Author: Steve Zanotti

CABERNET QUARTERLY

It has truly been quite busy in Q1, what with all the hot releases rolling in from Europe (2015s from France and Italy for the most part and 2014 Bordeaux) after a couple of relatively quiet years on that front.  Here at home we are also experiencing an unparalleled string of successful vintages (at least in our memory) from 2012 through 2016.  Given all that is happening, with things coming at us ‘hot and heavy’, including some eyebrow-raising deals on all sorts of things, there simply haven’t been enough hours to talk about everything.

This has been, as you might have surmised given our comments on the domestic front, a wonderful time for Cabernet fans.  Wines that would have easily ‘made the cut’ a couple of years ago, qualitatively are middle of the current pack, and the stuff we do purchase is excelling in a much tougher field.  So, we deemed it time to take a breath and talk about a few gems that we loved, grabbed, but haven’t had time to get around to.  It’s a lovely list that Cab drinkers can truly sink their teeth into.

Martin Ray, the wine brand operating under the name of one of California’s early pioneer winery owners, has built itself a serious business with meticulous winemaking and careful sourcing of fruit.  They do well on a number of different fronts from Cabernet to Chardonnay to even, dare we say it, Rosé.  They have access to a lot of different fruit and certain lots will be set aside to create something special when the opportunity presents itself.   The Martin Ray Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain 2013 is one of those wines.  Made from 100% Cabernet from two well-known estates, this displays full throttle, almost chewy Diamond Mountain fruit honed to a perfectly civilized yet still rich Cabernet.

Very engaging stuff, as well it should be for an $80 list price, this one not only got our attention but tickled the fancy of James Suckling who typically doesn’t spend as much time on California wine.  His enthusiasm was evident here, “Breathtaking aromas of wet stones, blackberry and black currant follow through full body with seamless tannins that fill your mouth and last for minutes. Gorgeous wine. Why (wait)? But will age incredibly well….95 Points!”  Given the extreme prices of Napa Cabs these days, a lot of which is pretty ordinary, we didn’t blink at the $59.98 fare for this classy red.  Actually, based on performance, it actually represents something of a deal.

The Roberts + Rogers Cabernet Sauvignon Louer Family Napa Valley 2013 maybe one of the most impressive Cabernets you’ve never heard of.  Though they have been around since 2004, they only got noticed by Robert Parker with their 2012s.  Even if you sort by scores, by the time you get past all of the $150-and-up micro-boutiques that you can’t buy (even if you have the money) that he reviews these days, you would be several pages in before you got to this classy 95-point, $60 gem.

‘The Bob’ certainly wasn’t lost for words here, saying “The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Louer Family is a blockbuster of power and elegance. Young, exuberant and youthful, with a dense purple color, notes of charcoal and smoke from the barrels interwoven with copious quantities of blackberry and blackcurrant fruit. This lavishly rich, full-bodied, multi-dimensional wine is still youthful and coiled tight, but has enormous upside and promise. Give it several more years of cellaring and drink it over the following 20-25 years.”  It has unwound a bit since that review (Dec. 2015), but it is a definitely ‘home run’ on the uber-quality scale whether you drink or hold.

Given the current run of vintages, most folks have forgotten that Antonio Galloni called 2010 Cabernets “…magnificent, viscerally thrilling wines loaded with character and personality.”  Here we have a later release from the vintage, now with some bottle age, that shines brightly in the Palazzo Proprietary Red Right Bank Napa Valley 2010.  Yes, it’s a ‘red table wine’ made of 72% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon, but it will please Cabernet drinkers as well as anyone else that’s a fan of serious Napa reds.  Oh, yeah, there’s that 96+ from Robert Parker with comments, “The 2010 is another wine of great intensity but coiled, very tight, with high levels of tannin. Sensational in extraction and richness…it shows fabulous density, richness, and intensity. Perhaps it will evolve somewhat like the brilliant 2005…”   We also have some of the Advocate 97-point Palazzo Cabernet Franc Napa Valley 2013

One doesn’t necessarily think of reds wine when the name Chalk Hill comes up, but their red program has made a quantum leap in recent vintages under the ownership of William Foley (yeah, the Chalone, Sebastiani, Las Vegas Golden Knights guy).  Behold the Chalk Hill Estate Proprietary Red 2013.  This has more Cabernet than the Palazzo (45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Malbec, 12% Petit Verdot and the rest Carignane, Syrah and Merlot), but, again, its Cabernet-ness isn’t the point.  It’s about great juice.

