Question: Who is the well-known Italian winemaker who moved recently to a Bordeaux classified growth?

Answer: Yes, Axel Heinz who produced so many great Ornellaia & Masseto Super Tuscans vintages was hired last year as CEO of Second Growth Margaux estate Chateau Lascombes. Admire their 2010 vintage but expect a bright future is ahead for this property producing wines in a more Margaux elegant style.

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Another Vancouver Paulee for the wonderful opportunity to taste and study the complexity of white Burgundy. As followers of this Blog know well there have been quite a few previous write-ups of this fantastic annual event. This time on August 24 at the Acquafarina restaurant your scribe tried 36 Meursault Premier Cru over 13 vintages from fresh 2022 back to 2009. An excellent variety of quality producers including the innovative Bouchard Pere under CellarMaster Frederic Weber who joined in 2002 and became Cellar Master in 2013. Even back in the hotter 2009 vintage they were picking early for lower pH and higher acidity – which now with global warming is being done by most everybody. The 13 vintages showed the importance of weather conditions with 2014 impressing for the youthful vibrancy and 2020 is underrated for balance. The frosts affected 2016 but Les Perrieres Albert Grivault had steely notes while hot conditions of 2015 (better for reds) and the more recent years too showed popular more powerful lush extracted wines. The vineyards showed their different terroirs as expected with Perrieres fuller more minerals best long ager, Genevrieres consistent finer subtle less weight, and Charmes full body rounder opulence less minerals. These characteristics were confirmed by the single bottle of 2009 Perrieres Bouchard being more advanced than the magnum, the 2009 Genevieres Bouchard in magnum (contributed by yours truly) was subtle and still developing needing extended airing, and the Charmes varied from lush 2015 Dom. Brisson-Charles to elegant 2014 Henri Germain. Paulina Zhang & Blair Curtis provided excellent insightful comments and enjoyed the latter wine plus 2017 Genevrieres Domaine Michelot which IMHO was still showing a lot of sulphur. There was such a broad selection of top wines so many diverse favourites chosen.

A Top Five that impressed me:

1. Best YOUNG Meursault 1er Cru: 2020 LES CHARMES-DESSUS BENJAMIN LEROUX. Really like what this producer is doing. Amazing quality wines for value like 2020 Meursault Vireuils (near Auxey-Duresses) with limestone soils. Charmes-Dessus is young but superbly balanced needing more time to open up. Look at my photo of the outstanding use of Diam 30 (not Diam 10) closure for long aging.

2. Best OLDER Meursault 1er Cru: 2009 PERRIERES BOUCHARD PERE. Again the hot 2009 vintage shows much better than expected for this white wine (and the reds) with freshness continuing with depth and developing complexity.

3. Best AGING Meursault 1er Cru: 2014 PERRIERES BOUCHARD PERE. June hail 2014 reduced the crop in Meursault producing concentrated fruit with firm acidity. Two bottles tried showing quite differently with one as just described and the other starting to develop a fuller more mature very classy style. Bottle variation at 10 years.

4. Best UNDERRATED Meursault 1er Cru: 2013 PERRIERES BOUCHARD PERE. Cool year for reds but a lighter lean crisp pure well defined terroir here that was not fully appreciated.

5. Best LIEU-DIT Meursault: 2019 CLOS DU CROMIN (Domaine Genot-Boulanger) & 2022 LES TILLETS (Domaine Patrick Javillier). In Meursault there are highly rated lieu-dit vineyards (not official 1er Crus) including these two served to everyone paired with the baby gem lettuce & truffle. Clos du Cormin is a walled site within the larger lieu-dit of Le Cromin. Young and stylish vintages though less classic than 2014 & 2010. These Lieu-Dit wines now are the good values to look for and purchase – that includes my fav Les Vireuils. Also Les Narvaux, Les Clous, Les Cases-Tetes, and others.

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Question: I like the easy drinking fruit of Argentine Malbecs. Would you please recommend a Malbec from there at an affordable price but worthy of more serious study by me?

Answer: Yes, there are lots of good Malbecs from Argentina out there in the marketplace. Some now are quite expensive but your scribe likes what is happening for fair value with the Catena Appellation Wines. Similar to the Bourgogne classifications they are using the Village name on the label for grapes used from those sites that go into the Appellation wine bottles. Good defining feature to try and develop a distinguishing terroir. There are four Malbecs worth investigating:

LUNLUNTA: Popular more mocha styled – a bit softer
LA CONSULTA: High 3600 feet elevation is more vibrant less oak
VISTA FLORES: Longer 12 months French oak (35% new) Structured
PARAJE ALTAMIRA: Lower pH and better lifting balanced acidity. Suggest buying these and comparing the village appellations. Both fun and educational.

