FRENCH TRIP WINE-TASTING MEMOIRS, JULY 1997

Armand Rousseau's 1995s plus a '96

Our trip got off to a hectic start with a bomb threat to our plane that held us up in the Oakland airport for seven hours, fouled up our TGV and car rental reservations, and forced us to reschedule or cancel visits for our first day.

Once in Burgundy, Sueand I found ourselves beating the back roads of Gevrey Chambertin trying to find the Armand Rousseau property with the help of an address (street not on map) and directions from the clerk at the local pharmacy who, of course, spoke no English. Our erratic French would have to do, as it turned out, for most of the trip. We started to panic as our appointment hour approached and asked a road crew if they knew the location. One man looked at me curiously and pointed over my shoulder. I turned around and, sure enough, there was a 4 in. by 6 in. brass plate with the Rousseau name on the property behind us. After a few minutes of introductions, a previous guest emerged from the cellar and proved to be an acquaintance of mine; an importer who lives in Atherton whom I hadn't seen in years. We gaped at each other in amazement. But on to the wines. We were invited to taste barrel samples of the 1995s which were to be bottled soon.

Clos de la Roche - What a fine start!

Deep color that we were to find is characteristic of the '95 vintage, rich cherry flavors, multidimensional red and black fruit overtones and a lingering aftertaste.

Clos St. Jaques 1er cru - Similar to the above, but with distinctive choke-cherry characteristics. More tannin but, amazingly, more intensity as well for excellent balance. How could they top this one?

With their '95 Chambertin Clos de Beze, of course. A feminine, yet intensely pure pinot noir with lovely rose components overlaying gushing pinot cherry fruit. Sue loved this one, as did I.

And then came the '95 Chambertin. A masculine powerhouse; a super burgundy! Plenty of oak, but the richness and power of the fruit balanced it nicely. Huge, rich and complete, it is a classic wine that shouts "Chambertin!" Mygawd, it was what Chambertin used to taste like.

One final wine was offered, the 1996 Chambertin. Somehow, they took the 1995 and concentrated it even more! Wild, powerful and immense, this may be the finest young Chambertin I've ever tasted. The wine was so huge that it coated our tongues and palates and stained our teeth. Tremendous concentrated fruit exploded on the palate and the after-taste lingered and lingered. I now felt like Parker must have when he reviewed Leroy's '93s. Words simply do not to justice to wines like these. What a start, and there's more to come.

Francois Germain's 1996 Beaunes

Sue and I had reservations for three days at a wonderful B&B run be Francois Germain in Chorey les Beaune. He also happens to be an outstanding vigneron (although a kilometer away in Beaune they never heard of him, at least when we asked for directions). The view from our room in the tower overlooked his estate vineyard and gardens. Fabulous place, but how about his wines?

We found ourselves sharing breakfast with a group from a miniscule California winery, Mondavi, who were in Burgundy on business. Francois offered to stage a barrel tasting of his 1996 vintage for us and we accepted. It turned out that Francois had eight different vineyards with two barrel suppliers. That meant a daunting set of combinations from which to select components for a range of wines, from his village wine up through his Beaune Les Cent-Vignes Premier Cru. We had to try them all.

Come on, this was no joke. Rows upon rows of barrels, each different, each with it's own nuances of oak, fruit and spice were sampled. The 1996 vintage was awesome, with explosive flavors that ranged from kirsch to red and black plums, several cherry varieties, pepper, nutmeg and vanilla, and subtle variations on each of those. I am much impressed that Francois can sort all this out, and have no doubts about the quality of his final assemblies, whatever they may be. The individual components were so impressive that I can't see how he can go wrong. What a vintage!

As a side note, we picked up a bottle of Francois Germain's 1985 Beaune Les Cent-Vignes Premier Cru from his cellar and shared it with friends in Dijon a week later. It was a youthfully mature, delicious wine approaching its peak. The subtle, cherry and plum fruit had integrated well with the oak and tannins and the acidity was holding nicely. This wine had at least another five years of life ahead of it, probably more. Our Burgundian friends were much impressed! Domaie Sauzet's 1996 White Burgundies

Okay, here's one for you white-wine lovers. Sue and I followed directions into Puligny Montrachet, looking for Sauzet. There was no sign, but we were told it was the last house on the left as you were leaving town on the road to Chassagne. As it turned out, that didn't make sense. Again, we asked a gentlemen coming from a property on the right of the road. Once more, we got that curious look; he pointed to the building he had just left. Aha! It was the last house on the right!!! (unmarked, of course.)