Parker’s words are pretty compelling, “This is another titanic effort from proprietor Foley. A spectacular dense-purple color and sweet toasty oak intermixed with licorice, blackberry, cassis and graphite are all present in this profound first-growth quality blend that should age effortlessly for 25-30 or more years. This is a stunner and a revelation. 95 points.”  “First-growth quality”? “A stunner and a revelation”? Ever the cheerleader for great wine, those are still rare words and high praise from Parker.  The juice is in the bottle, but the descriptors definitely got our attention.

And we still wonder what Mount Eden has to do to get the Cabernet respect it deserves.  They made one of California’s greatest Chardonnay for decades before people really caught on.  But they also make some pretty fine Cabernet from the Santa Cruz Mountains.  The Mount Eden Cabernet Sauvignon Estate 2012 is a dual 94 (from Wine Advocate and Antonio Galloni) and made up of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and the rest Petit Verdot that also boasts moderate alcohol as Cabs go (13%).   Jeb Dunnuck calls it, “…beautiful. Giving up lots of black and blue fruits, tobacco leaf, sweet oak and graphite… nicely concentrated and focused, with fine tannin and impeccable balance. It shows its class on the lengthy finish as well.”

Finally, this Pritchard Hill pioneer has had no problem keeping up with all newcomers to the Napa Valley, and the Chappellet Cabernet Sauvignon Signature 2014 is another in what has been an impressive string for this winery.   The 2014, from another outstanding vintage, was given one of Robert Parker’s highest scores thus far for a series that has long finished in the money.  A 94+ from Parker (as well as a 93 from Vinous), Parker’s review also made the point that this is a “…profound Cabernet Sauvignon that actually sells at a bargain price for what is in the bottle”.

When these are the types of things that we haven’t had time to get to, it is truly a special time.  Good hunting.

VIDAL Y VIDAL VERDEJO 2015

The Vidal y Vidal Verdejo 2015 is a unique situation that presents this rather ubiquitous (in Spain) and often undistinguished varietal as a legitimate contender for your house white.  There are a lot of examples that are just plain and one-dimensional and others that, while they have fruit, can take on a rather ‘sweaty’ character.  Then there’s this one, which has fruit, complexity and vigor, a prototype Spanish white perfectly poised to sip along with a variety of foods.

What’s their secret?  How do they make something that stands above the crowd?  Well we’re going to take a wild guess that location has something to do with it.  The property is located in the area of Rueda in northern Spain called La Seca, outside the village of the same name.  ‘La Seca’, as a lot of Southern California natives who live among a lot of things with Spanish names, means ‘the dry’, an apt description for this high, arid plain next to Toro.

This particular spot is an old river bed strewn with the round stones similar to the gallet of the southern Rhone.  The underlying soils are sand and this 21-acre Finca El Alto sits at 2300 feet elevation.  The continental climate provides warm days and chilly nights, which helps maintain the brisk acidity that makes this wine ‘hum’.   So you’ve got the weather which proved long agoas uniquely suitable for this varietal and a very special, rocky spot within that micro-climate.  But then so do a lot of other bodegas.

It is our guess that what gives the Vidal y Vidal a couple of ‘extra gears’ over the rank and file, and kind of puts it in a class by itself relative to the genre, are the vines themselves.  These thick-trunked bush vines are over 80 years old and the yields are about 2-3 kilos per vine (that’s really low).  They are farmed sustainably and harvested by hand  in the early morning so the bunches get into the winery while they are still cool.  This provides the the opportunity for freshest flavors possible, brought forward by fermenting in small stainless steel tanks using only native yeasts.  The whole idea is to present a wine with soul and plenty of verve, and that they do like few others.

We liked last year’s version, a success given the general difficulty of the 2014 vintage.  But this 2015, from a ripe, very successful consecha for Spanish whites, has more flesh and evident fruit on top of its insistent verve.  Quince, apricot, maybe a little whiff of toasted grain, sleekly infused minerality and a brisk finish, this one can play alone but really comes alive with food.  A great warm weather choice and a deceptively attention-getting effort for this usually utilitarian genre….$16.98

TENUTA TRINORO: ‘The Best or Nothing’

As many of you will recall, one of our mantras is to always be aware of the ‘little’ wines from elite producers.

The idea is that the best winemakers are considered the best because they continuously succeed.  That success is largely due to their attention to detail and commitment to excellence.  Such producers don’t even have the capacity to ‘coast’ or ‘phone it in’.  It’s not in their DNA.  Their expectations as to what is acceptable are simply on another plane.  Imagine Thomas Keller or Joel Robuchon cooking your breakfast eggs.  Sure, they’re just eggs, but those guys have standards for eggs, and they will be cooked and seasoned perfectly.  It’s like that.

