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The Pfalz: Reichsrat von Buhl, Basserman-Jordan and Forster Kirchenstück GG

The tasting parlor at Reichsrat von Buhl in Deidesheim

The two Deidesheimer estates of Reichsrat von Buhl and Dr. von Basserman-Jordan are closely intertwined. Both estates were once part of the famed Jordan wine estate which was divded amongst Andreas Jordon's three heirs in 1848. These two properties, along with a third called Dr. Deinhard, have recently been reunited by a Neustadt-based businessman named Joachim Niederberger, and are again in the hands of a single owner.

At its pinnacle, the Jordan winery was once the most illustrious in the Pfalz, and Niederberger seems determined to return these 150 hectares to their former glory. The three brands will continue to be operated as separate wineries, although with a co-ordinated international marketing strategy. The lineup of outstanding vineyards is mind boggling with Basserman-Jordan owning Großes Gewächs spread throughout the villages of Ruppertsberg, Deisdesheim, and Forst. Von Buhl's portfolio is built around the classified sites Jesuitengarten, Pechstein, Ungeheuer, and Kirchenstück, all of which are found in the village of Forst.

Vineyard hunting in the Pfalz

German weinprobes (wine tastings) tend to be well-organized and the wines for tasting are normally opened and readied for tasting prior to a visitors arrival. It is was the Forster Kirchenstück, produced by both von Buhl and Basserman-Jordan, that I had most eagerly wanted to taste, and I was disappointed to find that it was missing from both of the winery's tasting programs. Our host at von Buhl disappeared into the cellar and returned with a bottle of the 2007 Forster Kirchenstück GG. The anticipation and hype was deserved: not only did the wine impress, but it was one of the most complex and energized dry German Rieslings I have ever tasted.

Only a handful of producers own parcels in the tiny walled Kirchenstück vineyard in Forst

After our tasting with von Buhl I was determined to see the vineyard. It is fairly easy to find. Kirchenstück translates as "church piece", and the the church in the small village of Forst was its tallest structre. On the hill behind the church lies a small vineyard which is enclosed on all sides by a 6-foot sandstone wall which is said to protect the site from wind. We were told that heat is stored in the walls during the day, which then transfers back into the vines during the night. The soil is made up of sandstone, limestone scree, loess and a black basalt that can be found as paving material on some of the side streets in the village. I'm a huge fan of the 2007 vintage in Germany, and I admit to favoring the Pfalz style in recent years, but this wine took it to another level.

The Pfalz: Steffen Christmann and Idig GG

Weingut A. Christmann in Gimmeldingen.

While both dry and fruity styles continue to co-exist in the Pfalz, it was made clear to us that the future of this region lies in the dry wines coming from its 56 Großes Gewächse (or classified "Great Growths"). These crus, to borrow the French term, that were officially established (or re-established, as discussed below) in 2002, and have been building up momentum since at least the late 1990s when the Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweinguter (or VDP), the association of the top 200 or so German wine estates, realized the necessity for a classification similar to that of Burgundy. We tasted with six leading estates during our brief stay in the Pfalz, and left with a new found appreciation for these dry, mineral-driven Rieslings which are expressing their terroirs with precision and elegance, especially in the 2007s that the estates were showing during our visit. While the Pfalz is loaded with top-notch producers, Steffan Christmann of the Weingut A. Christmann estate in Gimmeldingen impressed us the most.

Steffen Christmann

Jesse and 7th-generation winemaker Steffen Christmann taking in the Idig GG from a viewing platform above the vineyard.

Classifications always bring conflict as inevitably certain vineyards are rated lower than their owners think they deserve (it is a classification system, after all), and the Pfalz has not escaped its share of strife in establishing the Großes Gewächse. As reported by Michael Schmidt in the Wine Report 2009, Steffen Christmann is the new president of the VDP is now working to bring more peace amongst the growers. He feels that the VDP members must now stand together to promote the concept. During our visit, Steffen was generous with his time and took us to his almost alleinbesitz (monopole) vineyard of Idig. The normally focused winemaker became momentarily distracted as he watched a fellow grower working a tractor on the small portion of Idig which he does not own, because Steffen works his majority ownership of Idig by hand and with biodynamic techniques.

Große Gewächs Idig

The lagenkarte of Gimmeldingen, Königsbach, and Ruppertsberg in the Pfalz. Courtesy of www.weingut-christmann.de.

The VDP based the 2002 classification on lagenkarten (land maps) dating from 1828 when the best vineyards where appraised for tax purposes. The 2002 classification, which follows the model of Burgudy's Regional, Village, Premier Cru, and Grand Cru categories, ranks as follows: Gutsweine, the Regional equivalent, which literally translates as "estate wine" or wine produced by grapes grown by the estate; Ortsweine, the Village equivelent, translating as "commune wine"; Erste Lagen, is the term chosen by the VDP to mean "Premier Cru", which can all, confusingly, be made in sweet or dry styles.

