Thoreau Wine Society

Dear Friends,

After a wintry sojourn in France, I've returned to New York to encourage poignant wine drinking. While I must admit that there are many things about urban living that I much prefer to the placid French countryside, I deeply miss the long leisurely weekend lunches, during which a group might spend 5 hours enjoying food, wine, and company (not necessarily in that order), as opposed to these awkward New York parties in which I'm obliged to make polite conversation under loud music with a unmemorable cocktail in hand. 

Eugenio_cinzia

My Friends at The Thoreau Wine Society,

It is true that most of us drink more red wine during winter months than white wine. But there are occasions and foods which are better served by whites than reds. And a steady diet of red wines can be fatiguing. Tannins are not refreshing or charming even if they are essential to the integrity and character of good red wines. White wines live and breathe on the relationship between fruit and acidity. And that is why white wines can be delightful, refreshing, and charming in a manner rarely possible with red wines. (Please note that good cru Beaujolais is the exception and we will soon offer a few Gamay based beauties).

I recently tasted a 10 (!) year old Rhone white that was so delicious and aromatic that I felt compelled to recommend it. The label says Cotes du Rhone, a humble appellation. But what's in a name? as a famous wine critic of the 16th century once said. This particular CdR white happens to be de-classified Viognier from the Condrieu region and was made by Pierre Gaillard one of the northern Rhone's best vignerons. This is a $35-40 white masking as an $18 wine. We love those value wines when they materialize, and doubtless you do as well.

The color is mellow golden in the manner of a mature Sauternes but the wine is completely dry. I was struck by the luscious texture and calm richness of the wine which moves fluidly over the palate in waves of flavor. Almonds, pit fruits, dark vanilla bean and peach come to mind. This is Viognier which has matured successfully. The underlying softness is caressing rather than dulling which makes the whole experience of the wine completely pleasurable. This is not a fish white wine, with the exception of a fish stew with a garlic mayonnaise, but more suited to pork, chicken, and cows' milk cheeses. But the wine is so delicious that it can be drunk as an aperitif. Take a break from your reds one evening, chill down this lush, seductive Rhone white and have a hedonistic experience for a Puritan price.

Bob Millman

Dear Friends of the Vine,

Some wines are attractive because they express their region or vineyard site in a way that is instantly recognizable and comforting. Other seems to transcend their appellation without violating its basic characteristics.  The 2006 Chateau des Tours Cotes du Rhone is one such wine. Of course it is not just another very good southern Rhone: it is made by the famous, if mysterious Renaud family, producer of what many believe to be the finest wine in Chateauneuf du Pape: Chateau Rayas.

Made 100% from Grenache, Rayas is as distinctive as it is inimitable. Exquisitely perfumed, lush yet surprisingly delicate and nuanced, Rayas has rivals but no equals among Grenache based Chateauneufs. Alas, it will set you back over $100 a bottle in a so-so vintage and over $200 in a first rate vintage. Is there a way to experience some of the qualities one finds in Rayas but at an affordable price? Indeed there is: The Renauds produce a simply wonderful Cotes du Rhone 'Chateau des Tours' which is stamped unmistakably with the Rayas attributes but retailing for under $24.

The wine has been made since 1997 by Emmanuel Renaud, nephew of that difficult, reclusive genius Jacques Renaud who died in 1996. The typical blend includes up to 20% Syrah but is predominately Grenache, from vines nearly 50 years old on average. The vineyards are farmed organically and plowed manually. Emmanuel picks the fruit as late as possible but never too late. Expressive and chewy with much more flavor and complexity than the typical Cotes du Rhone, the Chateau des Tours is blessedly marked by the exotic, sensual perfume which sets all the Renaud wines apart from other producers in the Rhone.

Served a glass of this marvelous wine blind, I would have said it was a $35 - $40 Rhone, possibly a lovely, less well know Chateauneuf du Pape. I love this serious yet delightful wine which manages to satisfy the senses and the intellect at he same time. It almost goes without saying that the Chateau des Tours can be served with a wide range of foods. Hers is a tip based on my experience. When you are dining at a good Chinese restaurant, bring or purchase a good southern Rhone. They just taste right with many of the flavors one finds in Chinese cooking. The compelling Chateau des Tours with Peking duck is a divine multi-cultural taste sensation.

Dear Colder-Than-Normal Thoreauvian,

Greetings from our mini ice-age, when my thoughts and yours turn to rich food and excellent, affordable red wineamong other things. And I do have a marvelous, almost inexplicably inexpensive red wine to recommend to you: Yes it is one of those hyphenated French country redsthis time from the lovely Anjou region of The Loire Valley which is more famous for its powerful and luscious white wines, made from Chenin Blanc, than for its fine and undervalued reds, mostly produced from the quirkiest of all red wine varietals, Cabernet Franc.

Cab Franc as we affectionately refer to it, plays a crucial role in St. Emilion (and to a lesser extent Pomerol) and has become a darling of growers in the mountainous regions of the Napa and Sonoma valleys. It is also The red wine grape of the central Loire Valley. We usually think of Chinon and Bourgeuil when choosing a Loire red, but the Anjou has proved equally hospitable to the grape in the last 15-20 years and several estates are doing fabulous work bringing out the best from this hard-to-please grape. The key to C.F. is that its needs schist in the soil and enough sun to ripen sufficiently. When these conditions are met and the grower knows just when to pick her fruit, the results can be very exciting.

A properly made Loire Cabernet Franc exhibits a superbly spicy, aromatic bouquet which sets the taste buds into over drive. What accounts for the insanely sensual bouquet of the $800-a-bottle Cheval Blanc, one of St. Emilions 2 best wines? The 50-60% Cab Franc which gives the wine its backbone and its perfume. A case of the wonderful Loire Cabernet Franc we are offering will cost you less than 1/50th (!) the price of a bottle of Cheval Blanc! Just as good as its majestic and famous Bordeaux counterpart? No. But amazing for $16indeed for $30 it would easily be worth the price.

The estate, and we are so glad that you asked, is called Chateau Perrey-Jouannet. The 50 acre Domaine really does have a lovely, modestly sized Chateau that would be the envy of any Park Avenue Condo dweller. The region in which the property is situated was once famous for its highly prized healing waters. The estate is devoted to Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc. All vineyard work is done by hand. No new oak is ever usednor would it benefit the wine which has so much internal flavor that it needs no addition. Perhaps this is due both to the excellent soil composition schist, gravel and quartz and the fact they are blessed by southern exposure which of course enhances ripeness. My first encounter with their splendid 2005 was at a tasting where it out-classed nearly every other red wine irrespective of price or origin. Juicy, mouth-coating and lively with just the right interplay of sexy berry notes and Moroccan spices, the wine invited repeat tasting. I could not help but notice that the other tasters kept coming back for moreas well they should have. Like other well-made wines from the Loire Valley it offered a combination of intensity, restraint and elegance which defines old world wines at their best. The alcohol level will not cause immediate somnolence, an added benefit of most Loire red wines. The Perray-Jouannet Anjou rouge is the most compelling under-$20 red wine I have experienced in some time. I could not recommend it too highly. This beauty is worthy of a full-case purchase. It is an ideal red for savory, flavorful winter dishes and is one of the few reds that compliment Cantonese cuisine.

Bob Millman

2005 Chateau Perrey-Jouannet Anjou Rouge $15.85/bottle
2-Bottle Minimum

No minimum for purchase.

Limited quantities- First come first served.

Does not include local tax or delivery / shipping. Pick up option is available (please inquire).

We ship to 48 states.

Please reply with desired quantities and Mary will confirm your order.

ThoreauWineSociety.com

Dear Friends,

Day 22 and so far, so good. These New Year's resolutions are not so tough to live by, in fact I rather enjoy living high-fructose-free, and oh, drinking less quantity and more quality. I'll stick to something healthy and reasonable, like champagne. And with which, I'm opening up the 2010 season of wine offers from our humble but well researched, philosophical team of wine enthusiasts who scour through tastings in pursuit of pure, balanced, ethereal wines.

I wrote about Lallier Champagne, from Ay, during our first season and got wonderful feedback. At the moment I am quite enthused with their premier cru rose, a blend of mostly grand cru vineyards in Bouzy, Avize, Ay, and 1er cru in Mareuil-sur-Ay. The blend is about 80% pinot noir and 20% chardonnay. A delicate salmon pink lends itself not necessarily to a delicate style. (The sommeliers all love the razor sharp acidity in champagnes which pair beautifully with food). In contrast, this champagne is one to drink and enjoy on its own (or with a little tapenade). Delicious as an aperitif with its lush and rich New Orleansian decadence. An intense perfume of wild strawberry and some bitter almond  the dosage is about ten grams of sugar per liter (fairly average) but the taste is lacy, dry and you can taste the chalky soil which lends to the vigor of these grapes. The wine is aged for three years partly in stainless steel and a percentage in neutral oak barrels. When bottled, the wine further rests in 18th century limestone cellars for 6 months before being shipped. 

This is a fairly large and historic maison but their efforts are not towards advertising (Russian models photographed in Parisian hotel rooms, ok but what does that have to do with the wine?). I guess the fact that Henri IV loved the wines of Ay is also beside the point (plus there were no bubbles then).

I dont think anyone would associate me with 'pink,' however when it comes to Champagne, I do prefer a touch of rose. This drinks equally well in a regular wine glass (where you can really dive into the aroma) as it does in a flute.

$52.99 per bottle (I don't see it anywhere for less)

1 bottle minimum. 6 is better! We ship to 48 states, and pick up is available. Please reply with desired amounts, and account set-up info.

Offer will close Monday and orders will be shipped by the end of the following week.

An aside: feeling quite thankful for a relatively peaceful life after witnessing such catastrophe in Haiti. I've been following the blog of father Marc Boisvert who has been working with orphans in southern Haiti for 12 years  in 2005, courtesy of a support group from Concord MA (my

hometown) I was able to visit the project and was floored by the importance and compassion of his work. Check out his blog:

http://pwojeespwa.blogspot.com

Slainte,

Mary

Mary Taylor

ThoreauWineSociety.com

Dear Friends,

Allow me to introduce yet another wine cognoscenti and fellow Thoreauvian, Mike Drapkin, who has spent a good part of his career academically tasting dozens of wines, former blogger of 'The Schist,' he contributes today a write-up of a wine that I love dearly and wholly endorse. So hit-it, Mike:
 
Driving south in France from the noble hills of the Cote dOr, you will come upon the bucolic landscape of the Maconnais. After departing the brisk climate of northern Burgundy, there is a feeling that the tiled roofs and salt aromas of the Mediterranean are near. The land of southern Burgundy is green, rolling, innocent and pure, which in a poetic sense, is also a fitting description for the everyday vin blanc coming from these hills. Chardonnay finds a resting place here and a comfort in the limestone soils of the best vineyards. Large co-operatives and negociants produce a vast amount of the wine exiting the  Maconnais, a majority of which ends up as thirstquenching bistro wine destined to be vigorously slugged by bohemians in Paris, Lyon, or New York. But the terroir of this region has more to say and greater potential than the common  in the right hands, Chardonnay from the villages of Vire and Clesse can transmit the secrets of the earth; and such gentle hands can place them in your glass to imbibe. This is where Jean Thevenet enters the story.

Jean Thevenet has been a vigneron or winemaker around the Maconnais for multiple decades; and the Thevenet family has a long, rich history in these parts dating back several hundred years. Consider the Thevenet family as winemaking royalty. The Domaine Emillan Gillet is named after Jeans great grandfather and the Chardonnay vines of the domaine rest in two revered
villages: Vire and Clesse. Located in the southeastern edge of the Maconnais, these two villages are blessed with a slice of the same pristine limestone soil which runs north into the Cote dOr.

Chardonnay here, and under the direction of Jean, can easily compete with its northern cousins(and at half the cost). Jean is a humble farmer and passionate believer in terroir-driven Chardonnay. An aristocratic landholder he is not, but rather an homme de terre, or man of the earth, with dirt under his fingernails and pruning shears in his pocket. Its in the Maconnais, where you will find Jean and his son Gautier laboriously tending to the earth and their beloved vines. Their work in the vineyard is meticulous, organic, and focused. They push their Chardonnay grapes to maximum ripeness, minimum yield and harmony. Everything is done by hand and the long growing season ensures complexity, and longevity in the finished wine. 

In the cellar, Jean takes his cues not from modern winemaking technology, but from the template his kin created generations ago. The ripe Chardonnay grapes, combined with wild yeasts and a protracted fermentation imparts the finished wine with an exquisite golden hue. The color and aroma reminds me of autumn in the northeast. This wine will inspire you to pause, notice,
and appreciate the artistic grace of mother earth and a family who respects her message. There is more to this wine than alcohol and fruit flavors. In each whiff and sip you receive the stories of Jeans ancestors and the time-honored traditions of past generations. 2004 was a wonderful year for Chardonnay in Burgundy and a rare treat to have in 2009. If I may, this wine has class and breed. The acidity, maturity, and transparency in this offering will surely compel. Several weeks ago, I paired it with butternut squash soup garnished with grilled scallops, and it made me feel like royalty.

Emilian Gillet Vire Clesse 04 $20.25

A Votre Sante,
Michael

Dear Friends of Wine Values,

The quest for value wines, those which taste a lot better than their price would suggest, is one of the most frustrating yet rewarding aspects of a tasters professional life. It also offers great personal satisfaction. Mary and I love to find gems which are affordable but taste almost expensive. This happens about 1 out of 47 times, or thereabouts. Our latest discovery is a marvelous Chardonnay produced by the important Brocard family in Chablis.

Jean-Marc Brocard labels the wine Bourgogne Kimmeridgien, naming it for the superb soil which uniquely defines the aroma, taste and texture of the wines from Chablis. This terroir "consists of alternate layers of dense chalk and softer permeable clay, encrusted with marine fossils." There is no other region within Burgundy where this combination exists. It imparts a scent of lime, green apple and white pepper with evocative senses of mussel and oyster shells which makes one's mouth water and yearn for shellfish.

Yes the grape is Chardonnay which as chameleon-like, takes on the character of the places in which it is grown. Nowhere in the world of wine is Terroir more evident and expressive than in the vineyards of Chablis! These Kimmeridgien soils were formed during the Jurassic era making them as old as the creatures we most love to terrify us: Dinosaurs. I have already described the bouquet. On the palate, as I like to say, the wine is pure, vibrant, tangy, fresh, mineral suffused and remarkably dense and persistent.

The price tag for all this is a mere $15, the price of a mediocre glass of wine at a fashionable hotel bar. You can buy a few bottles but here a half case or full case seems in order. This is a genuinely dry wine which can be opened on a Friday evening and enjoyed through Saturday Night Live. Food matchings? Easy: Raw Oysters, steamed Mussels, sauted shrimp, and almost any white fleshy fish. You can feast at home with oysters, stripped bass, fingerling potatoes and Asparagus and a bottle of the Brocard Bourgogne for less than the cost of an ordinary restaurant with a so-so bottle of wine.

Enough said.   

Happy Holidays, 

Bob Millman 

2008 Jean-Marc Brocard Bourgogne Kimmeridgien     $15.85 per bottle.

Dear Friends of The Grape:

A couple of weeks ago Mary asked me to taste a 2008 Sancerre and give my honest opinion. It is not my habit to say that I like something when I do not. I have no capacity to hide my true feelings and convictions—sometimes to the chagrin of my friends. There was absolutely no need to do so in this case. I am pleased to report that the wine was wonderful in my opinion and fully worthy of a Thoreau Wine Society offering.

Far too many contemporary Sancerres smell and taste as if they were trying to emulate new world Sauvignon Blancs: Ripe, peachy, full bodied and even a touch sweet with aggressive aromas. When I want those qualities I seek out a New Zealand or Napa S.B. This is not what a Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc from such a superb region as Sancerre should be presenting.