We know a lot of such meticulous folks in the wine industry and these are the folks that make the great wines.  We know of no one that is more passionate or more of a quality fanatic than Andrea Franchetti.  He is also not afraid to go where few have gone before.  Tenuta di Trinoro’s location in southeast Tuscany is a far cry from the traditional wine road (heck it’s almost Umbria).  But Andrea liked the soil composition for the Bordeaux varietals he was intent on growing so in the vines went.

He ‘runs with the big dogs’ counting as close friends Jean-Luc Thunevin of Valandraud in St. Emilion and Peter Sisseck of Pingus in the Ribera del Duero.  Imagine what ‘show and tell’ is in that crowd.  Though Franchetti operates on the same level both here in Tuscany as well as at his Etna property, Passopisciaro, he is probably less ‘famous’ than he should be because of this off-the-beaten-path location.

Now, no matter how good you are, you still have to deal with Mother Nature, and the 2014 vintage was a formidable foe for even some of Tuscany’s top addresses.  But Franchetti was not going to allow Nature to beat him.  Andrea hired more people to work the vineyards and drop one-third of the crop.  Because of the extra vineyard work and the overall health of the vineyard, the grapes ripened slowly if a little unevenly.  No problem, there were 36 separate pickings from 29 September until 28 October for this wine, making sure all the blocks were at their best when harvested.  You can expect that kind of commitment from an estate charging $80, $100, or more for all of their wines.  But to push this hard for something selling for under $30?  For Tenuta di Trinoro there is no other way.

The Tenuta di Trinoro Rosso Toscana IGT Le Cupole 2014 is a sensational success.  This Bordeaux-inspired blend of mostly equal parts Cabernet Franc and Merlot with a dollop of Cabernet Sauvignon got glowing reviews from Wine Spectator’s Bruce Sanderson, with a 93-point score and comments, “Alluring scents of ripe cherry, mulberry and fresh herbs complement concentrated flavors of cherry and sweet spice in this red. Offers a backbone of mouthcoating tannins and remains integrated as the finish lingers.”

It also placed #29 in the Wine Spectator Top 100 2016. That’s a pretty big deal, especially for the price.

Wine Advocate’s Monica Larner was no less impressed, offering “Andrea Franchetti is a perfectionist when it comes to fruit selection. This Bordeaux-inspired Tuscan blend opens to dark concentration and a full bouquet that is redolent of dark fruit, spice and tobacco. The aromas are delivered in seamless fashion and with noteworthy intensity. Those are the qualities that ultimately distinguish this wine among the many choices you have from Tuscany today. One thing Tenuta di Trinoro always delivers is distinct personality…”.

This is an exciting example of one man’s plain sheer will, and that’s the kind of story one can tell about Andrea Franchetti and those like him.  That’s why we tell people to look at everything producers like Andrea craft.  Delicious wine for the money?  Distinctive and character-filled?  Yes, and yes.

By the way, we have a smidgen remaining of some of Trinoro’s ‘partners’ from the Wine Spectator’s Top 100 list, including last call on the Maurodos San Roman Toro and Felsina Chianti Classico 2013.

 

 

RONCHI DI CIALLA-“…FASCINATING, INSPIRING WINES”

“These are fascinating, inspiring wines”-Monica Larner, Wine Advocate

Sometimes we wish our ‘geek’ side didn’t get in the way of our business ‘side’. But when you truly love wine for it’s diversity of expression, it can be tough to pass up something like Ronchi di Cialla. It would be smarter to politely decline wines like this and look for the next high-scoring Cabernet that we could sell pallets of. But that’s not who we are, and wines this brilliant and unique deserve an audience. As Wine Advocate’s Monica Larner correctly states above, these truly are ‘fascinating and inspiring wines’.

Ronchi Di Cialla, meaning “hills of Cialla”, is located in a small valley surrounded by chestnut, oak and wild cherry woods in the DOC Friuli Colli Orientali in the foothills of the mountains near the Slovenian border. Founded in 1970 by Paolo and Dina Rapuzzi, Ronchi di Cialla has played an important role in reaffirming the territorial identity of this part of the world by reviving centuries-old grape varieties and featuring only ‘local’ grapes. They are credited with the rebirth of the Schioppettino (also known as Ribolla Nera for you uber geeks out there) from less than 100 vines, and their Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso (the superior clone of Refosco, named for its distinctive red stem) is considered one of Italy’s finest.

These are soulful, impactful, terroir-riddled wines. So much so that they have their own sottozona, or sub-zone, within Friuli Colli Orientali. The Cialla sub-zone is the only one in Friuli we know of geared towards the particular place, as opposed to the other four sub-zones in the region which are geared to a particular grape in a particular place.