It is in the Große Gewächse or "Grand Cru" category where things can get particularly interesting, and is where the leading estates of the Pfalz are making their mark. These wines must be made in a dry style, whose upper limit of residual sugar has now been reduced to 9 grams per liter and are identified by a special bottle with an embossed logo displaying the number "1" and a cluster of grapes. And the VDP is now requiring its members to add the letters "GG" after the vineyard name to drive home the point.

Steffen Christmann propagates Königsbacher Idig GG, Gimmeldingen Mandelgarten GG, and Ruppertsberger Reiterfad GG. His "SC" (or "Selection Christmann") wines are declassified from the above mentioned GGs so that only his most complex and concentrated wines go into the GG wines, and his dry wines all land in the range of 3.5 to 4 grams of residual sugar, which he feels is the right balance for Pfalz Rieslings. These were dry, concentrated and mineral and some of the best dry Rieslings we tasted on our trip.

The south-facing Große Gewäch of Idig near Königsbach.

The loamy mix of loess, chalk, and sandstone at Idig.

Albert Seltz, Marc Kreydenweiss, and André Ostertag

Albert Seltz at his domaine in Mittelbergheim.

Albert Seltz is different. It took him a little while to warm up to us and I think it's because he was worrying about impressing us, something he takes special care not to do. The seemingly indifferent Seltz, however, not only spent two hours with us in his cellar where we tasted his delicious and unusual Sylvaners, but he also ate lunch with us where he was subjected to a rather difficult blind tasting by the sommelier (Seltz excels at blind tasting by the way).

Some of his unbottled wines appeared to have a lot of debris in suspension, even though some had been in tank for nearly two years. When we asked Seltz to explain this, he shrugged his shoulders and said "that's my wine." Then we went upstairs to taste through multiple vintages of Sylvaner Grand Cru Zotzenberg. This wine was sold as Sono Contento (Italian for "I'm happy") Vieilles Vignes until 2005 because the Grand Cru of Zotzenberg only became a Grand Cru recently (the first for Sylvaner), and Albert Seltz was of course instrumental in lobbying for that change with the Institut National des Appellations d'Origine ("INAO"). Organic farming, minimal cellar intervention, lees contact, and the use of indigenous yeast all make for individual wines. To miss Seltz's Sylvaner is to have missed one of the wine world's loveliest offerings.

Domaine Marc Kreydenweiss in Andlau.

Marc Kreydenweiss produces a style of Alsatian wine that I enjoy very much. These wines are leaner, more linear, and even austere at times. They are more friendly with food and the Grand Crus of Wiebelsberg, Moenchberg, and Kastelberg are all very clear expressions of their terroirs. Marc Kreydenweiss was one of the pioneers of biodynamics in Alsace and he now has many followers. There is also a cuvée of Riesling and Pinot Gris called Clos du Val d'Eléon which Kreydenweiss claims to be from a terroir similar to that of Nicolas Joly's Coulée de Serrant.

Our last visit in Alsace's Bas-Rhin before traveling to the Pfalz, the very pure wines of Domaine André Ostertag.

André Ostertag uses some barrique with the Pinot family (Blanc, Gris, and Noir), but the remainder are wines of purity and precision. The domaine has divided its production into three categories, the vins de fruit (fruit wines), the vins de pierre (stone wines), and vins de temps (time wines). In addition to the oaked Pinot wines, there is an old-vine Sylvaner, and Rieslings from Grand Crus Fronholz and Muenchberg, all of which are wonderfully pure and dry. Ostertag is yet another Alsatian proponent of biodynamics, although he has been quoted as saying in Andrew Jefford's The New France that he detests Nicolas Joly of Coulée de Serrant.

Domaine Weinbach

Alsace's first (and best?) classified vineyard, the Grand Cru Schlossberg.

Domaine Weinbach is the finest domaine in Alsace. There, I've said it. Nowhere else in this world class wine region, will you find a domaine with better vineyards, farmed as immaculately (and with biodynamics), and with a better team, than at the Domaine Weinbach of Colette, Cathérine and Laurence Faller. Established by the Capuchin monks in 1612, the domaine was eventually acquired by the brothers Faller who in turn left the estate to their son and nephew, Théo. Théo Faller became a prominent figure in Alsace, defending the ideas of quality wine production, perhaps during times where quantity over quality prevailed in the market for Alsatian wines. Today the domaine owns 28 ha., is centered near the village of Kayserberg, and is headed by Théo's widow, Colette and her daughters Cathérine and Laurence. Laurence has served as the domaine's winemaker since 1992 while Cathérine handles the commercial aspects of the business.

