[wine] Pouilly Foisses (NYT)

November 26, 2008 Wines of The Times A Fallen Superstar Earns New Respect By ERIC ASIMOV WHEN I was first learning about wine in the late 1970s, people had a word for Pouilly-FuisséIt was .joke.. It was the go-to wine of the ignorant and the pseudo-sophisticated, attractive for its mellifluous, if not-easy-to-say French name, and little else. As white wines were ascendant, Pouilly-Fuisséas a proto-pinot grigio, in demand for every reason except for what was in the bottle. Pouilly-Fuissé problem was not its popularity. While the area around the towns of Pouilly and Fuisséin the southern Mânnais region of Burgundy, was blessed with great chardonnay vineyards, the 1970s were a nadir in French winemaking. The industry latched on to the notion of better winemaking through chemistry and technology. The result was a profusion of herbicides and fertilizers, which produced overly abundant grapes, harvested early by mechanical pickers because growers feared the risk of waiting for optimal ripeness. It was a formula for diluted, acidic wines, which were also overpriced. Not every Pouilly-Fuisséell into the sinkhole, but the reputation stuck. While that reputation has been hard for Pouilly-Fuisséo live down, things have been looking up. A new generation of growers and producers is treating the land and the winemaking with more respect, and the wines have improved greatly. It is still easy to find insipid, overpriced wines besmirching the name, but nowadays it is just as easy to find delicious wines that speak of their terroir and do the region proud. For a sense of what is available from Pouilly-Fuisséthe wine panel recently sampled 25 bottles. For the tasting, Florence Fabricant and I were joined by two guests, Laura Maniec, director of wine and spirits for B. R. Guest Restaurants; and Olivier Flosse, the wine director for the MARC U.S. restaurant group, which includes A Voce, near Madison Square Park. First, we had no qualms about the quality. The standard was high, with none of the thin, acidic wines of yore. This was true even with some of the top Pouilly-Fuisséroducers unrepresented. As with many chardonnay wines of Burgundy, our favorites did not emphasize the pronounced fruit flavors more common in American chardonnays. Instead, they tended to show off a mouthwatering .drink me. texture and mineral flavors that Burgundy lovers prize. That said, the wines divided into two main styles. One was the crisp, somewhat steely style associated with Mânnais wines, with added depth and substance in the better versions. The other was a richer, more concentrated barrel-fermented style, like the whites of the Côde Beaune. Some of these were very well done. Others Florence scorned as Burgundy pretenders, while Laura was disturbed by an extravagance in a few that reminded her of California viogniers. Olivier thought the main stylistic differences were better explained by geography. Wines from the northern Pouilly-Fuisséerritory, around the town of Vergisson, which has a longer growing season, tend to be richer and more succulent, while those from the south, closer to the town of Chaintréare usually leaner with more minerality. Incidentally, a small percentage of the wines known collectively as Pouilly-Fuisséay be called Pouilly-Vinzelles or Pouilly-Lochéafter two other towns in the area. What kind of value do the Pouilly-Fuisséoffer? Well, in a rare case of price being related to quality, the 6 most expensive wines in the tasting, from $37 to $65, made our top 10, while none of the 6 least expensive wines, from $14 to $22, made the list. This suggests that higher prices reflect greater pains in the viticulture and the winemaking. Nonetheless, our No. 1 wine and the best value in the tasting was a $26 bottle, the deliciously focused and refreshing 2006 Marie-Antoinette from Jean-Jacques Vincent & Fils. Vincent is the néciant arm of Châau Fuisséa longtime leader in the