What does that mean? Even the Italian wine bureaucrats, who can’t agree on anything, can all agree that Cialla is a special place, and Ronchi di Cialla certainly one of the most unique producers working in Italy today.

The estate follows natural and organic winemaking functions with ambient yeasts and slow, steady macerations. They do the same for both whites and reds. Their whites achieve a unique textural density while still having lift and freshness. You’d almost describe them as Burgundian in a sense, with a riveting mid-palate crescendo. The reds are pure and expressive, with a natural generosity, surprising color and soft, plush tannin.

Frankly, we look at these wines the same way we do wines like Quintarelli, Paolo Bea, Miani, Paolo Caciorgna’s Etna Rosso N’Anticchia 2012, the Mascarello’s and few other Italian artisans working at this level.

At the heart of today’s offer, the Ronchi Di Cialla Ciallabianco 2013 is one of Italy’s special white wines. It’s 60% Ribolla Gialla, 30% Verduzzo Friulano, 10% Picolit, fermented in oak barrels then aged in French oak (25% new) for up to a year before bottling. Weird thing? The wine’s not the least bit oaky. Instead, the wood generates a richly-appointed framework for all the citrus, mineral, flower, honey and toast flavors to do their thing. Oily yet vibrant, shimmering yet dense, this gorgeous white has it all, and can age a decade…easy. Trust us, we know. The recently consumed, youthful 1997 and 2001 vintages providing us two wonderful cases in point.

The Ronchi Di Cialla Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso di Cialla 2009 spends a whopping four years in the cellars, including 14-18 months’ maturation in French oak (50% new) and 30-36 months’ ageing in bottles, prior to release. Notes of licorice, stones, black cherry, and fresh earth all wrapped up in super-suave tannins, give this wine a gravitas not usually associated with this grape. Drinking perfectly now, the wine will also continue to improve with another decade of careful cellaring. Have your Refosco and drink it too!

Same goes for Ronchi Di Cialla’s Schioppettino di Cialla 2011, sourced from a tiny (though large for this once-forgotten grape) two-acre patch. Same techniques here in the cellar, resulting in a deep, dark, brooding wine that is all blackberry, white pepper, sweet herb, along with a cocoa-y rush. The wine is easily capable of 15-20 years’ ageing in the cellar with ‘special’ vintages reaching that “crescendo” after two decades in the cellar.

Wine Advocate’s Monica Larner referred to this as an ‘under-the-radar’ estate. No kidding! Although, throughout Europe they enjoy a fanatical cult following who treasure grabbing a bottle or two from their extensive library of older vintages.

Fabulous, unique, distinctive, just plain flat-out cool, these wines are why we do this.

CHATEAU DES TOURS BROUILLY 2015

CHATEAU DES TOURS BROUILLY 2015

It’s probably reasonable for us to go easy on the prologue here.  After all, we (and everybody else it seems) has generated a ton of prose about just how good the 2015s in Beaujolais are, how top flight producers are reaching back to 1947 for a reasonable comparison, and how Beaujolais is still one of the most underpriced regions in the wine world.  Based on those strong ‘bullet points’ those of you that ‘get’ Beaujolais and/or appreciate a great value will take a good look at this one.

First off, we know it gets a little confusing when it comes to names.  Aren’t there a lot of different properties containing the name ‘Tours’, which is simply French for ‘towers’?  You bet, but there are a heck of a lot of towers out in the French countryside, from little one man-lookouts to the more expected turret on a large fortified castle.  This is the only Brouilly we know of with that moniker, and it is also the first time we have brought in this small and, in this case, enormously successful effort.

The vineyards themselves consisted of an average of 45-year-old vines situated in a natural amphitheatre around the Château.  The vines are planted in sandy soils resulting from the
disintegration of the granite bedrock. In other words, nutrient poor, thin, acidic soils where are still projections of the underlying rock.  While this certainly wouldn’t be a happy place for most crops, the Gamay grape thrives here and these soils help keep the yields down.

We have been buying Beaujolais like maniacs of late because they have been everything they were reported to be…full flavored, round, packed with fruit and straight up delicious.  We took a hard look at this one because we had already put together a lineup that was formidable.  But when we tasted it, it was one of the most tawdry, shamelessly pandering examples we have had this year of any kind of red. When we heard the price, we would have been ashamed of ourselves if we didn’t buy it.

Sure there are bigger examples, more structured efforts, and certainly more famous names.  But on the hedonist scale, this was a huge scorer.  The black and red fruit component showed near perfect ripeness, it was lush and still light of its feet, and the texture was absolutely charming.  You will have a hard time finding something sexier for this kind of fare.

