The one week 42nd annual Vancouver International Wine Festival (VIWF) spotlighting 162 participating wineries of which 42 represented theme country France concluded on March 1, 2020. Another amazing success story with 57 Festival events highlighted this year by outstanding keynote speaker Andrew Jefford (AJ). AJ & family live in a small town in Southern France a part of the Montpellier district of the Languedoc-Roussillon wine region. He is a highly respected journalist with multiple awards for his many books (including The New France) and is contributing editor for The World of Fine Wine & Decanter plus Academic Advisor for Wine Scholar Guild. AJ joins a long list of top educators over many years at VIWF that started with Michael Mondavi in February 1979. So many have followed over the decades including early on Robert Balzer at the “California Wine Festival” March 1981, Hugh Johnson for the sixth “American Wine Festival” March 1984 and even this scribe who has been actively involved in some capacity for all 42 Festivals. This tradition has carried on with AJ brilliant this year raising the level so high with his astute topical most intellectual comments delivered at these following 7 events. You had to be there to savour the wonderful flavour of his delivery but here are a few concise educational notes:

1. Official #VIWF Opening reception February 24 at Joey Bentall One with introduction of AJ and announcement that Bacchanalia Gala Auction at Fairmont Hotel Vancouver February 22 had raised $256,000 for charitable partner Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival.

2. Industry Networking Lunch February 25 at Terminal City Club: Debate whether it was mainly “nature or nurture” that has resulted in France becoming such a diverse respected land mass for vines at varying latitudes, temperatures, north and south winds, alkaline & limestone soils that those vines really like. AJ also offered up that there are three things that the French people do better than anyone else – (a) “Divine Dissatisfaction” of never being happy to sit on their laurels but always arriving on Monday morning with a frown trying to do even better! (b) “Fundamentally Modest” so noble vine varieties are based on origin and not with an emphasis on marketability resulting in consumers being the beneficiaries of all this. (c) “High Level of French Cuisine – Viva La France Gastronomique!”

3. Keynote Speaker Lunch February 26 on French Lessons in a Warming World: Started by referring to recent wild weather with high temperatures in France that broke the 2003 record of 111F with 115F or 46C but no wine region is immune. It is affecting all vineyards with higher alcohol and the old balanced classicism of style is under duress. Not all losers though and some northern vineyards are being helped and even Bordeaux is riper since 1982. It has not reached the critical point of change or life threatening yet but may arrive. Bordeaux suggesting new grape varieties be planted but lots of rules & regulations mean you can’t move the Chambertin vineyard boundary. AJ suggests four unwritten rules as most important: (a) Know Your Vineyard with attention to detail. Used the example that in 2050 it may be too hot for Romanee-Conti pinot noir but replanted with grenache that may be very good but not the sublime R-C as we know it that can never be replaced. (b) Respect The Natural (not natural wine) of the seasons and style of the vintage overlaying the terroir. (c) Difference Is Everything – Your response to climate change may be a step backwards. (d) Embrace Climate Change in a Positive Way like they did with phylloxers before the cactus takes over the grape vine. Embrace change in Canada and other New World wineries. Topical that the new Master of Wine from Canada Ross Wise MW Winemaker of Black Hills Estate Winery did his Research Paper on “How will climate change be influencing viticulture in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley by the 2050s?

4. The Plenary Session on early morning February 27 featured not only AJ but co-moderator Jon Bonne (delightful 2019 Keynote speaker) on a vinous journey around the special wine regions of France serving top “Cru” representative wines.

5. VIP Festival Toast February 27 Wine Mingler: AJ today on an afternoon walk along the scenic Stanley Park seawall next to the Convention Centre realized after 50 years in the business that the amazing thing about wine is the “Intellectual Aspect”. Sure there is the enjoyment and pleasure of the wine experience but it also is the intellectual challenge of learning places, people, soils, grape varieties, vineyards, and vintages. The complexities of it all stimulates you as well as the enjoyment of the special beverage.