Weinbach's monopole of Clos des Capucins.

The vineyards of Domaine Weinbach read like a listing of the finest terroirs in the region. Their famous monopole vineyard of Clos des Capucins is surprisingly flat with sandy silt over pebbles, and is the source of a very fine Riesling as well as the Cuvée Théo Gewurztraminer. The Grand Cru of Furstentum on brown calcareous sandstone, produces Weinbach's more elegant Gewurztraminer, while the Grand Cru Mambourg tends to be better suited to the late harvest styles. The Grand Cru of Marckrain gives yet another Gewurztraminer, this time from limestone and marl, while the Altenbourg, located just underneath the Furstentum vineyard, gives rich and intense Pinot Gris and Gewurtztraminer from limestone, sand and clay.

The next generation: Cathérine skilfully conducts our tasting while simultaneously babysitting her energetic nephew, the young Armin Faller.

All of these wonderful wines eventually lead you to the outstanding Rieslings from the Grand Cru Schlossberg, which also carries the distinction of being the first Grand Cru to be classified as such in the Grand Cru decree of 1975, and was no less renowned going as far back as documents dating from the 15th century. In addition to the "basic" Schlossberg Riesling, the vineyard gives us the Cuvée Sainte Catherine (from late picked grapes), as well as the Riesling Grand Cru Schlossberg Cuvée Sainte Catherine "l'Inédit, an exceptionally rich bottling from the Schlossberg hill.

Just three of the many bottles tasted at the Domaine Weinbach, November 2008.

With the entire range tasted there was little left to do but to enjoy the wines at home with a round of Munster both of which were generously provided by Madame Faller. This was the standout domaine in during our tour of Alsace.

Maison Hugel et Fils, Domaines Schlumberger, and Kuentz-Bas

Maison Hugel et Fils boasts the region's oldest foudres, the traditional wooden aging vessels of Alsace, this one dating to 1866.

Hugel et Fils, located in the pretty tourist village of Riquewihr, was one of the largest producers we visited on our three months of tasting in Europe's vignoble. I admit to adding Hugel to our itinerary almost solely for historical reasons, as Hugel has persevered through wars, regional skirmishes and phylloxéra since 1639, and is now in its 12th generations of family ownership. Hugel has made some significant contributions to the way that Alsatian wines are sold, including the introduction of the late harvest categories of Vendage Tardive and Sélection de Grains Nobles.

I had forgotten just how excellent their dry wines can be, especially the Jubilee range which are produced only in top vintages and exclusively from Hugel's 25 ha. of vineyards in the Grand Crus of Schoenenbourg (Riesling), and Sporen (Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer) and the lieu-dit of Pflostig (Pinot Noir only). Like Trimbach and Léon Beyer, Hugel has refused to use the names of the Grand Crus on their labels, but they seem to not shy away from telling visitors that their top wines are all from Grand Crus, including the spectacular south-facing vineyard site of Schoenenbourg that dominates tiny Riquewihr. Schoenenbourg was featured in the July/August 2008 issue of La Revue du Vin de France. Many thanks to Mathieu Chalas of Hugel for the link to the article

The lovely (and no nonsense) Séverine Schlumberger on a perfect November day in Guebwiller.

Séverine is the 7th generation of the Schlumberger family to have inherited the unique situation (by Alsatian standards) of nearly 120 ha to make up the Domaines Schlumberger. An astonishing 50 of those 120 ha. are found in the Grand Crus of Kitterlé, Saering, Kessler and Spiegel, some of which are still cultivated by horse(!) of the Comtois breed, which are particularly calm at working the high, steep slopes. These 120 ha. supply Schlumberger with their entire harvest and the Grand Cru parcels offer wines that are classic with excellent typicité for the level of production. Spigel, Kessler and Kitterlé have sandstone bedrock seem to favor Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer while Saering is a classic Riesling site. The cellars here have recently been renovated and Séverine indicated that re-investment would continue despite the current credit crunch with a new bottling room and a refurbished bottling line.

Sax, faithful winery dog, a pro and accompanied us on our Schlumberger tour.

Kuentz-Bas in Husseren-les-Château.

I'd been selling the wines of Maison Kuentz-Bas since my days with Quail Distributing in Omaha so I decided it was time to pay a visit. This small biodynamic (the 2007 vintage will be certified by Ecocert) négociant is located 8 km south of Colmar in Husseren-les-Château. Kuentz-Bas lays claim to parts of the Grand Crus Pfersigberg (meaning vineyard peach) and Eichberg (meaning oak hill) and glancing through my tasting notes, the Eichberg Gewurztraminer and Pfersigberg Riesling were by far my favorite wines.