Josh Raynolds of Vinous took a shine to it as well, writing “Bright violet. Spicy and sharply focused on the nose, displaying vibrant red berry, cherry and spicecake aromas and a hint of blood orange. Taut, juicy and energetic in style, offering zesty raspberry and bitter cherry flavors that flesh out slowly and turn sweeter with air. Closes long and juicy, featuring resonating spiciness and a late jolt of smoky minerality. ”  Simply a lovely drink, and that is the point…$15.98

Double Down on this aged cab!

If you have ever driven on Alamo Pintado Road between Solvang and Los Olivos, you pass right by Blackjack Ranch Vineyards. If the name strikes you as a little curious, proprietor Roger Wisted essentially made his bones by inventing a game called ‘California Aces’, a variation on traditional Blackjack that essentially made it possible for gaming interests to circumvent an 1873 law banning the game of Blackjack in California.

In any case, many of the large retailers in Southern California knew Roger as a consumer with a penchant for big time Bordeaux some two decades ago. Surely, we weren’t the only ones surprised when we heard about Roger going into the winery business. But the surprise was less because he did it and more that he chose the Solvang area to feature a winery whose reputation was based on Bordeaux varietals. From a historical perspective at the time, this was rather outside the box in an area best known for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

Roger made a bet and he won. The winery has stood the test of time and has spent nearly two decades as one of Robert Parker’s favorite wineries, including over 40 wines that have scored 90+. That’s some serious consistency considering his first vintage was in the mid-90’s!

This is a very personal, ‘hands on’ operation with respect to running the place. Roger is not some absentee owner running his winery from a mansion or boardroom in another part of the country. He is invested. One can also make the point that there is a definite ‘house style’. “Blackjack reds are demur, elegant, and restrained’ said no one, ever. The reds here are dark, extracted and packed with dense, weighty fruit, somewhat the antithesis of the typical profiles of the region. The old Ravenswood motto of ‘no wimpy wines’ definitely applies here.

The winery has changed horses from a distribution standpoint a few times, which may have resulted in the wines being less visible than they might otherwise have been. But when they do turn up again, as they did a few weeks ago, their distinctive stylings are unmistakable.

A selection of reds that was presented to us recently were true to form…dark, mouth filling, and substantial. But, one really jumped out. As we have tasted Blackjack over the years, we’ve occasionally wondered how they might age. We got the opportunity to find out with the Blackjack Harmonie 2005. The answer, at least in this case, was ‘very well’. Harmonie is the flagship red, in this vintage made from 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 15% Cabernet Franc that was aged in 100% sexy, new Taransaud French oak, arguably the Prada of the genre.

The Cabernet itself was harvested via five separate passes through the vineyard to select only the fruit that was optimally ripe. The Cab Franc came from a parcel on the steep Suicide Hill, adding aromatic highlights and complexity. The resulting wine, now over a decade old, is in a beautiful groove with blackcurrant, mocha, fresh tobacco, and a pleasing tinge of sweet herb. All those great Bordeaux that Roger had experienced over the years certainly helped create the blueprint for this little gem.

Interestingly, Wine Advocate’s Jeb Dunnuck tasted this wine as recently as 2015 and wrote, “I had never tasted the wines, but Robert Parker loved the older releases and I was thrilled to be able to taste them this go around. I came away more than impressed. These are concentrated, rich, and full-throttle beauties that deliver tons of fruit and texture while remaining balanced and thrillingly drinkable.

Of the 2005 Harmonie, he offered, “… classic cassis, lead pencil shavings, bay leaf and tobacco notes in a full-bodied, ripe, layered, yet elegant style on the palate…a beautiful Bordeaux blend that’s still fresh and lively. Feel free to drink this beauty anytime over the coming decade…92 points”

Tons of fruit, texture, balanced, with time in the bottle and at an appealing price? For Cabernet drinkers that’s the holy grail. And who wouldn’t enjoy popping the cork on something that’s ‘thrillingly drinkable’?

Originally $70 at the winery, Roger has an aggressive library program (his love of older Bordeaux certainly the inspiration) and has allowed us to secure a reasonable quantity of this wine at a terrific price. Only $39.98 for a recently-tasted 92-point Cabernet with bottle age from a terrific vintage.

How often does that happen?