Our early morning trial successfully met, we entered to taste the 1996s from the barrel. Wow! They were as outstanding as the 1996 reds. (Of course, Sauzet isn't exactly a run-of-the-mill estate.) First came a Puligny-Montrachet, a village wine that tasted like a premier cru, with intense citrus flavors, clean and vibrant.

Next, a Chasssagne-Montrachet from 46-year-old vines that again seemed like a premier cru with its depth and complexity, somewhat fatter and sweeter than the austere Puligny.
This was followed by a series of single vineyard Puligny-Montrachets, the Referts, Perrieres, Folatieres, Garenne, and Combettes (my favorite of the set). These were wonderful wines, with clean cut, precise flavors, vibrant acid, and lingering after-tastes. The Combettes was a particularly enchanting combination of lemon/lime overlayed with floral qualities and that liquid mineral sensation so typical of fine Puligny Montrachet.

Again, I wondered, how could it get any better. So we tried the Bienvenue-Batard-Montrachet. Intense pineapple, herbs and citrus, really complex and lingering, yet creamy and silky. So very special and delicious.

Then up the quality ladder we went, with an intensly feminine, yet powerful Chevalier-Montrachet. The floral/citrus/tropical melon mix of flavors was astonishing.

But why try not save it to last? Because next was Batard-Montrachet, a huge, explosively powerful monster of a white Burgundy, more massive than most red Burgundies. What a beautiful beast! It had finesse and elegance, along with the power and complexity. I'm again having trouble to find words to convey the greatness of these wines.

We were finally invited to sample the 1996 Montrachet, which had yet to begin, not finish, its malolactic! All of one barrel of this was produced. (shades of Thunder Mountain) The Montrachet was a mix of intense grapefruit, high acid, and green apples, with penetrating intensity. Very difficult to judge, it is obviously a prodigious wine that will be a great wine if they are successful in putting it through a complete malolactic. I sincerely hope they succeed.

Well, I was again awed by the magnificense of these wines. 1996 is truly great for the both the best reds and whites, and the best was yet to come.

Domaine Meo-Camuzet's 1996s, Ho Hum, More Fabulous Burgundy!

I met Jean-Nicolas Meo a few months ago in VVW where his wines were being showcased. He offered us the opportunity to taste his 1996 red Burgundies, so Sue and I did our usual random walk, this time in Vosne Romanee. As usual, we couldn't find domaine Meo-Camuzet on our first pass or two, so we stopped in an imposing courtyard to ask directions. I looked at the fleet of Mercedes parked near by, found a tiny brass plaque at the entrance which read "Romanee Conti" and decided to ask elsewhere. Eventually, we found the property, which, I believe, literally had no identifying sign or name plate. Unfortunately, Jean-Nicolas told us he had a business conflict and turned us over to his cellar master who spoke no, I mean NO, English. The poor fellow shrugged his shoulders and looked a little helpless.

Fortunately, Sue's French had really picked up by this time and I was doing a lot better. Soon the same pattern repeated, as we started communicating and our host's enthusiasm grew exponentially. He was delighted to be talking to another winemaker, and decided to show us his best 1996s.

I know this sounds like the same old song, but the 1996 reds were utterly magnificent. The precise delination of the wines was amazing, as was the quality. The Vosne-Romanee tasted like a premier cru, as did the Nuits St. Georges. The colors were strikingly dark, the aromas full of dark and red fruits, and the flavors very true to type. These were cameo examples of terrior.

Outstanding premier crus included the Nuits St Georges-Boudots and -Meurgeys along with the Vosne-Romanee Chaumes, a particularly striking femine wine with remarkable intensity, and an other-worldy Vosne Romanee Brulees, which exploded with raspberries and spice. This one held its own with some of the wines that followed.

Of course, we didn't stop there. As honored guests, we next plunged into the Grand Crus, starting with an impressively dark Clos Vouget, loaded with cherries and sweet plum flavors. Amazingly, the quality hiked up even further with the next two wines. Perhaps my favorite was the Vosne-Romanee Cros Parantoux, a wine I might actually afford a bottle or two of. (I hope) There is very little of this made, but the wine goes beyond description. Let's just say it was significantly better: more intense, explosive, rich and complex, than the others I salivated over while describing above.

