[wine] Loire Valley Reds

Loire Valley reds - a dose of honesty and affordability Jon Bonnéunday, August 14, 2011 Where in the world to find compelling, affordable honest reds? The knowing bottle hounds are already drawing an arrow to Loire Valley. The Loire Valley, a lengthy stretch along France's heartland river, is home to some of the great French wines of all colors - Chinon, Muscadet, Sancerre. Though often viewed as white-wine country, even in the core of the Pays Nantais, where Muscadet thrives in the cool maritime shadow of the Atlantic, red grapes happily ripen. It is France's original engine of affordability. Near the city of Tours, the communes of Chinon and Bourgeuil, and Saumur just a touch west, remain the source of simple carafe reds that are the very lifeblood of the Parisian bistro. And yet bottles of Saumur-Champigny and Chinon often outwork their price and provenance, blossoming after 20 years in the cellar. To those who want to age wine without a fat wallet, my answer is always the same: Buy Chinon. Problem is, the Loire is often the recipient of a cold shoulder. Why? For one, its quality of winemaking remains uneven. There is too much rusticity that remains, too much supermarket wine in the mix, too many negociants willing to pump generic Chinon or Muscadet along the pipeline. Yet there is a growing army of scrupulous producers who harness old vines, low yields and increasingly organic and biodynamic field work to make impressive wines at modest prices. (The Loire seems impervious to Bordeaux-style price inflation.) A current generation of fashionable importers like Louis/Dressner Selections - Kermit Lynch too, at times - have made the region a sought-after ticket. And there is a burgeoning avant-garde, winemakers like Olivier Lemasson and Christian Chaussard, who are capitalizing on the Loire's perennial uncoolness to make wines outside the usual appellation rules. La Dive Bouteille, the Woodstock of the natural wine movement, is annually held here. For this tasting, we tackled an interesting pair of vintages. 2009 started cold but soon made up for 2008's tough frosts with a potential bumper crop pushed by a progression of early autumn rain and sun - which meant offered the potential for deep flavors if you resisted the temptation for that bumper crop and pruned your vines. In 2010, another cold winter and then generally fine weather stretched into October, creating potentially ripe wines with few of the green flavors that cause so much harrumphing about the Loire. I was joined by Sarah Elliott, wine director of Commonwealth in San Francisco, and Gerald Weisl, owner of Weimax Wines & Spirits in Burlingame. Both are confirmed Loire devotees, and we found many wines with potential, grown on the region's complex patchwork of limestone, silica and clay soils. But our panel of some 30 wines was still a mixed bag, showing the variable quality of winemaking and grape-growing that remains the region's shortfall. It's this mixed bag that keeps the Loire from transcending its modest appeal. And something else: I suspect the real issue, at least for the region's reds, is the base material. Cabernet Franc, the region's anchor grape, is polemic as can be - savory, spicy and delicate to its lovers; green and bizarre to others. The bit players, like Cot (Malbec) and Pineau d'Aunis, are similarly advanced-level fare. These are not grapes for the novice, and they do not hide flaws well. Thus they have been buried under years of derision by those who see Loire reds' freshness and verve as a liability. Silly folks. These wines have quintessential nuance and life. Chinon and Bourgeuil have been bistro staples for one reason: The wines beg to be on the table. Put them there. NV Les Vins Contes Poivre et Sel Vin de France ($20, 11.5% alcohol): The minimal winemaking of Olivier Lemasson frames the Loire's quintessential flavors - but often he works outside official appellations, which is why this mix of Pineau d'Aunis and Gamay Noir has a simple table-wine moniker. Aunis' telltale agave scent emerges in this mellow bottle, with a salty edge and ripe plummy fruit. If this were a movie character, it would be the Dude abiding. (Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections) 2010 La Grange Tiphane Les Cassiers Touraine ($16, 13%): This young release from rising star Damien Delecheneau shows why his