Vintus

In an article on his website, Robert Parker writes about a dinner in Tokyo he recently had in which great French wines were paired with Japanese cuisine.  Bruno Paillard was in attendance (as was Joel Robuchon), and Parker states in a video on the dinner that appears on his site about Paillard's N.P.U. 1995, "I think it is one of the great champagnes I've tasted."  He then gives it 96 points in his notes on the dinner wines.  Other wines tasted at the dinner included Chateau Petrus 1990, Chateau Cheval Blanc 2000, Chateau Haut-Brion Blanc 2005, and Chateau Doisy-Daene 1948.

Burghound is now considered perhaps the United States' most comprehensive, authoritative guide on the wines of Burgundy.  Allen Meadows has expanded into a few areas, and just included for the first time Champagne reviews.  Meadows writes that the same phenomenon is occurring in Burgundy as in Champagne -- "a significant proportion of the supply of top quality grapes has moved away from the big houses."

Meadows chooses 61 Champagne producers to review, specifically those that sell either only a portion of their production to the big houses, or none at all.  He writes that these producers make Champagnes that have more character and individuality.  About the Bruno Paillard Brut Première Cuvée specifically, Meadows has the following to say:
 
“An elegant and slightly yeasty nose that is quite fine and leads to detailed, intense, crisp and savory flavors that possess good richness and this does not thin out or stop short on the finish. Very solid quality at this level and it will certainly offer several years of in-bottle improvement if you enjoy aging non-vintage cuvées.” 90/now+ Burghound, 4th Quarter 2007

Wine & Spirits has released their issue on the Top 100 Wineries and Wines of the Year, and we have the following Top 100 Wineries winners:

•    Lucien Le Moine (Mounir and Rotem "established Lucien Le Moine in 1999 and today make wines that rival Burgundy's best")
•    Telmo Rodriguez ("one of the most innovative wine portfolios in Spain")
•    Schiopetto ("Mario Schiopetto was the father of fresh white wines in Fruili")


We also had a number of wines featured in the Top 100 wines, adding to this wonderful reviews:

•    Best Friuli Whites: Schiopetto 2005 Blanc des Rosis
•    Best Burgundy Red: Lucien Le Moine 2004 Vosne Romanee Les Suchots
•    Best Burgundy Whites: Lucien Le Moine 2004 Coroton-Charlemagne

Congratulations to all!

The current issue of the Wine Spectator features an overview on the Loire Valley, and James Molesworth says some extraordinarily nice things about Nicolas Joly on several occasions.  Molesworth talks about the tremendous quality and value offered by the Loire, and twice refers to Joly as the greatest producer of dry white wines in the region.  Attached are a few quotes, and the picture of Nicolas in his vineyard, that ran in the piece.

For their tasting panel column on wine, the New York Times buys some wines at retail shops and picks out their favorites.  This week they tasted 25 Santa Barbara Pinot Noirs, and Alma Rosa Pinot Noir La Encantada 2005 was included among their favorites, with a nice little note about the wine. 

The major theme of the article was that truly elegant and balanced Pinot Noir is being produced from this area, in contrast to some of the more over-the-top Pinots for which California has developed a reputation.  The Alma Rosa La Encantada certainly fits into the balanced-and-elegant profile, and it's nice to see the point acknowledged. 

See the URL or attached article for further reading.

Antonio Galloni released reviews today for the Wine Advocate on 2003, 2004, and 2005 vintages of Barbera, Dolcetto and other non-Barolo wines.  We received very strong reviews and scores for the Sandrone Valmaggiore 2004 (91 Points), Sandrone Barbera d’Alba (90 Points), and Sandrone Dolcetto d”Alba 2005 (90 Points). 