Finally, we tasted the 1996 Richebourg, which eclipsed any I've had from their neighbor, Romanee-Conti. But this is a $300 (or more) bottle, so I'll settle for the Parantoux if I can find it. Oh, all right, so the Richebourg was a little better, a nearly perfect red Burgundy, but I can't spend $300 on a bottle of wine...at least I don't think so.... Sue just read this over my shoulder and is looking for a large stick to beat me with, so I better sign off and hide. I'll talk to you again soon, after she calms down.

Domaine Hubert de Montille - A Skeptic gets Religion Those Volnays and Pommards from Domaine de Montille...people love them or hate them. I'll admit to being a skeptic.

Certainly in lesser years, the high tannins and often searing acid I've often found show little promise for harmonious resolution. But what about great years? In hopes of answereing such questions, Sue and I headed off to Volnay. Our directions included: "Turn right at what is obviously the last road up the hill to Volnay." The first and second "obviously" last roads we tried turned out not to be. Okay, so how to determine the "obviously" last road? Of course! You drive all the way through the area, make a U-turn, and the first street you come to after passing the "Volnay" sign will be your turn. It was.

Once on the right road, the de Montille estate was easy to find. We arrived on schedule, 11:00, but no one appeared. After a while, a woman emerged from the large main building. We told her of our appointment and she asked if we could return at 16:00. No, we couldn't. She then suggested 11:45. Okay.

We walked around Volnay, a beautiful place with great views. When we returned at 11:45, no one was there. An elderly but vigorous gentlemen appeared, then went back into the house. You could hear his raised voice, but could not decipher the rapid French. We were about to leave when the woman reappeared and invited us to wait in the garden above. Why not? It was a beautiful place. Twenty minutes later, the vigorous gentleman reappeared and asked how we'd liked the wines. we told him we hadn't tasted any yet. This upset him and he disappeared again.

Finally, the woman emerged and led us to the cellar and poured us a sample of 1994 Bourgogne. Not promising. Little fruit could be detected in the bitingly acid and highly tannic wine.

But the elderly gentleman again appeared and said this wouldn't do. (In French, he spoke almost no English) He dismissed the woman and led us into the inner cellar. It turned out we were to get a tour by the patriarch himself, the legendary Hubert De Montille, lawyer for Faiveley in the lawsuit against Robert Parker, vocal critic of chaptalization and acidification and of those who employed the techniques. It was the old lion, himself.

With that in mind, we launched directly into a barrel tasting, comparing '95 and '96. The wines were stunning!!! All you de Montille fans, these are vintages where your faith will be rewarded and your praise justified. Rich, pure, powerfully intense fruit balances the fearsome acids and tannins; the extraction is out of this world. Hubert told us the caps were punched down eight times a day to maximize extraction from the powerful '95 and '96 cuvees.

The results were impressive. The color of the wines would have received favorable comments in a tasting of syrahs, the fruit flavors of plums, raspberries and blackberries, exploded on your palate and lingered for minutes. Yet these are fierce, tannic wines, perhaps not for everyone. However, if you have a cellar, these could turn out to be precious gems in 10 years or more, perhaps much more.

Our enthusiasm bubbled over and Hubert moved in closer and talked more intensely. Sue and I were aware that interpersonal distances are significantly less for the French than for Americans. We stood our ground and Hubert de Montille got right in our faces!

It turned out we have mutual friends and acquaintances that he had met while visiting California. It also turned out our wine-making philosophies agreed to a great extent. He became more and more enthused as we sampled the top Volnays: Mitans, Taillepieds and Champans, and then the Pommards: Pezerolles, Rugiens and Grands-Epenots. His passion for his wine was remarkable.

I guess I preferred the Talliepieds among the Volnays and the Rugiens among the Pommards; I also give an edge to the 1996s over the 1995s, but it was splitting hairs. It was an awesome line-up, to say the least.

We finished the tour of barrels and profusely praised the wines Hubert smiled at our enthusiasm and told us that, to appreciate his philosophy, we had to experience one of his mature vintages. With that, he ducked into a side wing of the cellar and emerged with a half-bottle covered with dust. It turned out to be his 1978 Pommard Pezerolles. He pulled the cork and poured us each a glass.