Blackjack Ranch Harmonie Proprietary Red Wine 2005

THE THREE TIER SYSTEM, PART DEUX

So last week we talked about the three tier system where importers and producers use a distributor to sell their wines, and whose function it was to buy the wine, pay the winery or importer and make his nut by selling to retailers and restaurants.  This is the way it is in most states and is the time honored system for keeping order in the marketplace.  While there are plenty of folks that would have that middleman function excised from the market, it is a fact that most wineries would function poorly handling that aspect of the business themselves, nor do they necessarily want to.  But there are a lot of things that the consumer doesn’t necessarily see that threaten to undermine the system.

First it should be said that most smaller operations (stores and eateries) would have a hard time functioning without the distribution system as it is.  Most stores and restaurants aren’t going to buy multiple cases of a single item for discount for either space or money reasons, many couldn’t even make shipping minimums with just one item .  So the distributor serves their needs by carrying multiple product lines under one roof and delivering them on one truck.  Those outlets would likely not survive in the fiercely competitive California market without a classic distribution scenario.  Such outlets are a dying breed as it is under the current system.

That being said, the distributors and the wineries are playing dangerous games with each other trying to have it all their way, and it is clear that two particular practices in particular, if they continue unabated, will eventually cause cracks in the dam.  The first one is something that has become common place in the market…’the prearrival’.  Yes stores offer prearrivals, basically taking orders on merchandise they have yet to order in many cases, and simply ordering n  what they sell.

Big stores do it, though usually with the understanding that they have a certain allocation to work with that they should not exceed.  Little stores do it so they appear like big stores, without necessarily having a guarantee of the goods actually being earmarked.  This regrettable practice still goes on some places even in the wake of the whole Premier Cru scandal.  This is not the same as actually buying the items in another market, as we do, and selling merchandise that while own while it is transit. The naked prearrival is a whole different discussion but contributes to what can be a rather tenuous situation in the market.

You see the wholesalers are kind of doing the same thing with a lot of lines these days.  The distributors often don’t order in wines from a new vintage without offering it to the customers first, taking orders and then placing their orders with the importers.  Smart you, say?  Keeps inventory down, you say?  OK, sure, but then are they really representing the lines if they offer only a list with scores as their sales campaign.  Granted, that’s all some retailers do to, but it’s different (and not just because we’re retailers).  A single, or even multiple retailers don’t necessarily represent the only access to the product.  There are multiple retailers that can have a particular wine.

The distributor, however, is the only avenue for that wine to get into the market.  So basically if they just pass around a sheet with no promotion, tasting, or other opportunities for buyers to evaluate the wines, are they actually ‘distributing’?  If all they are going to do is order what we order from an importer back east, and ship it to us, have they really done enough for the brand to deserve the exclusivity that comes along the the distribution rights, which is usually one entity for an entire state?  Are they performing enough of a distribution function to be entitled to the markup?  We say no, but that is becoming more and more of a modus operendi among distributors.

While the practice of prearrivals in more prolific now, a few aspects have improved.  Previously the wholesale would present the ‘prearrival’ to a store and not even tell them what they were going to get from their order or when it would arrive.  Whatever it turned out to be would simply show up one day unannounced and at that moment the clock began ticking on your buying terms.  The issue is that the wholesaler is supposed to function as a ‘stockist’ (as the Brits call them), delivery facilitator, and financier.  There’s not a lot of ‘stocking’ going on.

If they are not doing those things, they are not performing their function, and cannot justify a significant finger in the pie.   We could regale you with stories of how many times importers have come to us with offers based on a price understanding, and then their distributor wants to charge a full margin for doing nothing more than passing it through.  Must have run it by the ‘anti-sales’ department.

The other catch is the wineries undermining their own distributors and outlets by offering better pricing to consumers than the distribution system can offer.  A recent example illustrates our point. We won’t name names, but a winery with a rather well-known reserve bottling got some good recent press.  As we explored the options for an offer, we noticed the standard markup based on the wholesale cost (not that we go by that price) was substantially higher than it should be based on the reviews.

We went on-line to the winery site and noted that any consumer could call the winery and join their club (at no cost), get and additional discount, and take home the wine for about $205 per bottle.  The matrixed cost under the traditional distribution understanding extrapolated to about $269 and, even offering a 20% discount we could not get close because the wholesale price was set to high for the actual retail.  Also note that we are a lot more aggressive than most of the market price-wise, so we can only guess how the ‘full markup’ people feel about this sort of thing.

This undercutting the market by the wineries is a growing practice as they try to expand their direct-to-consumer programs.  Not seemingly a good long-term practice in that it could undermine the overall market, anger customers, and lose placements.  It is especially annoying that this practice is coming from Napa Valley types that have spent the last three decades yelling at us because we were too aggressive.

