Author: Thomas Wilcox
2002 St. Emilion Grand Cru
Alchemy. The effect of time on wine is one of the culinary world’s great magic tricks. Timing and conditions are crucial, and with patience and cellar space in short supply, well-aged wines are increasingly rare. Older French wines in the US have often been stored poorly, or have changed hands so many times they include layers upon layers of markups.
But with the right wine and the right conditions, a mysterious and beautiful alchemy takes place. Today’s wine — the 2002 Chateau Montlisse St-Emilion Grand Cru — has been in the cellar where it was made for 13 years, arriving in Boston just two months ago. If that isn’t perfect storage, we don’t know what is.
Sous bois. The Chateau Montlisse is the project of Christian Dauraic, a retired biopharma executive who owns two St-Emilion properties (Chateaux Montlisse and Destieux) and one Pomerol: Chateau la Clemence. Made from merlot and cabernet franc (85/15), Montlisse is the simpler of the two St-Emilions, and by far the better priced.
The 02 Montlisse has aged just beautifully. The nose is full of the woodsy, mushroom aromas found in older Bordeaux, and the oak has integrated perfectly into the fruit. In mouth, this once-tannic wine has softened considerably, but not so much as to become flabby. It shows dark, dried-plum fruits and a midweight, long finish.
We were impressed with the amount of vibrancy left in this wine, and while we wouldn’t recommend cellaring it for another 13 years, today it’s an utterly pleasant glass of bottle-aged Bordeaux. Carefully grill your best cut of steak, and marvel at what a little patience can do.
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MONTLISSE St-Emilion Grand Cru 2002
Ansonia Retail: $42
case, half-case price: $36/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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Pure Old-Vine Grenache.
Old-Timers. Grenache is France’s second most planted grape. Found mostly in the South, as the primary grape in most Chateauneuf-du-Pape and Côtes du Rhône, grenache vines can also live well past their 100th birthday. With age comes lower yields and higher quality.
Old-vine grenache can be deliciously concentrated, with mouth-filling intensity and impressive length; but if harvested too late, it may lack acidity and energy. Heaviness is never something to worry about in wines from Olivier Leriche. Leriche brings a Burgundian balance to all his wines, including his beautiful old-vine Grenache: le Rendez-Vous.
Acclaim and joy. After leaving Burgundy’s prestigious Domaine de l’Arlot in 2011, Leriche acquired a plot of old vine grenache in the Ardèche, and began making wines under the name Domaine des Accoles. Olivier’s first few vintages have been met with much acclaim, and his wines appear in restaurants by Michael Mina and Daniel Boulud, among others. Though his wines are unmistakably southern, Leriche imbues them with a sense of Burgundian finesse and delicacy.
Rendez-Vous is pure old-vine grenache, and is an utter joy to drink. It’s pleasantly rustic in the mouth, showing roasted wild cherry fruit, pan drippings, earth, and smoke. Rendez-Vous 2013 is young and vibrant, and we think best enjoyed with food. We decanted a bottle for a half hour last week and served it with pan-seared steaks.
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ACCOLES Rendez-Vous 2013
Ansonia Retail: $17
case, half-case price: $14.95/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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A Sparkling Blend of Grapes and Cultures.
Contested. Alsace is one of our favorite places to visit. Wedged between France and Germany, this remarkably beautiful region has changed hands four times since the 1930s. Its inhabitants identify as Alsatian more than either French or German, and today Alsace incorporates the best traditions – cultural, culinary, oenological – of both nations.
Following last month’s posts on the Riesling, Pinot Noir, and Rosé from Francis Muré, we’ll check the final box today and tell you about his excellent crémant. Made by the traditional method for French sparkling wine, the Muré Crémant is made from 100% Pinot Blanc aged on the lees for two years. It’s the perfect way to start a meal.
Cassis. Muré’s Crémant d’Alsace is bright and dry but has more fruit than most crémant we offer from Burgundy. The gentle mousse of bubbles lends a refreshing energy to the exuberant, fruit-forward palate. We suggest welcoming guests to your next dinner party with a glass of this, perhaps with a splash of crème de cassis to make a kir.
For a more specific pairing, find a triple cream cheese – Delice de Bourgogne, Brillat-Savarin, or even St. André. Let the cheese come to room temperature, and serve it with crusty fresh bread. The combination of tiny bubbles and creamy cheese makes for a delightful contrast in texture.