Same day: Trimbach and Deiss

Gettin' schooled by Hubert Trimbach at Grand Cru Geisberg.

Geisberg and Osterberg are the two Grand Cru vineyard sites that give us Maison Trimabach's excellent top-class Riesling, Cuvée Frédéric Emile. Trimbach famously shunned the Alsace Grand Cru system until recently, preferring instead to promote their own brand names over the controversial Grand Crus of the 1983, 1992, and 2007 classifications. That being said, Trimbach produces two of the best Rieslings in Alsace: Frédéric Emile, the rare Clos Sainte Hune, in addition to a benchmark Gewurztraminer named Seigneurs de Ribeaupierre, all from top Grand Cru sites.

Hubert moves on, leaving Jesse to ponder the wisdom.

Hubert Trimbach is not shy to share his opinions on the state of Alsatian wine and I admire that very much about him. "Dryness, purity, and balance" are the mantras here and I agree with Hubert that the trend towards sweetness is the wrong direction for Alsatian wines. After our short lesson at Geisberg we adjourned to restaurant Les Catalpas in Ribeauvillé near the Eaux Carola plant. Hubert definitely knew what he was doing as Les Catalpas is exemplary regional cooking, where he masterfully paired his wines with cuisine Alsacienne Traditionnelle.

Oenologist Marie-Hélène Cristofaro guides us through the complex offerings of Domaine Marcel Deiss.

In dramatic contrast to the wines of Trimbach, we ended our day tasting at Domaine Marcel Deiss in Bergheim. Marie-Hélène Cristofaro helped us to better understand Jean-Michel's philosophy of biodynamics, field blending and co-fermentation. She then guided us through through a tasting of the 2006s. Deiss is well known for his belief in field blends, normally of Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer of varying proportions, insisting that terroir can be more clearly expressed through a cépage rather than a single grape varietal. Jean-Michel Deiss is a passionate vigneron and became highly excitable (and slightly irritated) when I suggested that terroir is certainly expressive in the Mosel and Côte d'Or where mono-varietal wines are the norm. Nonetheless, we quickly patched things up and tasted some of the still-fermenting 2008s while touring the cellars.

Stagière Mélanie Tessaron explains the anatomy of the grape by Jean-Michel Deiss.

Harvest might be one of the most interesting times of year to visits producers. Of course you risk a shortened visit, or being declined altogether, but you're able to catch some of the action as well as meet people you might not otherwise. Such was the case with Deiss' harvest Stagière Mélanie Tesseron who is involved in the marketing and public relations side of her family's fifth-growth Château Pontet-Canet in Pauillac and Cognac Tessaron. Mélanie passionately expounded on the Deiss idea.

Jean-Michel Deiss stands still for approximately 2.8 seconds.

Drinking Cour-Cheverny in Cour-Cheverny

The unusual white wine from the Romorantin grape.

Wine geek mode was at full-throttle when I saw on our map that the village of Cour-Cheverny was nearby. I asked Elizabeth to take a detour off the A10 so we could grab some lunch and try the unusual white wine of this tiny AOC. I've been eagerly wanting to post something on this bottle of 2005 Domaine de la Désoucherie from Christian Tessier but to my surprise, top blogger, David McDuff posted on this exact producer (although a different vintage) last October so it seems that I'll need to specialize in Burgenlander Neubergers before I find my true blogging niche.

Cour-Cheverny: the ultimate in situ sipper.

Upgraded from VDQS to AOC in 1993, Cour-Cheverny must be produced from the quondam almost extinct Romorantin grape. David McDuff informed us that Romorantin has its origins in Burgundy which certainly makes sense. The Burgundian influence is found throughout the Centre, and Chardonnay creeps into the various Chenin and Sauvignon blends found in the fringe AOCs of this part of the Loire. The slightly better known Cheverny AOC permits up to 15% Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc to be blended with its Sauvignon.

My tasting notes have a slightly different set of flavor profiles from David's, which is understandable since they are not exactly for the same wine. I found the 2005 to have an oily texture with medium acidity, with pine on the nose (or even pine cone), hinting at smoked orange peel, pekoe tea, and traditional poultry herbs. It's an odd wine and Elizabeth described it as old-fashioned, a descriptor I liked very much. Quickly searching for Cour-Cheverny on the internet turned up just a few examples at retailers here in the U.S. so it can be a challenging wine to find. Nonetheless, I'm glad this wine still exists and makes for and interesting stop if you're traveling in the area.