We have another very popular Cabernet that not only allows a far below standard margin based on their wholesale and retail prices, but they insist you buy other items from their portfolio and maintain high prices on those for the ‘privilege’ of selling their Cabernet.  Pot/kettle? Hey, we’ll be saving a lot on Christmas cards this year, and good luck selling those not-so-in-demand items yourselves.

Meanwhile, the point is that the ‘system’ either works for everyone, or no one.  If everyone wants to have their cake and eat it, especially on such fundamental points, the ‘tiers’ are a little too fluid, and there really is no system at all.

SAVOIE: STILL AN UNDISCOVERED TREASURE

JEAN MASSON SAVOIE VIEILLES VIGNES TRADITIONNELLE APREMONT 2015

Savoie is still one of France’s great undiscovered treasures.  These alpine valleys, pristine landscape, sleepy hamlets, and unique history make for a one of a kind wine growing region.  Add to that, in this particular case, Jean-Claude Masson, described as one of the best winemakers in the region and but also a guy who might ‘party’ at the drop of a hat (or race cars, take out his jet ski or play rock and roll music).  There is apparently a body of evidence to support the latter rumor but there is no doubt about generally jovial Jean Claude being as serious as a surgeon when it comes to his vineyards and winemaking.

The description of Masson’s art is intensely focused wine from impeccable organic vineyards.  He is the fourth generation to run this 9 hectare estate and one who loves to explore his terroirs (he makes 10 different cuvees from his various parcels to showcase the subtle differences in character that emerge from plot to plot).   The soils here are classic limestone which makes for great white wine.

For those that aren’t familiar with the tragic but remarkable story of this appellation, it’s worth a quick read.  As it was succinctly described in an internet piece from ‘Down to Earth Wines,’

“The only sound to be heard is the nocturnal chorus of the wind and insects, playing their timeless tune.  Out of this familiar calm and quiet explodes an unearthly rumbling. Quite literally, the heavens are falling!! Massive limestone boulders tumble and squash the majority of the homes; a panicked and bewildered crush of humanity and livestock scurry to seek shelter, helpless in the face of such elemental force.  After only a few minutes of apocolyptic horror, the rumbling is done.  Several thousand souls are killed beneath a 3 mile long flow of stone and earth……

This unimaginable nightmare is exactly what happened one fateful evening in 1248 in Apremont, France of the Savoie region of the Alps.  The iconic limestone Mount Granier had collapsed, crushing everything in its path.  The traumatic event was of such deeply scarring suffering to the valley’s inhabitants that the area forever more takes its name from this tragedy: “bitter mountain” or Apremont….As a direct result of this geological shift, the limestone debris radically changed the landscape and its agricultural usefulness.”

Tough story, but the layer of limestone that spread itself across the valley paved very special turf for growing wine, particularly the kind of zingy whites that are the hallmark of this part of France.  Jacquere,  Roussanne and Altesse are the stars of the region.  There are similarities to Muscadet in the respect that these wines can sometimes be on the leaner side.  But they always have bright acidity, plenty of verve and insistent streaks of minerality. They will usually work very nicely to quaff some lake fish or other local delicacy.

However, in the right hands, in riper vintages, Savoie whites can have a lovely core of yellow stone fruits, delicate florality to the nose, and a little richer texture, which along with the usual components makes for some pretty delicious drinking.   Not big but precise, clean, fresh and persistent flavors of white peach, stones, floral notes, and white tea.  This little gem is from 100% Jacquere, farmed organically, from old vines.

 

Sancerre Lives: CLAUDE RIFFAULT

Claude Riffault Sancerre Les Boucauds 2015

There was a period not that long ago where we were bemoaning ‘paradise lost’ with respect to Sancerre. You often don’t fully appreciate something until you don’t have it anymore. We all have had an experience or two that illustrates the saying. Well, it also happens with wine. As buyers we are supposed to take care of a variety of different genres. In our case, we don’t have a quota that dictates how many Cabernets or Chardonnays should be in stock at any given time. We taste and buy what we think are the best representations of the genre. If that means 100, fine. If we can only find 10, so be it. There are even times in the past where we’ve ended up with nothing.

Our principle objection to what was coming out of Sancerre was the lack of ‘cut’. Sancerre is prized for its verve and precision, which over a few vintages there was lacking in far too many bottlings. Was this an attempt to tune Sancerre to the broad market palate? Was the genre simply at odds with ‘global warming’? Yes, the wines have to have fruit. The trick is to have both fruit and snap. One of the producers that brought us out of our Sancerre ‘funk’ a couple years back was Claude Riffault. His 2013 Les Boucauds dazzled with both the mineral infused grapefruit and pear flavors, and that pop to the finish that left the tongue begging for more. We got excited about Sancerre again, and have been having a pretty fine run of late. But we pay special attention when the Riffault wines come along.