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MURÉ Crémant d’Alsace
Ansonia Retail: $25
offer price: $19.95/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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Grenache and Syrah: Violets and Plums.
Vin Naturel. “Natural wine” is a popular buzzword these days, one with varied definitions and no lack of controversy. Whatever you take it to mean — biodynamic, no sulfites, organic, unfiltered — the goal is the same: to create wine with little intervention between grape and glass.
At their best, “natural” wines show vivacity and energy often lacking in more conventional styles. These wines leap from the glass, full of exuberance and life, trading polish for gusto, neatness for verve. Our favorite source for wines of this ilk is the Mas Foulaquier.
Complexity and Class. Foulaquier, you may remember, is a small, beautifully tended estate in very north of the sprawling Languedoc. Its winemakers are devoutly committed to biodynamic and organic viticulture, and the results are spectacular – rich, deep, complex red wines with notes of earth, spice, jam, and forest floor.
Foulaquier’s simplest wine is the “Tonillieres” cuvée. A blend of grenache and syrah, this cool, floral wine is just the recipe for warm evening on the roof deck. Look for notes of dark, vibrant fruit, violets, plums, and provencal spices. Try it with a mixed plate of charcuterie.
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FOULAQUIER Tonillieres 2013
Ansonia Retail: $25
case, half-case price: $22/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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Weekend Reads: 7.31.15
A few of the articles on wine and food we enjoyed this week:
ON FOOD
Sandorkraut — a Video Documentary : NYT
An excellent short (10 min) documentary on master fermenter Sandor Katz.
A Secret Parisian Sauce Recipe : WSJ
A battle over a secret steak sauce recipe, one that we’ve tried to copy many times.
ON DRINK
2015 French grape harvest update : Jancis Robinson
Jancis gives us an early optimistic outlook on the 2015 vintage in France.
The Chemistry of Wine : Washington Post
A look at the chemical compounds found in a glass of wine.
Pierce’s Disease arrives in France : Decanter
A lethal vine disease, long a problem in California, is found in France for the first time
11-Year-Old Pomerol.
Grape vs. Place. Wine classification can be confusing — categorization and branding changes dramatically from one region to another. For example, the Old World tends to identify wines by place, while the New World tends to use grape varietal. It seems a minor shift, but it has enormous implications for the way people perceive wines.
Call a wine Merlot and noses turn up (thanks, Sideways). Call the wine Pomerol, and you’ve suddenly caught our attention. To us, Pomerol is proof that great wine can be made from Merlot. Today’s offer is for the 2004 Chateau La Clemence Pomerol. Call it what you like – it’s an extraordinary bottle of wine.
#pomerol At 11 years old, this bottle predates iPhones, Twitter, Podcasts, and YouTube; but it’s as vibrant today as any of these younger technologies. With age it has traded extraction and power for finesse and texture. Chateau Clemence is nearly 100% Merlot, and the project of Christian Dauriac, owner of Chateaux Destieux and Montlisse.
After a decade in the bottle this wine has softened considerably, with roasted cherry jam in the nose, and a long, soft, velvety mouthfeel. There’s a purity of fruit, which integrates beautifully into the wine’s now-present secondary elements. Serve this with very fine veal cutlets in a reduction sauce; nobody will even think to ask what grape it is.
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CLEMENCE Pomerol
Ansonia Retail: $90
offer price: $68/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 3- 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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New Rosé: Earthy Wild Strawberries. $14.95
Easy Rosé. After 13 years running Burgundy’s prestigious Domaine de l’Arlot, Olivier Leriche moved south to the rugged and remote region of Ardèche. More than just a change in landscape, the shift presented Olivier with an entirely new range of grape varietals: carignan, grenache, syrah, cabernet, and others.
Olivier’s first few wines — red blends with cool fruit and exceptional balance — have been met with acclaim around the wine world. So it’s no surprise that his latest project is just as successful. The Accoles “Rosé des Acolytes” is unusually complex and very refreshing.
Balanced and fresh. The Accoles Rosé 2014 is a blend of Grenache and Cabernet, combining the softness of the former with the freshness and structure of the latter. In the nose it shows earthy wild strawberries and a hint of lavender. The mouth is brisk and dry, with cool red fruits and lime rind; at only 12% alcohol, it won’t tire your palate.