Are any of you cigar enthusiasts and have you ever had a Dunhill Havana? If you have, you can picture the first wave of rich, aged Cuban cigar aromas and flavors that rolled out of the glass, evolving complex integrated fruit and spice almost immediately. Tremendous depth and complexity, with wonderful flavors I've never experienced in a wine. This set a new standard in a style with which I was unfamiliar. Absolutely amazing!! That's why one buys and ages Hubert de Montille Burgundies.

Hubert walked us to our car and I told him I had a present for him. He lit up like a child; more so when I handed him a bottle of Thunder Mountain Beauregard Ranch cabernet. This old gentleman, who appeared to have shed decades in the last two hours, excitedly insisted on reciprocating. Despite our protests, he went of to his home and emerged quickly with a bottle of his 1985 Pommard Pezerroles. That bottle is now in my cellar. I'm saving it for a special occasion on which I'll toast a very special gentleman from Volnay.

Back to Earth at Domaine Drouhin

Our next appointment was with Domaine Drouhin. I had met Veronique Drouhin , winemaker at Drouhin Oregon, at a tasting of her Drouhin Oregon pinot noirs some months ago. I contacted her before our trip, and she offered to give us a tour the Drouhin grounds in Beaune.

If you think it's confusing to drive around the Burgundy countryside, try the city of Beaune. The streets are not laid out on a rectangular grid, but on a demented, misshapen spider web. I won't go into details, but, as seemed to be the rule, we found our way through a random walk process, and eventually arrived on time. Pure magic.

Veronique greeted Sue and me and started on the tour. It's a must-see. The Drouhin cellars are a mass of tunnels and chambers underlying the city of Beaune. There are massive caves below Beaune, with walls built in the 11th century. It's a striking place; the behemoth of an old wooden press from the 15th century is still in use. Lots of oohing and aahhing and prime picture taking.

Yes, we tasted some nice wines, but not from barrels and not from '95 or '96. The 1992 Clos Vougeot was a fine example for near-term consumption; lovely fruit and harmonius flavors. If the price is right (Veronique did not know the prices of the wines), it would be worth picking up a few bottles.

On a side note, we had lunch a few days later at le Montrachet in Puligny-Montrachet. We ordered a 1995 Drouhin Savigny-les-Beaune, which proved to be a great match with both the salmon and the lamb. The fruit was lavish, the balance and acidity right on, the flavors exactly what one expects from the vineyard. It bodes well for Domaine Drouhin 1995s.

And Right Back Up With Domaine Geantet-Pansiot 1995s Sue and I left Domaine Drouhin and headed north on N74. As we inched along in heavy traffic in Gevrey Chambertin, I noticed a small sign on a gate on the opposite side of the road: Geantet-Pansiot. Having developed French driving skills over the past week, I swung a nifty U-turn in heavy trafic and darted through the gate. Right behind me came another car. Was this a scene from the L.A. streets? Was an irate driver pulling in to go mano a mano?? No, it was the winemaker!

After introductions, we asked to taste his wines. As our astounding luck would have it, he had opened some bottles of his 95’s less than an hour before for tasting with a supplier. This is what we found: (all 1995s)

Gevery Chambertin - A village wine that tasted like a premier cru, with depth, complexity and unmistakable terrior of the area.

Gevrey Chambertin Le Poissenot - Black cherries and toasty new oak in the aroma and flavor, very clean and precise, modern top-flight California cabernet wine-making style, it’s a real bargain, selling in the $30 range. Gevrey Chambertin Les Jeunes Rois - This is a darkly colored, intense beauty from 45-50 year old vines, with richness, fruit and oak tannins and fine structure. Again, a moderately priced clean wine with plenty of black fruit.

Gevrey Chambertin Vielles Vignes - A wine from 90 year old vines, this is another dark beauty with plenty of tannin and black fruits. Richness and depth, plus the unmistakeable Gevrey Chambertin character. Really a special wine.

Charmes Chambertin Grand Cru - Wow! This is one I have to add to my cellar. Massive, explosive black fruit, so rich and powerful, yet clean and precise. This had Bordeaux-like lead pencil qualities with, so help me, black currants intermingled with raspberries and wild blackberries. The wine finished with an aftertaste that lasted almost all the way back to Dijon! What a monster and a very great wine indeed.

I wonder what their 1996s taste like????