This domaine is now under the direction of Claude’s 30-something son, Stéphane, who is younger than most of the vines (30-40 years old) that he’s working with in this vineyard. Stéphane organically farms the hillside chalky soils, harvests by hand, carries the crates out of the vineyard by hand, and sorts them rigorously before a single grape is crushed. All is done in stainless steel to preserve the wine’s freshness and the fruit’s verve. In other words the young man does ‘all the right things’, and it shows in the wine’s purity and precision.

There’s an insistent minerality and a clean cut of acidity in this textbook effort of the Claude Riffault Sancerre Les Boucauds 2015, overlaid by an energetic, yet tender-edged blast of those familiar elements of grapefruit, kiwi, and quince. This is what great Sancerre used to taste like, in an even more deeply textured, saline sort of way. Loads of fruit, all stainless steel and the nerve to counterbalance the weightier texture Riffault achieves with this wine, perhaps that volume amplified a little more by the 2015 vintage. While he is still early in his career, it is clear that Stéphane has ‘touch’.

The notes from Wine Advocate’s Stephan Reinhardt, who is clearly ‘on board’ again, sound familiar to our descriptions of both the 2013 and this 2015. Stéphane clearly has his groove on. In Reinhardt’s words, “…the 2015 Sancerre les Boucauds is a very clear, fresh and aromatic flavored wine that was partly fermented in stainless steel and partly in French oak barrels. Full-bodied and elegant, the wine has a round, almost creamy sur-lie texture, but also a refreshing, very well-integrated acidity. The 2015 has power but also a serious phenolic and mineral grip; it comes along as a persistently aromatic, well balanced Sancerre with well dosed power and lingering fruit flavors. Very nice purity and texture…92 points”.

It may be a little premature to make predictions, but we see a lot of similarities between Stephane Riffault’s wines and some of the earlier efforts of Cotat before things went a little over-the-top there. Certainly comparisons with Alphonse Mellot are reasonable as well. In other words the ‘kid’ is already playing at a high level, and the biggest difference between his wines and the other notables we mentioned is…the price. Killer juice and still something of a value!

BRIEFS (BLANC)

  • While we could write volumes on all of these (and may later on), we’d like to call attention to a few cool, off-the-main-road whites we’ve gathered in over the last few weeks.  A little sunshine can do that.  We’ll start by saying the 2015 whites from Savoie have been wonderful surprises.  A little warmer vintage in these pristine high-valley vineyards add a layer of flesh and fruit as a bonus to the crisp minerality and pure, floral flavors.  If we have to name one, start with the Jean Masson Savoie Vieilles Vignes Traditionnelle Apremont 2015, a fresh, delicate white with plenty of verve that is a star with lighter fish dishes.
  • Got Greek?  We stumbled across Assyrtiko, a crisp, mineral infused white from the Greek island of Santorini during an attempt to put together a Greek wine section with a Greek food importer some years back.  Curiously, not many years later, the brand, Sigalas, turned up on the Wine Spectator Top 100.  Since that time more, and more serious Greek producers have found their way here.  Ktima Vourvoukeli is new to us, and the winery is located in northeastern Greece about 30 miles from the Mediterranean.  The Ktima Vourvoukeli Assyrtiko 2015 is an exciting find, especially considering the Sigalas has become trendy, more expensive and harder to keep in stock.  This one is a touch fleshier with a nice layer of yellow stone fruit, a little less severe minerality, but still plenty of lift and brightness.  We aren’t sure, since this is our first go-round with Ktima, if its the region, the vintage, or both that gives it its particular character, but it is a superb alternative white at a great price.  Oopah!
  • We have been threatening to bring out examples of the new wave in South Africa but have be restrained to a large extent by some of the passionate new importers’ lack of logistical skills.  We know enough to tell you that there is a groundswell of fresh activity around the Cape and some unique and exciting new faces coming down the pike, however slowly. We’ve been doing this long enough to know that you likely aren’t going to go looking for something called Thorne and Daughters Rocking Horse Cape White 2015 unless we give you a good reason.  This is a captivating if previously unimagined white blend of 33% Roussanne, 28% Semillon blanc, 20% Chardonnay, 18% Chenin Blanc and 6% Clairette that comes together to deliver a sleek melange of white stome fruit, citrus, delicate botanicals and a slightly honeyed note. There’s a tactile yet waxy mouthfeel with a good backbone of acidity.  Skillfully done, this one really grabbed us.