This is lively enough to stand up to a range of foods — a whole roasted fish comes to mind as a nice pairing. But there’s plenty of tension and roundness on the palate, and we usually enjoy several glasses before the food is served. It might be the best $15 you spend this week.
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ACCOLES Rosé 2014
Ansonia Retail: $18
case, half-case price: $14.95/bot
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AVAILABLE BY THE CASE AND HALF-CASE
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The Perfect Summer Grilling Red. $12.5
Exceptional Value. For the careful shopper, the Languedoc can be an abundant resource. Long a source for inexpensive wine, the region has only recently become a source for value. There’s still plenty of bad wine made in the vast region, but if you make good choices $13 will take you farther here than just about anywhere else.
The region’s best bargain may come from the Clos Bagatelle. This centuries old domaine hails from the ancient town of St. Chinian, set high in the jagged hills of the central Languedoc. Bagatelle grows syrah, carignan, and cinsault vines in a rocky schist soil that provides balance and minerality.
Everyday Backyard Red. Bagatelle’s Cuvée Tradition 2013 is full of cool, stony fruit – there’s a berry freshness and lack of heat that’s hard to come by in much of the Languedoc. The palate offers fruit compote, meatiness, and hints of tobacco, but without high alcohol or palate-tiring heaviness.
This is perfect grilling wine. Steaks, burgers, grilled vegetables and shish kabobs will all match nicely and bring out the smokiness in this wine. Make sure it’s served a touch cooler than room temperature. Invite some friends over for dinner, and don’t tell them how much you paid.
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BAGATELLE Tradition 2013
Ansonia Retail: $180
case price: $150/case ($12.5/bot)
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A Surprise from Alsace.
Unexpected. We like finding wines that defy expectations. Lightweight Syrah, refreshing Chardonnay, floral Pinot Noir — we enjoy sharing wines that tasters have wrongly pigeonholed. Most grapes can present their flavors in a wide range of styles.
No wine provides more such surprises than our dry Riesling from Alsace. Many readers will recognize Francis Muré from the dry, refreshing rosé we wrote about last week. His Riesling is similarly dry and energetic, and has impressed us (and sommeliers, and the Guide Hachette) for years.
Bone dry. With only a whiff of Muré’s 2013 Riesling, you might suspect it sweet. The nose bursts with pineapple, honeysuckle, and fresh spring flowers. But in the mouth this wine is lively and round, with bright zippy acidity. Despite a grape name that some find intimidating, this wine has been among our most consistently delicious and best selling wines for more than a decade.
This is a perfect food wine — Indian and Asian food are favorite pairings of ours, but anything from shellfish to chicken to goat cheese will benefit from a glass of this by its side. If you’re serving it to guests, pour it with your hand over the label; in our experience, they never guess, but they always love it.
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MURÉ Riesling 2013
Ansonia Retail: $20
case price: $16/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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By-the-Glass Côtes-du-Rhône. $15
Easy. Some wines hit a sweet spot between balance, versatility, and price. These are wines to reach for after a long day at work, or to drink while curled up with a book. They’re wines you don’t need to think hard about – uncomplicated, refreshing, and inexpensive.
Sablet from the Domaine les Goubert is a longtime favorite in this category. Back when we had a retail shop in Washington DC, we could barely keep the wine in stock. Customers from the other side of town would pick up a case on a Saturday afternoon, and customers from next door would rush over to pick up a bottle with dinner on the stove.
Côtes du Rhône Plus. Now it is the house red wine of many readers and friends. Sablet is a Côtes-du-Rhône Villages, a notch up from Côtes-du-Rhône with a bit more stuffing and noticeably smoother. We find ripe dark fruits, hints of leather and spice, and a full but balanced mouthfeel.
Goubert’s Sablet is among our most versatile by the glass reds; we serve it with everything from grilled meats to summery pastas to hearty salads. But food isn’t necessary with the Sablet — all you really need is an air conditioner and a good book.
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GOUBERT Sablet 2012
Ansonia Retail: $18
case price: $15/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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Crisp, No-Oak Chardonnay. $16.95
Spectrum. “Oaked” or “unoaked” sounds like a yes-no question, but it really is a range. Most of the wines we import spend some time in oak, but the strength of its influence depends on the age and size of the barrel, the chauffe (how heavily the inside is charred), and time in the barrel.
With this wine, it’s simple: no oak at all. This classic, stony, energetic chablis is all freshness, minerality, and pure fruit. The Domaine Gautheron is a small, family-owned property, and we love their precise style. You could eat off the floor there, and the insistence on cleanliness extends to their wines as well.