The 1996 Wines of Domaine Comte Georges de Vogue

Sue and I had initially intended to visit this property on our first day in France. Unfortunately, with our "Bomb Scare" episode, we arrived in Chambolle-Musigny at 15:00 hours, somewhat shaken AND stirred, for an appointment at 14:30. We telephoned the estate and talked to Francois Millet, Chef de Cave (that’s Cellarmaster in California). No, unfortunately we couldn’t come by for the visit. Yes, he appreciated us calling him. And could we reschedule?? Of course we could, as we expected this visit to be a high point of our trip. We were not disappointed.

By now, we were old hands at following obscure directions. We arrived without incident and on time and met Mssr. Millet, a slim, reserved, soft-spoken gentleman in his 40s, who spoke fluent English, a rare treat for us. He invited us to taste the ’96 wines out of barrel. Of course we accepted.

Francois and I discussed older vintages from the property. I loved the ’71, ’72 and ’78; he nodded his approval. "What about more recent vintages?" he inquired. I praised the 1990 Musigny VV, one of the particularly great wines from the property, then mentioned the 1991 Musigny VV as well; a wine of which I am especially fond. Francois’ eyes widened and he vigorously nodded his agreement. It was a particularly difficult vintage. They succeeded in making great wine by going over each individual bunch and discarding inferior grapes. Their yield was only a ton per acre that year, but their Musigny VV was arguably a candidate for Wine of the Vintage in 1991. Francois warmed considerably and led us into the cellar.

How were the wines? Great. No, they were much better than that! First was the Chambolle-Musigny, another village wine that tasted like a premier cru. Fine color, good depth, red cherry and ripe raspberry fruits bursting on the palate. A sophisticated wine with a silky texture that HAS to be a bargain.

However, we stepped right up into the big leagues with the Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses. This is an absolutely stunning wine, the feminine side of the Comte de Vogue line-up. The wine displayed gorgeous, sophisticated fruit overlayed with flowery nuances. Sue remarked about the lovely rose petals and violets in both the boquet and flavor and Francois raised his eyebrows. Of course, she was right; those characteristics elevated the wine to a very special level. What set it apart for me was the mind-boggling concentration and purity, the beautiful balance of powerful tannins and acid with the fruit, and yet a distinctly feminine, graceful component. An amazing blend of power and finesse. Could it get better? Sue didn’t think so; this was her favorite wine of our whole trip.

Next followed the Bonnes Mares, quite a different wine. One would not place it with the other de Vogue wines in a blind tasting. It was a great Bonnes Mares to be sure, but the terrior differences were distinctive. It was a big, dark mouthful of wine that exploded with concentrated black fruit flavors. Very powerful, it is a great wine but all on its own; a great candidate for cellaring. Again, the precise, definitive character of the ’96 vintage was shown so very clearly.

And finally came my favorite wine of our trip, the ’96 Musigny Vieilles Vignes. This is surely a candidate for the Wine of the (great) Vintage, a nearly perfect Burgundy. It is the masculine side of the de Vogue line-up, the perfect counterpoint to the fabulous Amoureuses. Once again, words fail to do the wine justice. Perfect balance, unbelievable depth and complexity, lead pencil Bordeaux-like qualities; the steel fist in the velvet glove cliché must have been generated by a wine like this. Roses and violets, black pepper and cinnamon, black fruits and red berries, layers and layers of complexity. This is a wine that sets a new bench-mark! The only question is will I be able to afford any? (groan, gasp, wheeze.)

We left Francois with our profuse thanks; he responded with a comment on how he had rarely enjoyed a visit as much as he had ours. He invited us visit again the next time we get to Burgundy. That’s an invitation I can’t and won’t refuse!

Domaine Paul Chapelle, The Last Chapter in Burgundy

Our last appointment in Burgundy was at Domaine Paul Chapelle, a not-so-minor treasure of mine not reviewed by WS or WA. I love their white Burgundies, particularly their Puligny-Montrachet "Hameau de Blagny," their estate wine. We started out in our search for the property which, we were warned, had NO sign to mark it. But we were old hands at this game by now and found it easily.