Touraine

A bottle of 1993 Domaine du Chêne Arrault Bourgueil travels home after an impromptu tasting with Christope Dechamps.

We spent an afternoon with the young Joseph Paillé searching for Cabernet Franc to add to the négociant arm of the newly formed Pithon-Paillé winery which I recently blogged about here. Jo Pithon had received a tip about some potentially good Cabernet Franc from a grower in Bourgueil and sent Joseph and us to check out the quality.

Joseph was ecstatic to find that the grower, Christophe Dechamps, had parcels in the best parts of Bourgueil. The best parts are the argile-calcaire soils on the high plateau, rather than the sable (sandy) soils found in the lower parts of the appellation. Joseph agreed to buy and Christophe decided to celebrate by jumping into his car and taking us into his six kilometers of hand-carved caves found sixteen meters below his Bourgueil vineyards. He then proceeded to open Bourgueils from 1995, 1993, 1985, 1982 and 1976, each being more impressive than the last. The 1993 traveled back Saint-Aubin de Luigné with us and accompanied Jo Pithon's famously prepared boudin noir.

Perhaps the most telling image of the wines of Domaine Huët in Vouvray: used, 600-litre muids.

Having left Boulder, convinced that in my 12 years of wine sales, the use of at least some large, old wooden casks was now necessary for me to like a wine, something which Rudi Pichler in the Wachau has since convinced me is not true, but that is a future post. After seeing these used, 600-litre muid barrels and tasting in the cellars of Domaine Huët, I reaffirmed my believe in this vinous form of élevage. The 35 ha. biodynamic Huët estate produces three outstanding Chenin Blancs, principally from three plots: Le Haut-Lieu; Le Clos du Bourg; and Le Mont.

Le Haut-Lieu tends towards richness and is perhaps the most supple with 9 ha. on deep brown clay. Le Mont is on an 8 ha. slope facing the Loire with green clay and silica which produces my favorite of the dry wines. Le Clos du Bourg is the standout, 6 ha. clos on classic Vouvray limestone. The sec wines are all dry, complex and vinous, their special character owing to their organic cultivation and natural winemaking, and superb terroir.

Manuela Chidaine of Domaine François Chidaine in Montlouis-sur-Loire.

Manuela Chidaine is a fun person to taste wine with and she was highly amused by a little game we played where I had to guess the residual sugar in each wine she poured. I admit to not doing very well at this, sometimes under guessing by 20 to 30 grams. My notes for the 2005 Le Bouchet read "clean, mineral and citrusy yet contains 34 grams of residual sugar" while the 2005 Les Bournais possesses "excellent balance and stays light on its feet but has a whopping 47 grams of residual sugar!" This led to an interesting discussion as to whether or not the Vouvray and Montlouis AOC rules should require that the wines be labeled with their finished level of sweetness but, we both agreed that the best thing in the end is for me to visit more often.

Anjou

Nicolas Joly at Château de la Roche aux Moines.

This was my second meeting with Nicolas Joly, the first being the Return to Terroir tasting in Los Angeles in 2006. Joly met us having just come in from the harvest and delivered, as is his reputation, an animated and highly informative lecture on biodynamics. We then rapidly traveled through the cellar, where he said "it's not much to look at," and then we hurried out the back door to set foot in la Roche aux Moines. Joly's enthusiasm might have been due to the picking that was taking place on the day of our visit, but I left with the feeling that this is just Joly being himself. Walking through Nicolas Joly's portion of la Roche aux Moines was really a pleasure, and Coulée de Serrant is nothing short of inspiring. The place simply surges with energy.

The charming Florent Baumard of Domaine des Baumard.

Our morning began with a frustrating drive through the Savennières appellation, frustrating because we spent a good hour or so trying to find Domaine des Baumards famous butterfly-shaped Clos du Papillon vineyard. Our pent up anxiety quickly disappeared upon meeting Florent Baumard at his domaine in Rochefort-sur-Loire. Chris Kissack describes Florent as a "delight to taste with" and he definitely is. We felt somewhat vindicated in our frustration after he admitted to us that finding the Clos du Papillon is pretty much "impossible" and opening nearly the entire portfolio for our tasting.

Château Pierre-Bise in Beaulieu-sur-Layon.

I was looking forward to one of Claude Papin's famous diatribes on terroir, complete with the diagram drawing described in Andrew Jefford's The New France but Papin was understandably in the vineyards, which is always a risk one takes when visiting producers during harvest. The charming and equally authoritative Madame Chevalier-Papin led us through a revealing tasting, clearly demonstrating that botrytis has an important role to play in the complexity and character in both sweet and dry Chenin.