Sandrone Valmaggiore Nebbiolo d’Alba 2004
“It is a beautifully delineated effort, bursting with sweet fruit, tar mineral, spices and well- integrated oak, displaying outstanding depth and fine overall balance. This lovely Nebbiolo shows just how compelling the wines from Roero can be, and may very well be Sandrone’s finest effort from these vines in Vezza d’Alba. Highly recommended.” 91 Wine Advocate, April 2007

Sandrone Barbera d’Alba 2004
“The 2004 Barbera d’Alba is a vibrant effort boasting plenty of sweet ripe fruit and toasted oak flavors with excellent length and a fine, fresh finish.” 90 Wine Advocate, April 2007

Sandrone Dolcetto d’Alba 2005
“Always a reliable bottling, the 2005 Dolcetto d’Alba is a deeply flavored effort bursting with expressive varietal notes of blue and black fruits, spices and minerals. Made in a rich, sumptuous style, it is an engaging introduction to this producer’s wines.” 90 Wine Advocate, April 2007

Those who understood the 2004 vintage in Burgundy turned out beautiful, terroir-driven wines.  Few seem to have understood the vintage as well as Mounir Saouma and Rotem Brakin, of Lucien Le Moine. 

They worked carefully with growers in the vineyards, and meticulously oversaw the wines in their cellars.  When you consider that Luciene Le Moine has only between 1 and 3 barrels of wine from each Grand Cru and Premier Cru vineyard they work with, you understand that there is no margin of error for them -- 2004 affirms the tremendous quality of their fruit, and of their efforts.

The Wine Spectator, Burghound, and Stephen Tanzer all regarded Lucien Le Moine's 2004 as among the best of the vintage.  In its just released May 2007 issue, the Wine Spectator prints a review of the 2004 vintage, at the front of which you can find the full-page bottle shot below of Lucien Le Moine's 2004 Clos de la Roche.  Also noted is that of the 4 red wines rated 95 point or above ("Classic"), 2 were from Lucien Le Moine.  Outstanding!

In his wine column for this week, Eric Asimov writes about how consumer awareness of organic and biodynamic wines has grown, and explores some of the reasons why --  more producers practice natural grape growing because of their belief it makes better wine, wine distributors and restaurants highlight winemakers who farm this way, and organic foods as a category has exploded.  

A great point in this context of the success of organic foods is that people no longer just think of organic foods as healthy, they think the foods taste better. 

Asimov cites a who's who of biodynamic producers, including Domaine Marcel Deiss and Nicolas Joly (under Coulee de Serrant).

The piece is attached.

James Suckling of the Wine Spectator has a bottle of Schiopetto's 2005 Pinot Grigio over dinner, and then comments on his blog that there is excellent Pinot Grigio available, despite the fact "there is a lot of insipid white bottled as Pinot Grigio."  While the mass-produced Pinot Grigios on the market conspire to give the varietal a bad name, the excellent producers offer wonderful wines.  Suckling's description of the Schiopetto Pinot Grigio:

"The wine is so beautiful with melon, pie crust and citrus character on the nose and palate.  It's rich yet fresh."

Piece attached.
 

Michael Apstein describes in the San Francisco Chronicle his venture to Tuscany with a Guigal Cote Rotie, Beckmen Vineyards Santa Ynez Syrah, and ten other bottles of Rhone and California Syrah.  Apstein was examining Syrah's surge in Tuscany -- how it has replaced plantings of other varietals, made its way into more and more blends, and how some single-varietal wines stand out.   D'Alessandro is mentioned in the piece, Il Bosco 2003 is reviewed at the end, and the picture below appears.

To repeat the verdict after blind tasting the wines Apstein brought along with the Tuscan Syrahs, as it is I think accurate and insightful:

"The tasting showed Tuscany's potential for the varietal. Not as fruit-forward as California Syrah, they still had plummy flavors as expected from Syrah grown in warmer climates -- as opposed to the peppery element often found in Syrah from the cooler climes, such as the northern Rhone -- balanced by the lively acidity inherent in Italian wines. In the blends, Syrah added an alluring -- and exotic -- edge."

And some nice words about Il Bosco 2003:

"This 100 percent Syrah from Cortona exemplifies the powerfully plummy side of that grape in part because of the vintage. In every prior year of Il Bosco that I have tasted, its finesse coupled with power has stood out. The exotic leathery component supported by moderate tannins and ripe dense black fruit flavors suggests it will evolve nicely."

The article is attached, for further reading.