I’d hoped to see Sylvie, one of the Chapelle daughters, now married to Michael Sullivan. The two of them founded Beaune Imports in Berkeley. I’d met Sylvie at VVW several years ago where their 1990 Hameau de Blagny was poured to accompany a tasting of the 1990 DRC lineup. I remember remarking to a knowledgeable and charming young woman with a French accent who was tasting next to me that this was a great white Burgundy I’d never heard of. She replied: "My father will be delighted to hear your opinion; it is his best wine."

But Sylvie was not there when we arrived. Her brother-in-law, winemaker with the 1996, harvest greeted us. His English was passable, but we stayed with French. As we tasted our first wine from barrel, the 1996 Puligny Montrachet, Sylvie drove up. She joined us in tasting this terrific young village wine, with fresh, crisp fruit, citrus overtones, and the liquid mineral characteristics I associate with the area. It was intense and beautifully balanced. The 1996 vintage was showing its greatness again.

The 1996 Puligny-Montrachet "Champgain" is another exciting wine. Again the intense apple/citrus fruit, liquid mineral complexity, excellent acidity and balance and lingering after-taste marked the wine. This has to be a bargain, probably selling for around $30-$35.

The final white Burgundy was the 1996 Puligny-Montrachet "Hameau de Blagny." Unfortunately, the wine had just finished malolactic and had been racked just two days before. It was difficult to evaluate in the reduced state, with a funky nose and a hint of residual hydrogen sulfide. Shades of my 1995 Bald Mountain Chardonnay during its development. However, the intensity, acidity, and underlying fruit bode well for a complex, long-lived wine typical of this property. I’ll certainly ear-mark some for my cellar

. I was unaware of a red wine from the property, but there it was, their premier cru Santenay "Gravieres." That wine had also just finished malolactic fermentation and was similarly funky and difficult to evaluate. However, there was plenty of intensity and pure fruit beneath the surface. I’ll look forward to trying it if and when it is exported.

Sylvie gave us a bottle of the 1988 Santenay "Gravieres,", a wine made by her husband before they left to start Beaune Imports. She advised us to share it with friends in France, as she felt it would taste "brighter." We opened it with dinner for some Burgundy-loving French friends from Dijon. They (and we) were impressed! The wine had lovely, bright, Santenay fruit, red cherries and plums, good depth and a satisfying finish. Now I’m really looking forward to trying that 1996!

ON TO THE RHONE AND THE WINES OF CHAPOUTIER

Sue and I headed out of Beaune, through Dijon and south on the Autoroute. The traffic roared on past us, even though we were holding at the 130 km/hr speed limit (about 78 mph). The day was dark with showers falling; Burgundy was sad to have us leave.

We soon could see the Rhone on our right. We decided to duck off onto the local surface roads at ‘Tain-Hermitage. The sun broke through; we parked the car and walked about the town. I remarked to Sue that I wondered where the famous wineries were as we crossed a bridge over the Rhone.

Turning around, I saw a double-humped hill with huge letters at the base...on one side Jaboulet, on the other, Chapoutier. We walked back across the bridge into the town and found ourselves a few blocks from the Chapoutier tasting room. Even though we hadn’t an appointment, well, it was a tasting room, wasn’t it?? It certainly was, and the charming young hostess was more than happy to pour some wines for us to taste:

1) 1995 Hermitage Chante Alouette A terrific white wine with honeyed fruits and a lovely liquid mineral quality I associate with white Burgundy. Beautiful pineapple/apricot/melon flavors and a long, lingering finish. What a start on our Rhone tastings!

2) 1995 Condrieu Another wine full of apricots and melons, with excellent acidity and liquid mineral flavors. These two were outstanding.

3) 1991 Hermitage La Sizeranne A forward, developed Hermitage, not a block-buster, but nice for near term drinking. After the terrific 1995 whites, this was rather a come-down.

4) 1995 Hermitage La Sizeranne This bounced us right back up. It was an absolutely stunning syrah, with explosive blackberry/bing cherry/black plum fruitk, with a fine acid/tannin balance, plenty of fresh black pepper and a long, lingering aftertaste. WOW - that’s syrah!!

No, we didn’t get to taste any luxury cuvees; that was as good as it got. But it did give us an indication of what was to come, 1995 was super for Rhones.

RENE ROSTANG - COMPARING ’95 WITH ’96 IN COTE ROTIE Sue and I got our directions to Rene Rostang over the phone a day before our visit. We found the small town of Ampuis by taking an unmarked turn on an un-named road that appeared to be going in the right direction. Well, okay, if we had stuck to the autoroute and not traveled the lovely smaller roads, there was a sign that would have guided us...but that wouldn’t have been any fun. The ride took longer than we had anticipated, and we were getting somewhat worried about the time.