Sancerre wrap-up part 3

Dominique Roger of Domaine du Carrou.

Emanuel Mellot wasn't going to let us leave the area without visiting some of her favorite producers in Sancerre, so we jumped in her Mini one afternoon and set off for the village of Bué. I had never heard of Dominique Roger and I am dumbfounded as to why these wines are not better known. Dominique tells a great story about being mocked by the locals for planting the steep chalky hillside behind his winery with the old-timers even setting up chairs to while away the afternoons, chiding the determined Roger as he planted his vines. The wines are some of the purest and most vibrant Sancerres we've yet tasted. Emanuel agreed with us and asked to borrow a piece of chalk from one of Dominique's employees to write "ça déchire!!!" (that tears!!!) on one of Dominique's tanks.

Clément Pinard and Emanuel Mellot in the cellars at Domaine Vincent Pinard.

When I would ask other growers in the area to name their top five producers, the name Pinard came up over and over again. Brothers Clément and Florent Pinard are producing wonderfully complex Sancerre under the names Cuvée Florès (100% inox), Cuvée Nuances (1/3 wood), Cuvée Harmonie (100% wood), Charlouise, and Vendanges Entières. Their 16 ha. domaine is planted to an astonishing 9000 plants per ha. and their style leans towards that of Mellot's with a deft use of wood (the brothers reduced the use of new barrique to about a third in 2006). The three cuvées mentioned about are all from the argile-calcaires (clay-limestone) of Clos du Chêne Marchand, each expressing different levels of wood influence.

Jesse at Domaine Lucien Crochet in Bué.

Gilles Crochet graciously took a few minutes to show us the cellar at Domaine Lucien Crochet even though he was obviously busy racking and completely covered in grape juice. Benchmark Chêne Marchand and his exotically rich Vendage du Octobre wines have been some of my wine list staples for years. At this 38 ha. domaine, Gilles produces mainly in tank, with small percentages of wood found in the Vendage du Octobre bottlings as well as the Pinot Noirs.

A comparison tasting of Sancerre's two famous sites at the home Mellot's chef de cave, Nicolas Boulanger.

Sancerre wrap-up part 2

The tasting room of Thomas-Labaille in Chavignol.

Elizabeth and I took advantage of a perfect autumn Sunday and walked to the AOC's most famous vineyard, the Monts Damnés in Chavignol. We arrived in the village after a four-kilometer walk from Sancerre and happily discovered the tasting room of Domaine Thomas-Labaille, which was not only open but staffed by Jean-Paul Labaille himself. A quondam postal worker, Jean-Paul is now an accomplished vigneron of some wonderful and classically-styled Sancerres, including the rich and opulent Monts Damnés bottling. Older barrique and well-used concrete vats hint at the more traditional approach of his father-in-law, Claude Thomas, alongside whom Jean-Paul worked for 10 vintages, timing his vacations to coincide with the harvest.

Bottles of Roger Neveu shown with the three main soils found in the region: Terres Blanches, Les Caillottes, and Silex.

Another impromptu tasting adventure led us to Roger Neveu et Fils in Verdigny, whose "Clos des Bouffants" I had carried on the list at NoMI in Chicago. The lieu-dit of les Bouffants cannot be missed as one travels from Sancerre to Chavignol on the D183, with its south-facing façade being a solid block of vineyard until the hillside dips into another vineyard appropriately named Les Vallées. From there, the impressive Monts Damnés rises to engulf the tiny village of Chavignol. Neveu's wines contrast significantly in style from those of Labaille's, aged in stainless steel for a fresher, zestier expression of Sauvignon. I was surprised to learn that there is no actual clos in the Bouffants vineyard, making the "Clos des Bouffants" more of a brand name for the Neveu winery.

Jean-Marie Bourgeois holds a prized bottle from the "PMG" cellar.

Jean-Marie Bourgeois showed us around their ultra-modern cellar in Chavignol, equipped with an impressive arsenal of wine-making gadgetry and computer automation. What is remarkable here is the excellent quality achieved for such an astonishing number of wines. Henri Bourgeois makes a lot of different wines, and one wonders if it is really necessary for this Sancerre icon to produce wines from places as far flung as Bourgeuil (or New Zealand for that matter). But their Sancerre "Jadis," from a fifty-year-old parcel on Kimmeridgian, and the sixty-five-year old silex-based Sancerre "d'Atan" both have earned their place as benchmarks for the region.

Sancerre wrap-up part 1

Les Demoiselles facing north on the hill of Sancerre.

Elizabeth and I have made our way to the Rheingau, passing through most of the Loire, Alsace and southern wine-growing regions of Germany, so a little catching up is in order. I'll begin with a brief three-part wrap-up of our stay in Sancerre.