talents, and this label, are worth watching. A pure expression of Gamay, it has a rooted, foresty side: pinecone, wintergreen and radiant, amply rich raspberry fruit. (Importer: Farm Wine Imports/USA Wine West) 2009 Chateau de la Bonneliere Touraine ($14.50, 13%): Marc Plouzeaux organically farms this site at the edge of the Chinon appellation; technically it could be Chinon but the regional name stuck. A pitch-perfect Cabernet Franc nose, with lily and chile, and a dark hue to the fruit; think black cherry and anise. For perhaps the deal of the season, seek out Plouzeaux's 5-liter box of 2010 Les Tuffeaux Chinon ($65/5 liters, 12.5%), a winning Chinon equivalent to nearly seven bottles of wine. (Importer: Winewise) 2009 Clos de la Briderie Touraine Mesland ($19, 12.5%): Amid Touraine's better-known red wines, there's also Touraine Mesland, a small appellation on the right bank. Here we depart from the Cab Franc routine, with a mix of Cot (Malbec) and Gamay Noir in addition to 30 percent Franc. Vincent Girault, who farms his properties biodynamically, shows the rare proper use of Cot, with its pretty India ink presence, plus dried porcini, loam and black plum. Robust, with lots of dark fruit. (Importer: Martine's Wines) 2009 Alain Boréomaine du Fresche Anjou ($15, 13.5%): In La Pommeraye, on the western edge of the Anjou area - verging on white-wine country - the Boréamily works their small estate. Here's Cabernet Franc without obfuscation, fermented in glass and aged in steel, from 40-year-old vines on schist soil. Ripe and deep, it leans more toward ancho chile and blueberry, with a saline edge and a big chew of tannin. (Importer: Paul M. Young Fine Wines) 2009 Gerald Vallee La Croisee St. Nicolas de Bourgeuil ($24.75, 12.5%): Vallee works the lesser-known soils of St. Nicolas, just west of Bourgeuil proper. A classic, dark Cab Franc expression: roasted red pepper, chicory and plum skin. Up-front saline notes and tart cherry fruit add a bright edge. (Importer: North Berkeley Wine Imports) 2009 Catherine & Pierre Breton Nuits d'Ivresse Bourgeuil ($32, 12%): The Bretons are Loire royalty, and their various Cab Franc cuvees - despite a disturbing price hike - are among the must-taste canon. Here's quintessential Bourgeuil, in their unsulfured bottling (the name means "drunken nights") grown on clay and limestone soil. Deep and loamy, with charcoal, eau de vie, tarragon, pimenton and black fruit. Let it age a bit. (Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant) 2009 Bernard Baudry Les Grezeaux Chinon ($28, 13%): Baudry has become one of the Loire's most serious practitioners since 1975, making Chinons with true durability. The Grezeaux comes from the domaine's oldest vines, 50 years old, and is aged in older barrels. Warm aromas emanate: carob, ancho chile, baked soil. The fruit is robust and dark, more blackcurrant and black plum, with an impressive backbone. To drink now, Baudry's 2009 Les Granges Chinon ($20, 12.5%) is steely and fresh. (Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant) 2009 Charles Joguet Cuvee Terroir Chinon ($20, 13%): Joguet completes the Chinon roster here, and the Terroir harnesses younger vines from the soils of Beaumont-en-Vén for a drink-now bottle. Proper and tart, with more direct bayberry fruit than spicy aromas. But give it 20 minutes and the spice appears around the edges. (Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant) 2009 Domaine des Hautes Troglodytes Saumur Champigny ($15, 12.5%): A serious expression of Saumur, the other part of the Anjou red equation. Saumurs can be brooding and intense, and no exception here in this bottle from vintner and negociant Joseph Verdier. When it opens, there's a deep, loamy expression: beetroot and fermented tea, roasted cherry, sea salt and mirabelle plum. Decant it for full effect. (Importer: Winewise) Jon Bonnés The Chronicle's wine editor. Find him at jbonne(a)sfchronicle.com or @jbonne on Twitter. http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/08/14/FDVT1KLUG3.DTL This article appeared on page G - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle -- ------------------------------ * Dr. James Ellingson, jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * mobile : 651/645-0753 * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 * * james(a)brewingnews.com James.Ellingson(a)StThomas.edu *