We got to the center of Ampuis and asked for directions. The second time around, they made some sense. We drove down a narrow alleyway, hung a turn to the left, and stopped to ask directions again. Yup, as in Burgundy, we had stopped at Rene Rostang’s home.

Rene’s wife asked our pardon for his attire; it seems he was in the middle of racking his ’96 reds. We walked a block or two to the winery and, sure enough, he was taking on that job single-handed. This was basic winemaking in action. He was fining some lots with fresh albumen (egg whites). He usually fines, but not filters, his reds. He speaks minimal English, but between our French and his English, we got along just fine. Here are some wines we tasted:

1996 Condrieu 1)- Fresh from stainless steel, still foaming, this was a beautiful, honeyed, bright wine that was bursting with peaches, apricots and pineapple, yet with liquid minerals and wet stone. Great balance and an acid backbone that will carry it well. What a terrific white wine!

2) 1995 Cote-Rotie, Cuvee Classique - Rich, powerful wine with freshly crushed blackberries in the aroma and flavor, medium bodied with a fine acid/tannin balance and a lingering aftertaste.

3) 1995 Cote-Rotie La Ladonne - A huge, smoky, inky wine with deep blackberry and violet aromas and flavors. Plenty of tannin that will need some age, this is a black monster. Extremely intense and concentrated, so deep, a great Cote Rotie.

4) 1995 Cote-Rotie Cote Blonde - Rene says this is his best wine, and who am I to dispute this? Certainly not after tasting another monster of a wine loaded with aromas of black-currants, blueberries, blackberries and violets, and a flavor that matched, along with fresh pepper and vanilla just to spice things up. This is a definite must-buy for my cellar!

We also tasted the 1996 versions of the reds from barrel, but they had just finished their malolactic and were badly in need of aeration. Very difficult to judge with hydrogen sulfide in both aromas and flavors, I didn’t find the intensity and complexity of the 1995 vintage. I asked Rene about this, and he agreed. He believes the 1995s are some of his greatest wines ever (he started in 1971) and that 1996 is a very good vintage, but simply not in the league of 1995. He feels, however, that his 1996 Condrieu is exceptional. I won’t dispute him there, either.

Our next appointment was at one of my favorite properties, Le Vieux Telegraphe.

It’s one thing to hear about the stones in the vineyard; it’s another to see the vines fighting their way through up to six feet of stones! The stones are left from the time the last ice-age receded and the Rhone was twenty miles across, instead of two. Amazing. Who would have thought even tough weeds like grapes could survive in such a hostile environment?

We had a terrific host, Alain Narjoux, Matre de Chais. He spoke excellent English, but happily honored our request to speak (slowly) in French. We toured the facility, getting great pictures of huge casks and mountainous piles of bottles. We also tasted some super 1995s:

First came the 1996 Chateauneuf-du -Pape Blanc, another great 1996 white Rhone, with Roussanne dominating the blend. Crisp, fruity and satisfying, with mango, melon, peach and apricot flavors and an after-taste that went on and on. The 1996 vintage is a great one for white Rhones.

Next, we started on the 1995 reds from the bottom up. The first red was a non-export wine, their 1995 Vin de Pays Le Pigeoulet. This was an excellent every-day table wine, a blend of Cinsault and Grenache. The grapes are grown just outside the ChNdP boundaries. A dandy wine with up-front berry fruit; this is everyday stuff for the locals. Lucky locals.

Next came the 1995 Chateauneuf-du-Pape Vieux Mas des Papes, a cuvee made from the young vines, those less than 28 years old. Plenty of black fruits, cherries and plums; a very attractive ChNdP that rivals would love to have as their first wine.

We next tasted the 1995 Le Vieux Telegraphe, itself. Made from Grenache, Syrah and Mouvedre with a touch of Cinsault, the 1995 is an amazing wine. It is huge, intense, and exposive. Black stone fruits and licorice vie with herbs and spices, in layers and layers of complexity. Very ripe, yet beautifully balanced, this is the finest VT I’ve ever tasted, better than their terrific 1994 and their superb 1978. Alain admitted that 1995 might be their "Vintage of the Century."