Blessedly the wine in question, The 2008 Paul Thomas Sancerre from Chavignol delivered pure, authentic Sancerre-icity. Chavignol is a rather special little village within the commune of Sancerre. It has a reputation as big as the village is small—all of 200 inhabitants all of whom either grow grapes or make one of France’s finest goat cheeses—Crottin de Chavignol. The chalky soil is ideal both for the growing of Sauvignon Blanc and the making of cheese. A glass of Sancerre from Chavignol with a wedge of Crottin served on a bed of Arugula with a touch of olive oil (but no vinegar thank you very much) and toasted slices of baguette makes for a near perfect gustatory experience.  You can add some gently smoked salmon and no harm will come to the wine or the cheese which is nutty, delightfully pungent and can hold its own with a variety of additional tastes and textures.

Back to the wine: It made me smile and feel happy. The aroma mingles ripe citrus fruits, a suggestion of melon and an attractive whiff of nut spices and green herbs. Nothing exaggerated, every scent in harmony with the other. On the palate the wine is vibrant, fresh, mouth watering and palate cleansing with just a teasing sense of ripeness. Assertive in a subtle, refined manner—virtually the definition of what a true Sancerre is supposed to be. An ideal ying/yang of zesty tartness and apple-pear  ripeness. I can even describe this Sancerre as playful.

And how much will this 25 ounce bottle of vinous pleasure set you back? All of $22.68. Need I say that this is a good deal and a good deal more? Beyond goat cheese, the Paul Thomas Sancerre will work perfectly with just about  any fish or shell fish dish thrown its way. And if you fancy dry white wines with Sushi (as distinguished from Beer and Saki), then you have found a cross cultural match worthy of the freshest fish.

Bob Millman

Paul Thomas 2008 Sancerre Chavignol “Les Comtesses”    22.68/bottle

Dear Friends of the Vine,

I am going to tell you about a superb Malbec based wine that does not come from Argentina. Then where could it come from, Venus? The 3rd Moon of Jupiter? A part of our planet which does not even have a name? Well no. It actually comes from a fairly important wine producing country: France. But as you know, the vast majority of French wines are labeled by location not grape type. The region in question is called Cahors, a rather obscure viticultural town located 110 miles east of Bordeaux and 50 miles north of Toulousei.e., in the proverbial middle-of-nowhere. One of the reasons for its obscurity is that the majority of Cahors are firm, tannic, uncompromising wines best served with strong game dishes on wintry days.

You might be interested to know that Cahors was infamous in the middles ages for having bankers that charged interest on their loans. The church in these times said that using money as an end in itself was a sin. Because of this Cahors became synonymous with this sin, and was mentioned in Dante's Inferno (XI.50) alongside Sodom as wicked. I always thought it was Sodom and Gomorrah but apparently it was really Sodom and Cahors!  

So why I am I bothering to recommend a Cahors? Because I tasted one which caused me to jump out of my seat and to revise my assumptions about what a Cahors can be. The wine in question is the 2006 Chateau du Cedre. And you will not need to pay usurious interest on your credit cards to afford this compelling wine.

The estate has been run since 1988 by 2 Belgian brothers, Pascal and Jean-Marc Verhaeghe both of whom worked with the brilliant maverick Jean-Marie Guffens in Burgundy and the Macon. Just as Guffens demonstrated many years ago how magnificent the Chardonnays planted in the right terroirs of the Macon can be, the Varhaeghe brothers have shown just what heights Malbec, tempered with just a little Merlot, can achieve in Cahors.

Their motto is "learn to unlearn." Almost all the truly great vignerons would ascribe to this profound ideal. Pascal and Jean-Marc learned to unlearn the traditional tendency to make tough, hard, inflexible wines from the region. The 2006 possesses all the virtues and sensual appeal one would seek from a warm growing region with complex, multifarious soils: The bouquet immediately arrests ones attention: Intense florality overlaying a confit of very dark fruits, cinnamon and sweet tobacco. On the palate the wine gives the impression of a puree of dark fruits, an impression of cloves and chocolate and a seductive generosity of texture. The tannins support the flavors and texture rather than overwhelming them. 

How much will this gem set you back: less than $25/bottle. Do not even think about purchasing fewer than 6. This is a wine you will want to savor multiple times.