Also checkout their Cabernet Sauvignon from Agrelo, Cabernet Franc from San Carlos, and Chardonnay Tupungato. A fav of mine is the unique White Clay from high altitude Lujan de Cuyo of Semillon (60%) blended with Chenin Blanc (40%) instead of the usual Sauvignon Blanc Bordeaux mix.

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Bordeaux wines are now world renown and those who received recognition in the five levels of the 1855 Classification are expensive.

It wasn’t always the case back in the seventies.

Your scribe has been a long time enthusiastic student of Bordeaux wines for over 50 years starting with a first extended visit in 1970. Humbled to be the only Canadian to be among “les Membres D’Honneur” of Academie Du Vin De Bordeaux. A particular fan of Pauillac (and St. Julien) it was fun to collect properties early on that were less expensive. That classification is led by 3 Pauillac First Growths of Lafite, Latour, and Mouton followed by two top Seconds of Pichon Longueville Baron & Pichon Comtesse Lalande. However, there were 18 Fifth Growths (out a total of 61 now Classified) of which 12 were Pauillac. This value list was led by highly admired Lynch Bages, classic Grand Puy Lacoste, and more recently improved Pontet Canet. The other 9 included often underperforming Batailley, Haut Batailley, Grand Puy Ducasse, Lynch-Moussas, d’Armailhac, Haut Bages Liberal, Pedesclaux, Clerc Milon, and Croizet-Bages. In some vintages those 9 overperformed like Batailley did in 1964, 1961, and 1953. Today they are all much improved and more consistent. Collecting vintages of these lesser Pauillacs provided a great opportunity for me to study them over the years and obtain some education on both the style & terroir of the properties and the quality of the vintages.

There is always going to be bottle variation with old wines but it can be miraculous when you catch it on a high complex plateau. The gravel soils with clay of Pauillac usually develop wines with aging that generally show more powerful full Cabernet Sauvignon dominant of cassis cedar cigar box tobacco plus sometimes graphite mocha notes. This last week we pulled out our last bottles of Chateau Batailley from 6 vintages 1975-1982 matched with six at home dinners. A few surprises among these wines that generally were better if opened a decade or two earlier:

1975 BATAILLEY: Showed better than expected paired with a delicious recipe for chicken by Chef Eric Ripert. The slow developing tannic cab sauv year finally had softened enough leaving still some sweet chocolate fruit left to enjoy it. Surprise of this vertical!

1976 BATAILLEY: Earlier bottles showed more appeal and charm from this hot dry year. Earthy spiced fruit drying out. Over the hill but matched just OK with a garlic chicken breast course.

1978 BATAILLEY: Called a miracle vintage by Harry Waugh for the long warm sunny weather from the last half of August to the start of harvesting in early October. Quite mature aged look but some solid herbal greener fruit left paired well with pork loin curry mustard. Very ready. Pichon Lalande holding better.

1979 BATAILLEY: Big crops with higher acidity retained younger looking bright red colour. Less charm than 1978 but fresher on the palate paired with pasta marinara suiting to the tomatoes.

1981 BATAILLEY: A lighter year but another surprise of a lovely rather complex perfumed bouquet that stands up well to the chicken pasta course.

1982 BATAILLEY: Outstanding vintage helps this one. Like all the six wines shows as a 12 abv but way more ripe fruit and balance here. Finishing out the best plateau but just starting to dry out. Matched appropriately with a lamb shank & polenta. Enjoyed some better bottles younger but pretty good terroir showing. Not close in depth and complexity to the still sensational 1982 Grand Puy Lacoste.

Interesting mini-vertical of vintages from when this now excellent property since 1982 was not at its highest fruit concentration level then but underrated for the modest price they cost. Long aged less weighty Bordeaux may continue to surprise you.

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Question: Sid – Which wine do you suggest I match with my choice wild oysters from Malpeque Bay Prince Edward Island?

Answer: Lucky you with some of the best fresh oysters in the world! Andre Simon in Partners wisely recommends CHABLIS – and quite specifically Mont de Milieu – with oysters. That Premier Cru or better still Montee de Tonnerre or Vaulorent (or an aged Grand Cru preferrably Les Clos) will match very well. Due to global warming the key is to find a Chablis that is not too ripe or soft but with higher acidity, vibrancy, and saline minerality that pairs well with briny oysters. Even lemony citric Petit Chablis or Chablis AC could work well. However, there are now so many other less expensive wine possibilities from around the world with those needed dry crisp characteristics. Muscadet (western Loire Valley), dry Riesling (steely German Grosses Gewachs “Great Growth” or improved Canadian ones), and Sparkling all immediately come to mind as excellent ideas. Good luck in your decision and please let us know what match you preferred.

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