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By Manos Angelakis
Wine writers are usually invited to taste wines en primeur, i.e. as barrel samples, before a particular vintage is actually bottled for distribution. Depending on the producer, the grape, and the area where the vineyards are located, these samples can be anywhere from a few months in the barrel, to a year or more – if the wine is supposed to be aged, for example, for 16 to 20 months, having a sample at 12 or 15 months will give you a good idea of what the final wine will taste. Sometimes, especially with sweet wines like the Mosel and Rheingau Rieslings that are supposed to be drunk young, the barrel samples will be only 6 or 7 months old. Occasionally, samples are given while the malolactic fermentation is still taking place, and in this case, the wine is slightly effervescent.
During the last few months, I have tasted 2007 en primeur wines from different parts of the world. I can safely say that this vintage has some excellent wines, whether the producers are in France, Germany, Italy, Chile, or Portugal.
Following are some of the wines that I tasted en primeur and found of interest.
From the Wines of Portugal tasting:
Adega Cartuxa – 2007, Eugénio de Almeida, Vinho Regional Alentejano Rosé. A blend of Castelão, Grenache, and Syrah. Fresh and fruity; beautiful pink coloration, balanced acidity with a lighter body.
Alianca, Alabastro 2007, Regional Alentejo red, a blend of Aragonez, Trincadeira and Cabernet Sauvignon. A very young red wine, medium-bodied, a bit on the astringent side.
Dão Sul – Sociedade Vitivinicola S. A. Cabriz 2007 from the Dào DOC. Blend of Encruzado, Malvasia Fina, Cerceal, and Bical. An interesting libation, still in malolactic fermentation. Spicy with an undertone of sweetness. From the same producer, 2006 Barço Do Infante, a wine still undergoing aging in barrique. A regional wine from Estremadura. A red blend of Castelão and Aragonez. With a couple years in bottle, it will be a very nice wine indeed.
Quintas de Melgaço – Agricultura e Turismo, S.A. 2007 Terra Antiga Vinho Verde. It is a classic vinho verde ment to be served very young; but a bit sharp on the tongue from elevated acidity. From the same producer, 2007 Torre De Menagem. A blend of 40% Alvarinho and 60% Trajadura.
Quinta do Portal Fine Winemakers. 2007, Quinta do Portal Rosé from the Duro DOC. A tasty blend of Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, and Touriga Franca. Fresh, fruity with a slightly elevated acidity. I had this excellent wine with battered, deep-fried, bacalao and later on with a red seafood stew.
From the German Riesling tasting:
Weingut Dr. H. Thanisch. 2007 Riesling Classic. An off-dry, full-bodied Riesling, young, fruity, and slightly aromatic with less acidity than traditional “Trocken” wines. If you like the drier Rieslings, this is the one to purchase. Even though the cost has gone up very slightly because of the dollar’s weakness, it is still an excellent everyday wine with fish, seafood, and even lighter poultry dishes. From the same producer, 2007 Bernkasteler Lay, Auslese. From one of the more famous Mosel vineyards. A barrel sample that was a joy to taste. Sweet, yet with elevated acidity that will cut through fatty white meats and heavier white sauces. Highly sweet and aromatic, could be also used as a dessert wine.
Weingut Josef Leitz. From Germany’s Rheingau area. 2007 “Alte Reben” Riesling. From their Rüdesheimer vineyard. Slightly shy on the nose, this dry wine has a slatey minerality. Two Spätlese samples, one from the Rüdesheimer Magdalenenkreuz vineyard, the other from the Rüdesheimer Berg Schlossberg were enchanting, well balanced between sweetness and acidity.
K. J. Molitor’s, 2007 Riesling Spätlese, also from the Rüdesheimer Berg Schlossberg, was a good example of how two producers (Molitor and Leitz) using grapes from the same vineyard, but each having a different vinification philosophy, can turn wines that are so very different.
Dr. Pauly – Bergweiler. From the middle-Mosel region. 2007 Noble House Riesling, with ripe peach and apricot aromas, but off-dry with characteristic slate minerality. 2007 Riesling Kabinett, grapes from the Wehlener Sonnenuhr vineyard; very young, much more aromatic and sweeter than expected for a kabinett wine. 2007 Riesling Kabinett, from the Bernkasteler Badstube vineyard; drier than the above, but still quite aromatic. 2007 Riesling Kabinett, from the Bernkasteler alte Badstube am Doctorberg vineyard; a bit shy on the nose, off-dry but with good acidity; a classic Kabinett. Finally, the 2007 Trockenbeerenauslese, an excellent TBA with high sweetness and medium acidity. If TBAs are your thing, this is certainly one to purchase and cellar for a couple years.
From the Lauber Imports Grand Portfolio tasting:
The vineyards of Dr. Loosen have been in the Loosen family for over 200 years. The wines owe their excellent quality to the climate of the Middle Mosel, the mineral-rich slate soil, and the age of the estate’s ungrafted Riesling vines. They own parcels in some of the best known vineyards including the Bernkasteler Lay, Graacher Himmelreich, Wehlener Sonnenuhr, Ürziger Würzgarten (the Spice Garden of Ürzig), and the Erdener Treppchen and Erdener Prälat and bottle their wines with a single-vineyard designation. The Cabinetts and Spätleses are exceptionally aromatic and their Gold Capsule Auslese (from partially shriveled grapes) have been highly sweet.
From Chile’s Colchagua Valley, MontGras, 2007 Sauvignon Blanc Reserva. A fairly inexpensive white wine that is aromatic, bone-dry, and would grace anyone’s table.
Conte Brandino Brandolini d’ Adda, is a winemaker that creates a very interesting non-vintage red wine called Treanni. He takes very good Merlot from three vintages, and blends them to make a wine that is medium to full bodied and works very well with meat-based dishes. According to our Italian correspondent, he serves it at his very chic Venetian restaurant, Naranzaria. The sample I tasted at the Lauber event was remarkable and, though it is nor really an en primeur tasting, I had to include it in this article.
At the George DuBœf tasting:
George DuBœf is a négoçiant well known for his good drinking, everyday Beaujolais wines, both whites and reds.
We tried four whites from the 2007 vintage and eleven reds. From the whites, one of the “flower line”, the Saint-Véran (which is 100% Chardonnay), stood out and so did the Pouilly-Fuissé Domaine Béranger (also 100% Chardonnay). In my notes for the Saint-Véran, I wrote, “feels slightly fizzy and green”. When I asked Frank DuBœf, George’s son that was also present at the tasting, he told me that it was a barrel sample, still undergoing malolactic fermentation. It will evolve into a very nice, well-balanced white. The Pouilly-Fuissé was more to my liking, though still very young, bottled less than a month for the tasting.
Of the reds, all 100% Gamay, there was a Juliénas, within the flower label line, that I thought was very good for the low suggested retail. I also liked the Jean Descombes Morgon; the Domaine des Quatre Vents, Fleurie; and the Domaine des Rosiers, Moulin-à-Vent. Overall, these are excellent everyday wines, ready to drink without having to be cellared, without pretensions, and at the right price.
From the Cercle Rive Droite tasting:
The 2007 Lucullus bottle of Château Hostens-Picant, had an excellent nose and well structured tannins. Almost ready to drink as tasted, it was a fresh, slightly aromatic wine from the Saint Foy area of Bordeaux. A blend of 70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.
Château Carignan-Prima, presented us with a powerful, rather tannic wine that will require considerable cellar time to mellow. A blend of 85% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, it will reward the patient oenophile with a lovely, full-bodied bottle, great with heavier meats and game.
A classic Saint Emilion Grand Cru was the Château de Pressac, another Bordeaux blend of 73% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc, 11% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Pressac and 1% Carmenère. A bit shy on the nose, it still exhibited fine tannins and a very long finish.
Clos des Jacobins, another Saint Emilion Grand Cru, is a very interesting wine; 70% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Franc and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon to enhance the backbone. Nicely aromatic, but with a rather tannic finish. Considering the quality of this wine, I would cellar it for five or so years, and then open it.
Finally, a nicely full body characterizes Pomerol’s Domaine de l’Eglise. It is one of the wines that you put aside for seven or so years, before you even open the first bottle. Yet, for the price, compared to its neighboring estates, you can’t go wrong. Cellar… cellar… cellar… and then enjoy.
À santé!
© June 2008 LuxuryWeb Magazine. All rights reserved.
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