6. Celebrating Excellence at 17th Annual Awards Lunch February 28: AJ knows there are “rock star” wine writers out there but the knowledgeable enthusiastic sommeliers are on the front line of service and so good at food/wine matchings. Sommeliers are teachers and ultimate custodians of both young & old wines that bring a lot of happiness for people going to restaurants. Toast to the Sommeliers of the World!

7. French Terroir Talk February 28: AJ states that Terroir is a French word but a universal concept. Just as your garden gives you tastier tomatoes in some parts of it better than others so is there a unique high quality difference between vineyard sites. Place is a key. However there are qualifications. Firstly only through human intervention can that terroir be established. Again he references Romanee-Conti being a tiny part of a vast forest that developed only after centuries of experimentation and pinot noir plantings and becoming cherished as a top red Burgundy. Unique terroir seems to be there in the greatest wines. Like finding a needle in a haystack. On the other hand terroir is not something that is required as you can make commercially attractive good wine without any terroir. It requires a long conversation between humans and a place before it can be established. An example is Champagne in the 12/13 century as sharp sour pale wine developed further in the 15/16 century on its way to what we know as Champagne today. All winemakers are at the service of their raw materials to make the terroir show. They are really midwives (trained to assist women in childbirth) trying to do the right thing at the right time to naturally reveal that terroir. 12 wines (shown on attached program) were tasted to show how grape varieties react to the place where they come from: Smoky Sauvignon Blanc of the Loire Sancerre, comparing the minerally chardonnay character of Chablis to the richer style of the same variety in Montagny, the single vineyard Grossi Laue finest petrol Riesling plots in Schoenenberg Alsace, low yield Corton Grancey Grand Cru pinot noir in Bourgogne vs. fruity Julienas Beaujolais Gamay on usually granite, limestone and here more volcanic soils with stems & whole bunches fermentation, two very different Bordeaux from Right Bank St. Emilion Ch. d’Anielle merlot and Left Bank Ch. de Lamarque thriving petit verdot built on higher ground near Margaux above the marshes, and ending with four Rhone examples with subtle differences of two Northern Rhone both Cornas grown on steep slopes of decomposed granite soils using a single grape variety Syrah compared with more diverse grape variety blends in the South here these old bush vines mainly Grenache, plus Syrah and little Mourvedre & Carignan of juicy La Cote Sauvage Cotes du Rhone Villages in Cairanne (NE of Orange) and Mistral freshness showing in Chateauneuf-du-Pape usually a blend but Adrastee is rare 1500 bottles of 100% Grenache from over 100 years old vines. AJ summed up the tasting with Terroir not just the soils but the totality of the whole specific vineyard place. Many thanks Andrew Jefford for your most memorable learned contributions to the 42nd VIWF.

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Question: What is this new wine of pinot noir grapes from Beaujolais?

Answer: Yes Maison Louis Latour founded in 1797 continues to search for new wine regions close by their home of Cote d’Or in Burgundy. They have been producing Chardonnay in the Ardeche region since the 1970s. They debuted their Duet in 2003 with 2/3 Chardonnay & 1/3 Viognier. In the 1980s they planted Pinot Noir in the Haut-Var as Domaine de Valmoissine. Now starting with the first 2015 vintage (current release is 2018) they have a fresh “strawberry” Pinot Noir “Les Pierres Dorees” from the South Beaujolais planted at higher elevations (280-400 meters) on clay & limestone soil under the appellation of Coteaux Bourguignons. Check it out.

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Your scribe has certainly been following this 2002 Burgundy vintage rather closely since inception. Remember well a Burgundy Press Conference during the first Vinexpo held outside Bordeaux in New York on October 23, 2002 when Pierre-Henry Gagey (Louis Jadot) told an unbelieving media assembly that this would be an excellent year. After all we were aware that it had been terrible weather conditions with flooding in many European wine regions – look at very wet Champagne, torrential rains at harvest in Rhone/Southern France, no Chianti Classico Reserva in Tuscany & September hail in Piedmont. Burgundy was miraculously saved by rather good weather and 2002 turned out to be the best region for wine collectors of that vintage. The red wines started out early on showing accessible fruit roundness but often not the ripeness nor vineyard definition of the more intense 1999s. One encouraging quality balance factor was that 2002 (like 2010, 1985 and 1978) produced both red and white wines of high quality which had been quite a difficult task to achieve. The Gosset Celebris Champagne and German Riesling Auslese showed well. So it was with eager anticipation to re-visit some of these 2002 wines again at 17+ years of age at a dinner on February 11 at CinCin restaurant in Vancouver. Overall impressions were good but variable with some lovely Volnay charm and Richebourg power but most showed younger and more primary than expected. Generally no rush to drink up if you have some top 2002 red Burgundies in your cellar or are buying some better ones at auction or local wine shop. The menu is attached and here are some brief comments:

1. VOLNAY TAILLEPIEDS 1ER CRU MARQUIS D’ANGERVILLE – Lighter colour but delightful classy elegant delicate charming style with finesse, beautiful texture of finer tannins, and a long finish. Delicious! Super pairing with Parmigiano Reggiano hot souffle with twice cooked spinach & fresh cream. Estate now run by Guillaume D’Angerville but this was the last vintage of his father Jacques who passed away in 2003.

2. POMMARD EPENOTS 1ER CRU LUCIEN LE MOINE – Believe from Petits Epenots site. Big dense harder firmly structured style with flowers and mushrooms prominent initially. Mounir wouuld have recommended an earlier decanting. Improved with warming and airing in the glass being less reductive. No rush.

3. POMMARD GRANDS EPENOTS 1ER CRU DOMAINE MICHEL GAUNOUX – This was a ringer of 2001 vintage for comparison. Fairly powerful strong, bit tough, coarser but starting to dry out from uneven fruit ripeness of 2001. Talk of Pommard being elevated to a Grand Cru has settled down but best sites are clearly Les Rugiens Bas & Central Les Epenots (Comte Armand Monopole of Clos des Epeneaux).

4. CLOS DE LA ROCHE GRAND CRU J-C BOISSET – Darkest of second flight with lush smooth texture of good fruit but not singing yet. Can age. Often the biggest wine of Morey-St.-Denis. Though Chambertin usually more austere & Bonnes-Mares more dense muscular than Clos de la Roche styling.

5. CLOS VOUGEOT GRAND CRU JACQUES PRIEUR – Lighter look but more open with a better stylish nose and rather tasty indeed. Surprise.

6. CLOS DES LAMBRAYS GRAND CRU DOMAINE DES LAMBRAYS – Mid colour but much sweeter riper intense fruit on bouquet from limestone & sandy soil on unique north to south planting. Most attractive presently of second flight with complementary ricotta ravioli & Perigord truffles.

7. VOSNE-ROMANEE 1ER CRU CLOS DES REAS DOMAINE MICHEL GROS – Good Monopole walled triangle shaped at end of the valley. Not heavy at all but very fragrant pure and elegant! Lovely.

8. GRIOTTE-CHAMBERTIN GRAND CRU DOMAINE DES CHEZEAUX (ELEVAGE BY PONSOT) – Smallest Grand cru in Gevrey between Charmes & Chapelle below where Chambertin meets Clos de Beze. Usually a gentler softer and seductive perfumed cherries as here but this bottle not perfectly pristine clean. Slightly disappointed.

9. RICHEBOURG GRAND CRU DOMAINE MEO-CAMUZET – Upslope from Romanee-St.-Vivant and north of Romanee-Conti this site always seems to deliver full rich generous alive wine. Shows so much more intense concentrated very classy fruit as wine of the night! Dramatic outstanding balance which is so exciting already with mocha notes but will continue to develop even more violets with velvet complexity by further bottle age.

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Question: What is this buzz on cheaper US wine on the way?

Answer: This scribe recently has seen many wine prices going up. Top quality wines including those from a specific place continue to be in demand. There are continuing tariff issues on imported wines as well that are pushing prices up. However overall consumption is down with consumers drinking less but better wines plus turning to craft beers, cocktails, spirits and seltzers among the many other beverage choices. What you are referring to is the increased grape production particularly in California and other states that should lower prices further on table wines. See a more detailed CNN Business report here.

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Your scribe is a long time big fan of the Pessac-Leognan property of Château La Mission Haut-Brion (LMHB). Check out the posting on this Blog of December 16 last year on their sister property of Château Haut-Brion (HB). LMHB was owned for most of the 20th century by the Woltner family until acquired in late 1983 by Domaine Clarence Dillon (altready owners of HB). Some of the greatest intense Bordeaux of all time were made by the Woltners including that remarkable run during the dry hot fourties of 45, 47, and especially the explosive truffled outstanding 49! The Dillon family has carried on this great tradition and added to these glories with some treasures including those incredible twin legends of 1989 at both HB & LMHB. LMHB under the Dillon family has evolved in style into a more elegant wine every year consistently receiving high critic scores with more recently 2005, 2009, 2010, 2015, and 2016 all approaching 100 perfection. The vineyard is planted with 47/42.7/10.3 of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, and cabernet franc on their special gravelly-sandy clay subsoil at density of 10,000 plants /hectare. In Vancouver on February 10, 2020 another mini-vertical of 8 vintages in two flights of LMHB was experienced but uniquely served arguably not to best advantage with a Fishworks restaurant dinner of two white fish courses rather than a more classic pairing. Quite a buzz of anticipation in the room as to how these wines would match up with fish. All LMHB vintages showed surprisingly well probably because both sablefish & sturgeon were well chosen for their weight and cooking methods used rather than a more delicate or assertive fishy oily variety. Interesting and educational for sure but your scribe believes the tannic textures of the LMHB wines would have been enhanced even further by a more usual protein mate. The classy aperitif deserves a mention as Krug Grande Cuvee 163rd edition (currently have released the 168th) is composed of 73% of 2007 vintage (almost equal chardonnay, pinot noir, and pinot meunier) plus Reserve wines from 11 previous years (back to 1990) adding to the overall complex creamy roundness. A joy!

A few factual notes on the 8 LMHB from the Château plus my impressions:

1999: 567 mm rainfall, 18 days over 30C (86F) Wild weather. “Lively since release and consistently drinkable till 2030”. Nice cocoa full textures with softer tannins. Surprise.

1996: 516 mm rainfall, 23 days over 30C Inconsistent weather. “Very aromatic dominated by Cabernet”. Found it most classic concentrated year with more austere tannins coming around but still a deep youngster. Much better than expected.

1995: 348 mm rainfall, 30 days over 30C Early year. “Powerful nose Equilibrium Unusual softness”. Drinkable perhaps overrated following 4 more modest vintages from 1991-1994 softer solid but simpler.

1990: 291 mm rainfall, 31 days over 30C Abundant healthy crop. “Ripe slightly stewed fruit and tannins drinkable to 2030.” Drinking smooth full riper lush and lovely but not as refined as silky legendary 1989 (tried recently but not served tonight).

1988: 365 mm rainfall, 11 days over 30C Skins thick and rich with beautiful structure. “Nose very typical LMHB rich with taut tannins drinkable to 2030.” Bright look harder cedar nose Bit severe with more acid & structure than attractive fruit presently. This one actually improves with the sablefish.

1986: 386 mm rainfall, 18 days over 30C Cold Spring Hot & Dry summer continuing till end of harvest. “Scent of rather heavy wild game Soft but chunky Can age.” Dark with open bouquet of cigar box and tobacco with some turned earth. Impresses.

1985: 368 mm rainfall, 17 days over 30C Longest drought Late year “Nose violent of licorce and wild game Concentration of tannin Acidity zing Splendid.” Cedar nose Elegant Attractive More Merlot Smoky Quite Graves in character showing.

1983: 477 mm rainfall, 21 days over 30C August hot but humid. Harvest weather beautiful. “Burnt wood, caramel, tobacco, and cocoa powder. Finale slightly dry. Wonderful bottle that is tannic and still strong.” Good red colour Old style earthy mushrooms Entry good but dries on the finish with tannins still there. Needs drinking now. Doesn’t show special advantage of 1983 Graves micro-climate.

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