Bob Millman

2006 Chateau du Cedre Cahors     24.75 

Limited quantities- First come first served.

Does not include local tax or delivery / shipping. Pick up option is available (please inquire).

We ship to 48 states.

Please reply with desired quantities and Mary will confirm your order. The wine will be available within the next ten days.

ThoreauWineSociety.com

Dear Friends,

If you walk into the ground floor modern European art wing at the Met, you hopefully won’t miss one of the Andre Derain turn of the century paintings which capture scenes from the Mediterranean French fishing village of Colliourjust to the north of the Spanish border, down a windy road from more famous village of Banyuls, an area of Europe so invigorating in its unique beauty that Maillol, Matisse and consequently, Derain had spiritual and artistic ties here. This past August, I popped down to this area, part of the larger wine region known as the Rousillon for a visit to some wine
growers and to assist with a tasting on-board an American cruise ship filled with Californians who had signed up for a run through of Southern French wines hosted by winemakers and experts.

Maillol

1 comment

Upon arrival in Collioure, whose banks I had only aforeseen via canvas, I saw the steep trellised vineyards coming down to the sea – where they keep barges during harvest time into which they roll the grapes from the top of the peaks, to be boated to the cuverie for vinification. The village scene did not disappoint; little bridges and stone walkways, a Spanish looking
castle, touristic creperies and glaciers, empty frames where you could look at the exact vantages that so moved Derain, the glaring deep reflective blue of the sea, a big white – wha? – Cruise Ship, a sign that the
imperialist Americans had rolled into town and parked their Cadillac of a ship for all the precise, polite French to carry on the cliché.

Alas we chartered out to the ship and prepared to entertain the guests with our wines, facts, explanations. I glanced back at view facing port, framed by ancient mountainous vineyards, and beyond, the Cathar castles of the middle-ages poking up from these Pyrenean foothills. The Americans chose an interesting place to visit, yet aboard ship the currency was the American
dollar and the wine at the pool bar was, gasp, Beringer.  (Perhaps our subsequent tasting helped slowly sway our friends into better and more relevant wine).

The story of the Domaine du Madeloc: the great Pierre Gaillard, the man who discovered the Cote Rotie vineyard of La Turque, and who later created his own wines in the Northern Rhone, then Faugeres, and now here in Collioure and Banyuls. (The difference between the two is very simple- the boundaries of the appellations are the same, but Banyuls is a red fortified wine, while Collioure can be white or red and is a still dry wine, and neither are particularly common in the USA). Pierre and his wife, Pascal, purchased the old Pages estate, considered to have the best vineyard holdings in the area, parcels equaling roughly 30 hectares, much of which they had to restructure and improve. The red that I’m offering today is made of old vine Grenache, Mourvedre, Syrah and Carignan. High altitude, in a warm growing atmosphere – the purity of this wine is pristine. A soft red-berry quality couples with a earthy vinous structure, this wine has a true gout de terroir – a trueness that offers you a taste of where it’s from; the minerality of the jagged-tooth schist-inlaid (schist means energy for the vines), Cathartic mountains, the slight candied quality – the lushness,
thanks to the Tramontagne, the local wind that rivals the Mistral, keeping rot off of the grapes, letting them mature on high peaks basking in the luminousity of southern France, offering a fine balance of acidity, tannin and depth. An almost imperceptible touch of large old oak barrels – tasted blind against almost all of the other wines of the region, the Madeloc came out singing – and merits my highest recommendation. I suspect that 99.9% of us have never heard of Collioure –yet I dare you to venture into this wine – it will please you immensely now and if lost in the cellar.

Domaine de la Madeloc, Collioure Rouge, ‘Serral’ 2006 $24 per bottle. (You may order as little as one bottle, but 6 will better serve you).

The wine has landed in the US and should be available within 10 days. Quantities are limited; first come, first served. Please reply with desired amounts and if you need simple account set-up info, (if you have as of yet to do so).  We continue on our educated mission to find authenticity and to promote conscientious consumption. We ship to 48 states.

Slainte,

Mary

Mary Taylor
ThoreauWineSociety.com
thoreauwinesociety.vox.com