384902 Sun Mar 25 18:59:19 -0700 2007 1 34 Wine 0 2420113 Notes on the wines in February’s “try before you buy” tasting. The wines are listed in the order tasted. All except the Fiefs Vendéens are available at the SAQ. Prices are in Canadian dollars (C$1 = about $0.85 these days) and include sales taxes. The tasting was double-blind for the others, blind for me. For background on biodynamic viticulture, see Jamie Goode’s overview at www.wineanorak.com/biodynamic1.htm and Monty Waldin’s *Biodynamic Wines* (London: Mitchell Beazley, 2004). The best online list of biodynamic producers I’ve found is at www.forkandbottle.com/wine/biodynamic_producers.htm FLIGHT 1: FOUR WHITES FROM ALSACE AND THE LOIRE >Pinot Auxerrois 2002, “H”, Vieilles Vignes, Alsace, Josmeyer ($35.75) Gold straw, gold glints. Appealing nose of pear and minerals. Dry but fruit so intense it seems almost sweet. Etching acidity. Citrus. Round and long. >Touraine 2004, Cendrillon, Domaine de la Garrelière ($25.00) 85% Sauvignon Blanc fermented and aged in stainless steel and blended with equal parts of barrel-aged Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc. Duskier than the Josmeyer. Inexpressive nose of ash, minerals, wax and a hint of sweaty funk. Dry and ashy with some butter notes on the bitter finish. Intense and intriguing if a little like licking a stone. >Riesling 2004, Herrenweg de Turckheim, Alsace, Zind-Humbrecht ($39.00) Brilliant burnished gold. Outgoing complex nose more reminiscent of Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay than Riesling – rich, honeyed yet lemon bright with a green note but no kerosene. Hint of residual sugar on the attack but otherwise dry. Spritzy, rich, chalk and minerals. The racy acidity is softened by the intense fruit. Longish with a bitter edge. >Touraine-Mesland 2005, Clos de La Briderie ($16.00) 80% Chenin Blanc and 20% Chardonnay partly aged in old oak barrels. Medium silver-gold. Wax, white fruit, minerals, dab of Brylcreem. Medium bodied, light on the attack but unfurls and expands. Intense wax and citrus. Long grapefruity finish. Fine wines all, though the Riesling’s atypical nose had me thinking it was the Cendrillon (even after the names of the wines were revealed but before the bottles were unveiled, only one taster correctly identified the Riesling). The Cendrillon (French for Cinderella) owes its name to an experiment by the winemaker: he burned the vine clippings and used the ashes (*cendres* in French) to make a homeopathic solution that he then sprayed on the vines to “send them a message.” The Briderie would be a bargain even if it weren't biodynamic. FLIGHT 2: THREE SUPPLE REDS >Fiefs Vendéens 2004, Gammes d’été, Domaine Saint-Nicolas ($18.90) 100% Gamay. Medium pale red with scarlet glints. Big funk giving way to cherry/blackberries and ash. Lovely, fresh, fluid, quite acidic. Murky/mouldy finish. >Bierzo 2005, Petalos, Descendientes de José Palacios ($23.65) 100% old-vine Mencía. Dense red-purple. Disconcertingly floral (rose, mainly) with some plum, dried hay, cheese and plasticine in the background. Flavours echo the nose. Round and fruity, lots of acidity, some tannins and a bark-flavoured, drying finish. >Touraine-Mesland 2005, Clos de La Briderie ($16.95) Rich burgundy. Nose of plums, plum blossoms and kirsch. Smooth, fluid, supple, fine-grained. Oxygenating adds complexity. Acidity provides lift and keeps things lively. Low sugar gives the fruit a sour edge. Lip-smackingly good. Fiefs Vendéens is a fairly obscure appellation located on the Atlantic coast south of the Loire estuary. All the Saint-Nicolas wines I’ve tried have had great appeal; their rosé (Pinot Noir and Gamay with a dollop of Groslot) in particular is a charmer. Bierzo is a rejuvenated appellation in northwest Spain. The Petalos, which comes from one of the country’s highest profile young producers, was the wine that gave me the theme for the tasting. A day or two after it arrived on local shelves, I was offered a taste from a bottle that had been open four or five hours and was pulled straight from the fridge. I found it fruity, supple, pure and appealing and decided it would make a fine addition to the new arrivals tasting. While researching it on the Web, I found that, unlike Palacios’ better known wines, it was made from biodynamically grown grapes, a fact not mentioned on the label. Unfortunately, most tasters, myself included, found the wine from our newly opened, cool room temperature bottle strange. One of my favourite wine store clerks later told me he had a similar experience: on opening the wine struck him as bizarre and cloying, so he set it aside for a couple of hours while he made dinner; at table, alongside a rare steak, it was just fine. FLIGHT 3: FOUR MORE STRUCTURED REDS >Fiefs Vendéens 2004, Le Poiré, Domaine Saint-Nicolas ($29.50) 100% Negrette (!). Dense red-purple. Candied plum and cherry, dried herbs and funk. Big and chewy but refreshing due to an astringent, tart edge. Long. Way young. Distinctive and enjoyable. >Bierzo 2001, Corullón, Descendientes de José Palacios ($58.00) 100% old-vine Mencía from vineyards around the town Corullón. Blackish, dense. Chocolate, leather, earth and undergrowth shot through with volatility. Supple, lightly peppered plum and cherry fruit with acid aplenty but not much in the way of structure or depth. Harmonious, graceful and elegant – not at all the Parker-pleasin’ blockbuster I was fearing – but, on this showing at least, overpriced. >Les-Baux-de-Provence 2001, Château Romanin ($33.75) A blend of Syrah, Grenache, Cabernet Sauvignon and Mourvèdre. Dense red-purple. Nose of fungus/mushrooms, hint of vinyl, dried earth and herbs, candied raspberry. Medium weight, fine but astringent tannins and bright acidity. Lingering impression of blackcurrant, herbs and spice. >Côtes-de-Francs 2001, Château le Puy ($22.80) 85% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Carménère. Medium maroon. Lovely nose: fresh and juicy with notes of plum, candy, cucumber and herbs. Medium bodied with lacy tannins, a supple mouthfeel and a tart finish. Flavourwise a little simple but, oh, that bouquet… Were I to do the tasting over again, I’d put the supple Puy in the second flight and the oomphy Petalos in the third. Of the three other wines in the third flight, the standout for me was the Poiré, the only all Negrette wine I’ve tasted that wasn’t from the Côtes du Frontonnais. FLIGHT 4: CHAPOUTIER’S HIGH-END BANYULS >Banyuls 2001, Terra Vinya, M. Chapoutier ($42.25/500 ml) 100% Grenache Noir. Complex nose of chocolate, cherry and plum. Sweet on the attack with lovely fruit and marzipan flavours. Though the finish could be longer, this remains a gorgeous wine. What conclusions about biodynamic viticulture could be drawn from this limited sampling of relatively affordable wines? From a tasting standpoint, if the wines shared a trait it was the impression they gave of, well, not exactly purity but honesty and character, of fruit and terroir expressing themselves with a minimum of outside interference. And speaking personally – since I didn’t think to ask the other tasters how they felt – I also found myself a little brighter eyed and more bushy tailed the next morning than is usually the case after these events. Sun Mar 25 18:59:19 -0700 2007 10520 carswell 1 2425554 I've had both the red and white Clos de la Briderie at least twice since this tasting. The white is now a standby, or will be for as long as I can get it. The red...not so much, but I do enjoy it and it has the added virtue of being in stock at the store near the office, meaning I have at least one reliable choice until 10 every night. I'm also a fan of Chateau le Puy, though I haven't bought it lately. Worlds better than a certain ubiquitous Cote-de-Francs that costs just a few dollars less but is IMHO virtually undrinkable (Ch. Puyfromage). The other standout for me was the ZH Riesling, though not to the point that I've sought it out. Also, I don't think you can overemphasize the poor value of the second Bierzo. To me it really came across as "trying to taste expensive," if that makes any sense. IIRC, I picked it as the most expensive bottle, but far from the best. All in all, lots of interesting bottles. I can't say I was any less groggy than usual the next day, but I believe I went for a nightcap that night... Tue Mar 27 11:01:22 -0700 2007 2420113 13325 Mr F