Crisp, fresh. The latest vintage of Petit Chablis, from 2014, has just arrived from France. This is our best value from Chablis, and we always struggle to keep it in stock. On price, this wine competes with your local supermarket’s Napa Valley Chardonnay. On complexity, finesse, and freshness, there’s no contest.
Gautheron’s Petit Chablis is also one of our easiest wines to pair with food. This wine bursts with cool lemon fruit and a stony, brisk mouthfeel. With no oak at all, sushi (or any raw fish) is a fantastic choice. Shellfish (especially oysters) and roast fish also work well, as will a simple roast chicken. Whatever the choice, this wine will brighten your meal.
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GAUTHERON Petit Chablis 2014
Ansonia Retail: $20
offer price: $16.95/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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Weekend Reads: 7.17.15
A few of the articles on wine and food we enjoyed this week:
ON FOOD
Alice Waters’s Perfect Aioli | NYT :
Mark Bittman recounts an afternoon meal with Alice Waters.
Weird Farmers Market Vegetables | NPR Salt :
Chef April Bloomfield discusses what to do with those odd market veggies.
ON DRINK
Collecting Rare Bourbon | Punch :
Charleston chef Sean Brock on collecting and rare bourbon.
Burgundy and the other 1855 | Decanter :
After last month’s UNESCO vote, Jane Anson looks at the history of classification in Burgundy.
Can Pink Wine Be Fine? | Jancis Robinson :
Jancis Robinson tastes and discusses rosé.
Wild Lavender and Blackberry Jam.
Balance. France is in the midst of an intense heat wave these days. Though the south of France is no stranger to summer heat, the country’s continental climate is important in helping its wines achieve balance. Grapes that are overripe contain too much sugar, which boosts alcohol levels and flattens the palate.
With temperatures in the South of France pushing 100 F these days, we’re awfully glad to have the Clos Bagatelle in our portfolio. Located in the bright, sunny Languedoc, Bagatelle’s wines nevertheless achieve a consistent balance, year after year. Today we’re releasing the 2011 Veillée d’Automne, a delicious, vibrant wine with notes lavender and roasted blackberry jam.
Blackberry. Clos Bagatelle is a centuries-old domaine in St. Chinian, a mountainous section of the northwestern Languedoc. The secrets to achieving balance are schist-laden soils and high elevation, which protect the wines from over-ripeness and high alcohol. The result is a concentrated wine with rich, dark tannins, but one that isn’t overly mouth coating or heavy.
Veillée d’Automne is majority Syrah, with Grenache, Mouvèdre, and Carignan blended in. There’s a faint woodsy smokiness in this wine that makes it a harmonious pairing for food from the grill. We’re looking forward to trying this unusual steak-right-on-charcoal recipe from the New York Times, and anticipate this will be a lovely match.
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BAGATELLE Veillée d’Automne 2011
Ansonia Retail: $22
offer price: $18/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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New Alsatian Pinot Noir Rosé
A l’Ancienne. Francis Muré lives in a charming Alsatian hill town. His small farmhouse nestles on vine-covered slopes near stone streets lined with colorful flower boxes. It’s quaint and picturesque, like something from a children’s storybook.
Muré’s wines are a perfect representation of their pastoral origin. Today’s Rosé, is a summery, refreshing, uncomplicated glass of wine. The nose is of spring flowers, and the mouth is pure and ripe and clean. We can’t all live in such a beautiful place as Alsace, but a glass of this rosé will transport you there, at least for a moment.
Summer relief. Muré splits the fruit from his Pinot Noir harvest into two wines: the bright, summer-weight red we wrote about last week, and this rosé. Where the notes in the red are mostly wild cherries, the rosé is more floral, and the fruit is closer to raspberry.
The two main things we look for in a rosé are low alcohol, and enough acidity. Muré’s Rosé clocks in at 12.5%, and has a lovely, elegant balance. The cool, ripe fruits round out beautifully in the mouth, but the gentle acidity keeps it lively and fresh.
During a week like this, with oppressive humidity and unrelenting heat, Mure’s Rosé is as useful as an umbrella in April. Bring it outside to your backyard or patio, and you might even get some gardening done.
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MURÉ Rosé 2014
Ansonia Retail: $17
offer price: $14/bot
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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS
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