers in search of the best and brightest the wine world has to offer are often without a prayer of securing their palate’s desire: wholesalers aren’t interested unless the retailers express a desire, and the big box chains won’t talk to a wine-maker who doesn’t routinely churn out hundreds of thousands of cases, “If you can’t cover all of our stores, we’re just not interested.”

Boutique producers – where quality is paramount – seem destined to fail if H.R. 1161 successfully passes and the prohibition environment is allowed to return. If wholesalers aren’t interested in the products being bottled by conscientious winemakers, and the big-box stores likewise can’t be made to see the light – and yet it’s these very wholesalers and retailers who are forcing 1161 into existence – how in the name of free enterprise and the American way can this be happening?!

Read Tom’s article and follow his advice (as I have). Let your voices be heard:

Wine Drinkers Beware by Tom Wark

Current reminiscing has brought to the fore conflicting thoughts, as remembrances of my early days in the vinous industry are being mentally compared to the struggles of late. The 1980s, a decade that witnessed this author as a literal lad, stumbling upon a career in the wine business as most others do – perhaps more as a way to keep me off the streets than as a predetermined career path – were a glorious time to be selling wine in north Texas. Those days preceded all that the industry as well as society witnesses today. No “dot com” revolution for wine had yet been invented, no one embarked upon a daily internet search for Chateau X or winery Y, and your local liquor store’s wine selection – limited as it was, in no small part due to the state wholesaler’s ineptitude – sufficed. If it was a great bottle of wine a “serious wine snob” was in search of, 5-star restaurant wine lists were often overrun with such treasures.

Politics – locally, nationally, and most certainly as they pertained to the beverage industry, which was paying my rent – entered not into my thinking back in the mid-1980s. I was not yet 20, was single, was barely learning the difference between Sonoma and Napa, and had yet to crack the first chapter of a single book by Hugh Johnson. The fact that Texas liquor distributors controlled in a monopolistic fashion the flow of the world’s finest wines to consumers in Texas – a plight suffered by consumers in most every other state in the nation as well – never entered my thoughts. I was in the business for the pleasure of the learning (and the drinking of the stuff offered its moments of hedonist appeal as well).

Then came that defining moment; that fork in the road we all hear about, which forever alters what was once just a hobby or casual “job”. Call it an epiphany, dub it that “ah-ha” awakening, it arrived for me sometime in 1991, during my brief employ in New Orleans for a wine company known as Martin Wine Cellar. Back in Texas, while certainly relishing in the exposure to the treasures as brought to America by importers the likes of Kermit Lynch and Vineyard Brands – wine properties with pedigrees established centuries past carrying family names such as Raveneau, Chevillon and Cailloux or Beaucastle, Mongeard-Mugneret, and Ponsot – I had not yet been exposed to the evils of the 3-tier system. And it would not be until my tenure at Martin’s that the light would go on.

Fast-forwarding to the late 1990s once again finds yours truly back in Texas, this time a sole proprietor. Travels across America and Europe, advances in career, the formation of a new partnership and, finally, the dissolving of same, all seemingly driving towards the inevitable – that dream come true – launching of the small business enterprise that would carry my birth-name, ultimately brought the traveling European-certified-sommelier home. And once back in Texas, I was determined to affect change! The 3-tiered system – and the corruption, price-gouging, monopolies, limited choices for consumers and un-Constitutionality it represented – was my target.

That was 1999. Today, 2011, twelve years later, a failed wine business behind me, shattered dreams and all that once buoyed me now adrift in a sea far, far away, an article has awakened my senses. This Article, written by Tom Wark, one of the wine industry’s most-respected journalists, reveals just how disturbing and anti-consumer the 3-tier system of wine distribution is (particularly here in Texas). Reading this article – as I hope everyone in the wine trade as well as Constitutional enthusiasts likewise will – has again convinced me that there MUST be consumers in this state of mine thoroughly disgusted with the status quo.

And knowing that there exists in Texas a permit, written by a forward-thinking, now-retired legislator – who once reached the upper echelon within the Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission – that allows retail wine businesses to operate in Texas without the need for reliance upon (or use of) redundant, out-dated, monopolistic liquor wholesalers, I find myself once again determined to launch THE most pro-consumer wine company this state has yet witnessed. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Texas: it’s time to stop the insanity!

Tom Wark’s exposing article on Texas’s vinous ways:

http://fermentation.typepad.com/fermentation/2009/06/the-threetier-system-and-consumer-access-to-wine.html

Someone asked me recently how I envisioned the name for my new consulting company, “Chisholm Trail Wine Co.” I answered by attempting to verbally paint them a picture. “The only thing more painstaking”, I began, “than trying to drive a herd of Texas Longhorn cattle from the southern mouth of the Red River in Texas to Kansas City, Kansas in the 19^th century, has got to be attempting to convince Texas retailers of wine that the antiquated post-prohibition, three-tiered distribution system by which they’ve been selling wine in this state is equally as out-dated – and unnecessary – as that trail that my consulting business is nicknamed for.”