First, though, a piece of advice: you should arrange for a ride from the Tracy-Sancerre station to the village of Sancerre if you plan to take the train from the Gare de Lyon in Paris. The train let us off on a deserted platform where I'm fairly certain I heard an Ennio Morricone score begin to play as some tumbleweed blew by. It's a good nine kilometers to the hilltop village of Sancerre, so we were grateful for a ride from two sympathizing locals. Our rolling suitcases barely fit into the trunk of their Citroën.

The Maison des Sancerre museum.

A wonderful feature of Sancerre is their outstanding new wine museum, the
Maison des Sancerre, complete with a holographic map of the Sancerre vignoble and some fascinating video of the region's producers. From the museum's terrace, most of the region's 14 villages can be seen, and the staff is extremely knowledgeable about the AOC.

The biodynamic Domaine Vacheron located in the village of Sancerre.

Our main purpose in Sancerre was working the 2008 harvest with Alphonse Mellot, but we managed to squeeze in a couple of tastings in between tank cleanings. Jean-Denis Vacheron showed us the cellar at Domaine Vacheron and we tasted through their silex-driven Sauvignons and Pinot Noirs. Of special note were the minerally 2007 "Les Romains" and their excellent 2006 Pinot Noir from a forty-year-old parcel on the southeast-facing "Belle Dame." These are perhaps two of the most textbook examples of Sancerre blanc and rouge, respectively.

Meeting Charles Sydney at Charles Joguet and Ending Up at Jacky Blot

Philippa Sydney, François-Xavier Barc, and Charles Sydney at Charles Joguet in Chinon.

Elizabeth and I traveled from Anjou to the Touraine where met up with just a handful of producers before heading northeast for the German speaking segment of our tour. François-Xavier Barc graciously spent a couple of hours with us, even though Cabernet Franc was entering the Charles Joguet winery in Chinon. Their eighty-year-old vineyard, the Clos de la Dioterie, had yet to be picked and the cool temperatures that day left us wondering if the Cabernets were ever going to fully ripen in 2008.

Loire expert Charles Sydney has updated his 2008 vintage report on Chris Kissack's winedoctor.com, and he appears to be upbeat on the quality of this low-yielding vintage. Charles is also the contributing Loire Valley expert for Tom Stevenson's indispensable annual wine guide, The Wine Report, a book that I have read cover-to-cover each fall since 2005. Charles Sydney's Loire segment has always been one of the more helpful sections of the book and I have often looked to his advice when building the Loire portions of my lists over the years.

So with good fortune, we bumped into Charles and his wife Philippa at the Joguet domaine, where they stopped to snap a few photos and to check in on the progress of the vintage. Charles cheerfully directed us to one of his favorite producers in the region: Jacky Blot at the Domaine de la Taille aux Loups. Jacky is a producer whose wines I had never tasted but which have always rated highly in Sydney's writing (full disclosure here: the Sydney's are also commercially involved with the Blot's through their Chinon-based brokerage firm). Of course we jumped at the opportunity to taste there that afternoon.

The Domaine de la Taille aux Loups in Husseau, Montlouis-sur-Loire.

In two month's of tasting through the northern wine regions of Europe, we've yet to encounter anything close to the tri extrême employed at the Blot domaine. Here, sorting tables are placed at the end of each row (!), where workers separate the botrytised grapes from the healthy fruit before it is transported to the winery in Husseau. Blot built his domaine from scratch, starting with 8 ha in 1989. The domaine has has now grown to 40 ha with the addition of his red wine producing Domaine de la Butte in Bourgueil. Much has been made of Blot's non dosé pétillant Montlouis 'Triple Zero' but we were most impressed by the super-concentrated dry Chenins including the Les dix Arpents and Remus bottlings. Many thanks to Charles for the introduction.

Françoise Blot passionately leads us through the tasting.

Louis Benjamin Dagueneau

St-Andelain's most famous address.

Benjamin Dagueneau is now in charge of his family's famous winery in the village of St-Andelain, meaning the wines known as Pur Sang, Buisson Renard, and Silex will continue. During our recent visit, Benjamin spoke only French, but he would often answer Elizabeth's questions before I had finished the translation. We moved quickly through the impeccably clean Dagueneau winery, tasting the yet-to-be bottled 2007's from tank, spitting them out, speedily moving from wine to wine.

Benjamin stands proudly next to a muid marked with the
"bras d'honneur".