This wine is available as a "steal" on futures these days, so DON"T PASS IT UP! Parker significantly under-rated it at 91-94 when he tasted the components. It is very, very great wine.

Unbelievably, we had more to taste. The following wine was their 1995 Chateau Rochet Chateauneuf-du Pape, a wine that has its origins in their relationship with Seagrams. This is made by the same winemaker (Alain) from different terrior. The wine was aimed at export, particularly to this country. It is a huge fruit bomb of red and black fruits that screamed "Big Zin" at me. Of course it was made from the classic ChNdP varieties. Look for the wine; as this will be its first release, it may be widely available at a very reasonable price.

We ended our tour by tasting the Grenache, Syrah and Mouvedre components of the 1996 VT. They were quite nice, but not in the league of the ’94, let alone the ’95. Alain considers ’96 a good but not great year, confirming my impressions.

I gave him a bottle of the 1993 Thunder Mountain Beauregard Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon and he was delighted. He said he belongs to a tasting group and he was anxious to throw it into a double-blind as a sleeper. I’ll try to find out how it did.

Chateau Beaucastel - A Fitting Ending to a Great Series of Tastings Our last appointment of the trip was at Chateau Beaucastel, another of my perennial favorites. We arrived a little early for our appointment and drove around in the vineyards. To our surprise, massive sections looked brutalized, with torn branches hanging limply from the vines or scattered over the rocky vineyard. It looked as though a UFO had attempted to make crop circles, and given up in disgust after stirring the rocky vineyards and old vines.

Upon the start of our tour, I asked about the damage. It seems that a light rain we experienced a few nights before in the northern Rhone was a mini-tornado, complete with hail and winds at Chateau Beaucastel. Our host said they estimated a loss of 25% of their crop to wind and hail damage.

We got an in-depth tour of the facility, learning about their organic vineyard practices to their controversial "flash-heating" of the must. We toured the massive caves, saw the huge storage facilities and dust-covered mountains of bottles. Vintages back to 1979 are stored at the main facility; older vintages are stored elsewhere. So what were the wines like?

The 1996 Chateau Beaucastel Blanc, another Roussanne-dominated white; also a great white Rhone. Broken record - the 1996 white Rhones are great. This is another beauty, full of ripe peaches, apricots and pineapple, dandy acid, satisfying finish. Try it; you’ll be converted.

The 1995 Coudoulet de Beaucastel is a dark, concentrated wine full of blackberries, smoked meat, spice and bing cherries. It is a very clean, pure example of ChNdP, very rich and powerful, one of the best examples of this wine I’ve ever tasted. It usually sells for under $20/bottle, so put it up blind against some zins or more expensive Rhones and you’ll be impressed.

The 1994 Chateau Beaucastel is a concentrated, powerful, rich wine with a terrific aroma of roasted game, Asian spice, and black stone fruit, along with a touch of that funky Beaucastel quality you either love or hate. I love it (at this level) and am delighted I have a case in my cellar. And then came the 1995. Super ripe, super concentrated, a more intense version of the terrific 1994. Full of blackberries, bing cherries and Santa Rosa plum aromas and flavors, along with the tell-tale Beaucastel barnyard qualities, roasted meat, leather, venison and freshly-ground pepper, this is a terrifically complex and impressive wine. Very ripe and powerful, it has a long life ahead of it. If you like Beaucastel, this is another must-buy.

That was not the end. As luck would have it, they had entertained some distributors the previous evening and had the makings of a vertical for us to try. Here are my comments for various vintages of Chateau Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du Pape:

1990 - Big, deep and complex, a terrific complete wine. Drinking very well, but will develop significantly with cellaring.

1986 - A spicy, peppery variation on the theme. It seemed to be a very young wine in need of significant aging and evolution.

1983 - A complete wine with mushroom/truffle aromas, meat and light barnyard qualities, plenty of fruit, still young.

1981 - Another wine that had a fresh, young boquet and flavor, still fine acidity and fruit, yet to reach its peak.

1979 - Complete and mature with a brick edge, plenty of mushroom qualities, nice fruit and acidity, good balance, ready but will hold.

That was some impressive line-up and confirmed the ageability of these wines. They taste like zins when they’re young, but they age so much more gracefully! (with rare exceptions) People with older vintages in their cellar needn’t worry about wines like these.

Milan

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