And it’s as true as the Texas landscape is vast. A progressive, forward-thinking – now retired – stalwart in the Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission (TABC), after years of growing frustrated with the language of the wine laws in the state, rewrote a particular chapter of the TABC code pertaining to wine regulations. Prior to his undertaking, wine shops were saddled with the burden of purchasing their inventory strictly from wholesalers in the state; resulting in higher prices to the consumer, limited selections and an inability to compete both with retailers in states outside Texas not burdened with a 3-tiered configuration as well as the giant retailers better positioned to “deal” on volume. Subsequent to the new language, boutique retailers now have an edge.

If only the boutiques knew the language existed!

And that’s where Chisholm Trail Wine Co. | Consultants to the TX Wine Trade comes in.

Through more than 25 years experience – including 10 years in sole proprietorship battling the antiquated system in much the same manner as our clients-to-be are currently – we offer an unmatched opportunity for the small to mid-sized wine-only retail owner to:

• maximize brand awareness,
• exponentially increase sales,
• substantially multiply a client-base,
• thoroughly boost profit margins and
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…all at practically no out of pocket costs…

All that’s required is that inaugural step: rounding up the cattle and hitting the trail – that’s synonymous for: picking up the phone and calling us!

Whether you want to sell imports, domestics, Texas wines, a combination of all the aforementioned or something even more vinously specialized, we know the ropes and how to build your product selections. Perhaps it’s time to expand those horizons…

Being as personally familiar with the players in this story as I am, my take on this is simply that Adam Lee (owner of Siduri, and subject of the article linked at this story’s end) has suffered the same fate as most vintners attempting to sell products designated with  Peter Cargasacchi’s vineyard nicknames. Peter’s moniker on a label has forever resulted in lackluster performance at the cash register. Simply stated, Lee’s switching of labels proved THAT more than alcohol preferences.

Parr knows full well the marketability of each and every one of not only the wine-makers who were in attendance at the event discussed in the article, but likewise the consumer demand for each of the vineyards represented in the winemakers’ portfolios. Whether or not Parr carries any number of the numerous Kosta Browne pinots throughout the various restaurants he manages, in other words, doesn’t mean he isn’t intently familiar with the fact that KB’s Keefer Ranch designated wine is one of the most sought after vinous specimens on the planet. Slap a Keefer Ranch designation on a wine and you, as a wine-maker are practically guaranteed a cash cow.

Conversely, primarily due to the inherently graceful, elegant, properly balanced and, well, Burgundian nature of wines resulting from the fruit emanating from Cargasacchi-designated vineyards – Pinot Noirs so unique as to stand out from a crowd of primarily jammy-flavored specimens dominating the landscape out West – Parr and others (including yours truly) suffer consumer resistance when selling wines nicknamed for Peter against his California brethren’s.

And while no man can know another’s inner intentions, as a learned man of the vine, Parr performed brilliantly. Knowing full well the strength – alcohol-wise – of a Keefer-designated wine (no matter from which wine-maker’s stable such a wine is born), pre-determined to remain true to his convictions, he identified and offered to commercialize the Cargasacchi product; also keenly aware of the latter’s reputation.

Lee, on the other hand, proved nothing with his exercise. For as long as I have known his products, I have known them to be designed in the precise manner as several, if not the vast majority, of his peers – that it to say, in the jammy-styled category. This preference for fruit first, typicité later runs consistently through Lee’s offerings to include the Cargasacchi label, unfortunately. And I say unfortunately because the difference between the two styles – Cargasacchi and Keefer – is similar to Volnay and Nuits.

And if you can switch labels between a Volnay and a Nuits and not have a seasoned palate discern the difference, the joke is on the label switcher, NOT the taster.

READ THE STORY THAT (COULD HAVE) SHOCKED THE INDUSTRY:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/23/dining/23pour.html?_r=1&ref=dining

2008 Bodega Sur de los Andes Bonarda

2008 Bodega Sur de Los Andes

Sur de Los Andes

Bonarda Dry Red Table Wine

Mendoza, Argentina

“Deep ruby purple, bordering on opaque in color to the rim. Deeply aromatic and aggressive with pronounced wood smoke, caramel, black licorice, truffle and other assorted torrefaction components; certainly one for the New-World, oak-lover crowd. Aggressive on the palate as well, with a sweetly black raspberry component and being marked by warmth from the alcohol. Served cellar temperature, it’s less aggressive, allowing the fruit to be enjoyed. Purely new world in style, with no rough edges, cleanly made and easily understood; if not a bit stunted by the wood and alcohol. Overall very good and approachable.”

Review by Cepage Noir Wine Co. (CM)

Score: 85

“A Very Good wine of excellent character that often belies its price point.”

email: chambertin@sbcglobal.net for info on availability in Texas …

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