Benjamin and I would occasionally say a few words between wines, but there was really very little to say. He, along with his sister Charlotte, was now clearly in charge of the cellar, and I thought the wines were stunning. He passionately explained their work in the vineyards that year, and I knew he had little time for us at that moment. I had not even expected Benjamin to keep the appointment that we had made several months in advance, but the son of Pouilly's now deceased "enfant terrible," kept our appointment and took the time to communicate to us that his father's final vintage of 2007 would be one of his greatest. I learned much from our brief visit with the very serious Benjamin Dagueneau, and the message was clear: the 2007's are great and that there will be no deviation from the winery's reputation in 2008.

I have nothing new to report to those who have visited the Dagueneau winery in the past. It is pristine. There is nothing that does not belong, nothing that does not perform a specific wine-making function. The
"bras d'honneur" is still there, the famous symbol of disrespect, here intended as an insult to those who fall short of their appellation's potential, the demi-muid oak barrels that Benjamin's father resuscitated from a forgotten era are still in perfect alignment.

The unbottled 2007's offered little surprise, they are supremely focused, intensely concentrated, balanced, and deeply expressive of their terroirs. Perhaps the only light I can shed about the Dagueneau estate at this time is that the 2007 Sauvignon's are quite possibly the greatest wines that the estate has ever produced, and I feel fortunate to have tasted them as they will surely be a rare collector's item.

A Decanter article from January 2008 reported that Benjamin had intentions of setting up on his own soon, with his father offering little support beyond his son's inaugural vintage. Benjamin carries himself as though he would always bear the responsibility of carrying on the reputation of his father's name while making one of his own. Benjamin was tight-lipped about the future, yet stood proudly alongside the wines of the previous vintage. I hope we will see more vintages of Pur Sang and Silex under Benjamin's direction. He left me with the impression that there was little time for anything less.

Elizabeth stands in Dagueneau's parcel of Les Mont Damnés in Sancerre.

Pithon-Paillé La Nouvelle Epoque

Jo Pithon and Joseph Paillé at Fresnaye, October 2008

After a chance meeting during the harvest in Sancerre, Jo and Isabelle Pithon invited us to their home and winery, where Elizabeth and I had the pleasure of getting to know the Pithon family and their wines. It's hard not to appreciate the history of Domaine Jo Pithon, as well as the reputation that he's made for the quality of his wines in a relatively short period of time.

Jo started his domaine in 1978 with just 3.5 ha and grew the holdings to 27 ha by 2007. Jo has received numerous accolades for his sweet wines, including Sweet Winemaker of the Year 1994 by Le Revue du Vins, but at their new winery at Fresnaye, he told me that he is ultimately aiming to produce the "classic" dry wine for the Anjou Blanc appellation. He noted that after the wars, much of the Anjou vignoble had turned to "mass-produced and commercial styles," and added that Anjou has the potential to produce "serious" white wines from the Chenin variety with greater intensity of fruit and a more impressive structure. As Jo says, "In the Pithon style, I am the best."

Botrytised Chenin Blanc at Les Treilles

Constantly seeking to improve his holdings and improve his wines, Jo has, over the years, traded out and sold some of his plots in exchange for terroirs that are better suited to his mission. Jo produces Coteaux-du-Layon, Savennières, and Anjou Rouge and Blanc. Jo is particularly proud of his work at Les Treilles, a 6 ha vineyard located in the village of Saint-Aubin-de-Luigné which had been abandoned after the war and became overgrown with woods and brush. The Pithon family cleared the lieu-dit of Les Treilles (the name referring to a type of trellising system once common in the area) and replanted this superb south-facing parcel in 2000. Even for very young vines, Les Treilles produces wines of balanced ripeness and intense mineral character, and I share Jo's view that this is one of the standouts in his portfolio of wines.

It was a particularly special time to have spent with the Pithons, as 2008 marks a new era for the wines of their family. Isabelle's son, Joseph, has added his surname to that of Jo's and they have expanded the négociant aspect of the business to include a broader range of wines, including a small amount of Bourgueil and Chinon. Jo and Joseph are vinifying and aging their wines in the cellars of a 16th century castle of an absentee owner and family friend called Château Fresnaye near Saint-Aubin de Luigné. And Joseph's fiancée, Wendy, has just arrived from South Africa to help with the family business.

Château Fresnaye in the early morning fog of the Layon

We have enjoyed several memorable evenings here at Fresnaye, including a fairly competitive match of Palette with Jospeh's younger brother Jules (also attending school for viticulture) and even enjoyed the wines of Jo's younger brother Olivier Pithon who is making some very elegant and delicious wines in the Languedoc. The Pithon's are generous and honest and the Pithon-Paillé is sure to continue to raise the bar for the appellation as Jo seems hell-bent on defining the benchmark style for Anjou. Elizabeth and I hope to see the Pithons again soon and plan to follow their progress closely.