appellation. The 2004 Châau Fuisséieilles Vignes, from estate-grown grapes, also made our list, at No. 9. It was more expensive at $47, and richer and more complex, but had less energy and drive than the younger wine. Our No. 2, the 2006 Vieilles Vignes from Denis Jeandeau, was an excellent combination of precision and juicy richness, and should continue to evolve. I would love to taste this wine in a few years. Our No. 3, the 2005 Guffens-Heynen, is from Jean-Marie Guffens, a visionary who has helped lead the striking improvement in the Mânnais in the last 15 years. His wine, the most expensive in the tasting at $65, combined the minerality of a Chablis with a spicy richness, and had me longing for oysters. Among the rest of our favorites, the 2006 Domaine des Vieilles Pierres CuvéTradition, from Jean-Jacques Litaud, the 2006 from Christophe Cordier and the 2006 La Roche from Daniel et Martine Barraud all tended to be on the more concentrated end, while the 2005 Domaine Chataigneraie-Laborier from Gilles Morat, the 2006 Vieilles Vignes from J. Pierre & Michel Auvigue and the 2007 Joseph Drouhin were leaner and more minerally. We liked several wines that narrowly missed our top 10. Olivier in particular liked a 2006 Les Scés from J. A. Ferret, while Florence and Olivier both liked a 2006 Clos Varambon from Châau des Rontets. Both were on the richer side. I very much liked the 2007 Louis Jadot, lively, refreshing, and a good buy at $25. Just as they have everywhere else in France, producers in Pouilly-Fuisséave learned that what sells internationally is quality. Americans who have long turned up their noses at Pouilly-Fuisséhould take on a new challenge: proper pronunciation. For the record, it.s pwee-fwee-SAY. Tasting Report: Getting Reacquainted With an Old Name BEST VALUE Jean-Jacques Vincent & Fils Pouilly-Fuisséarie-Antoinette 2006 $26 *** Weighty yet focused with smoky fruit and mineral flavors. (Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, New York) Denis Jeandeau Pouilly-Fuisséieilles Vignes 2006 $50 *** Rich yet precise with juicy, refreshing fruit and a lovely texture. (Angels. Share Imports, Brooklyn) Guffens-Heynen Pouilly-Fuissé005 $65 ** 1/2 Almost Chablis-like, dominated by mineral aromas and flavors with just a touch of richness. (The Stacole Company, Boca Raton, Fla.) Jean-Jacques Litaud Domaine des Vieilles Pierres Pouilly-FuisséuvéTradition 2006 $23 ** 1/2 Rich, balanced, ripe fruit flavors. (Fruit of the Vines, New York) Gilles Morat Pouilly-Fuisséomaine Chataigneraie-Laborier 2005 $24 ** 1/2 Beautifully balanced and elegant with lingering flavors of citrus and minerals. (V.O.S. Selections, New York) Christophe Cordier Pouilly-Fuissé006 $52 ** 1/2 Rich and golden, with complex flavors of butterscotch, smoke and citrus. (Robert Kacher Selections, Washington) J. Pierre & Michel Auvigue Pouilly-Fuisséieilles Vignes 2006 $37 ** 1/2 Lively and complex with long, lingering mineral flavors. (Robert Chadderdon, New York) Joseph Drouhin Pouilly-Fuissé007 $26 ** 1/2 Hazelnut and mineral aromas, taut and lively. (Dreyfus, Ashby & Company, New York) Châau Fuisséouilly-Fuisséieilles Vignes 2004 $47 ** 1/2 Ambitious and well-balanced with plenty of oak. (Frederick Wildman & Sons) Daniel et Martine Barraud Pouilly-Fuisséa Roche 2006 $45 ** Oaky aroma, but rich, balanced and generous on the palate. (Michael Skurnik Selections, Syosset, N.Y.) WHAT THE STARS MEAN: Ratings, from zero to four stars, reflect the panel.s reaction to the wines, which were tasted with names and vintages concealed. The wines represent a selection generally available in good retail shops and restaurants and on the Internet. Prices are those paid in shops in the New York region. Tasting coordinator: Bernard Kirsch -- ------------------------------ * Dr. James Ellingson, jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, mobile : 651/645-0753 * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *