Above, from left to right, vineyards at Huet (Vouvray) and at Királyudvar (Tokaji).
In recent years, one of Europe’s most remarkable marriages of wine-producing estates has occurred, with the joining of Domaine Huet, in Vouvray, with Királyudvar, in Hungary’s storied Tokaji region. Each property is owned–either entirely or in the majority–by American Anthony Hwang. And each estate is making arguably the most compelling wines in its region today. The winemaker is also the same: the brilliant Noël Pinguet.
Last month, The Rare Wine Co. was honored to be appointed exclusive US agent for both estates–continuing our growth as a unique source of handcrafted wines from Europe’s greatest small producers.
Domaine Huet
Started by the Victor Huet in 1928, and raised to worldwide renown by his son, Gaston, Domaine Huet has been the Loire Valley’s transcendent name for 80 years. The estate owns two of Vouvray’s greatest vineyards–Le Mont, purchased in 1957, and Clos du Bourg, purchased in 1963–in addition to their own outstanding plantation, Le Haut-Lieu. Depending on the year’s conditions, they produce wines that range from Chablis-like Sec to riveting, world-beating dessert wines.
When Gaston Huet’s son showed little interest in taking the reins at Domaine Huet, his son-in-law, Noël Pinguet stepped into the breach. Starting in the 1980s, Pinguet worked side-by-side with Gaston-learning from the master, but also introducing ideas like Biodynamics for viticulture. When Gaston passed away in 2002, the domaine could have been split by the crushing inheritance taxes. Noël sought outside help, and Tony Hwang, arrived as a financial partner. Tony had long appreciated Huët’s wines, and his investment stabilized the estate’s finances and allowed Noël the freedom to be uncompromising in his quest for quality.
Királyudvar
On the opposite side of Europe, Hungary’s Tokaji had been a prestigious wine region for hundreds of years, but fell into neglect during the 20th century. After the fall of communism, numerous groups invested in rehabilitating this nearly forgotten region. The most sagacious of these investors was Tony Hwang. In 1997, he partnered with the region’s most eminent winemaker, István Szepsy, and, together, they rebuilt the historic Királyudvar estate into possibly Tokaji’s finest modern practitioner.
Meanwhile, István Szepsy was developing his own estate in Tokaji. When he departed Királyudvar, Tony Hwang asked Noël to assist in Hungary. There are a lot of parallels between the Loire’s Chenin Blanc and the similarly rich, but high-acid, varieties of Tokaji, and Noel’s experience began to pay dividends quickly. He introduced biodynamics to the vineyards, resulting in an earlier harvest and healthier fruit. Beyond the vineyards, he recognized the grapes’ potential to produce great dry wines, as well as the traditional dessert wines, not unlike the wines in his native Vouvray.
With the thoughtful stewardship of Tony Hwang, and the rich experience of Noël Pinguet, both estates are today producing profound wines. At the same time, they are also helping to push the quality boundaries forward for their respective regions.
Huet and Királyudvar are precisely the kinds of domaines that The Rare Wine Co. exists to champion. The wines themselves are profound, and both estates have the rich narrative arcs–in the vineyards, in their histories and, most importantly, in the glass–that enable them to transcend category.
Jean-Philippe Fichet in his cellar in Meursault (November 2009).
To my mind, one of the past decade’s most positive wine developments has been the world’s growing appreciation of “transparent” Chardonnay, whose crystalline clarity magnifies the minerality of the soil in which it is grown.
Such Chardonnays have challenged many preconceptions about popular taste. They revel in their touch of austerity, not having been made from grapes stripped of acidity by climate, late harvest or deacidification. They’re slender of body, without the Rubenesque size we’re supposed to covet. And they lack the toasty new wood that, we’re told, no wine drinker can resist.
In fact, the magic of these wines is not easily found, but once discovered it will grip a wine lover’s soul and never let it go.
The Wellspring
A quarter century ago, about the only place you could find Chardonnay of great minerality was in France. There were pockets of such wine in the Côte d’Or, but opulence was still the cardinal virtue of a fine Côte d’Or white. You were far better off looking in Chablis, where a few old-fashioned producers were content to let the grape and soil speak with minimal translation.
Today, this philosophy is flourishing in Chablis, as more of its top producers strive for site expression unmasked by extract or the taste of wood. Such thinking is also spreading through the Côte d’Or, especially in Meursault, where a handful of growers are making some of the world’s most thrillingly complex, and profoundly mineral Chardonnay. These wines are made possible by a very low water table, which forces the vine roots deep underground, magnifying the intense stoniness of the village’s soils.
Not that long ago, growers in Meursault dared not emphasize their wines’ natural stoniness; they were more interested in making classic “buttery” Meursault. It wasn’t until the 1990s when–building on the earlier work of Coche-Dury and Comte Lafon–Jean-Marc Roulot perfected the idea of crafting intensely mineral Meursault. Ever since, Roulot’s wines have been benchmarks for those who love Chardonnay of blinding clarity, complex minerality and laser-guided acidity.
Jean-Philippe Fichet
Until recently, no lover of Roulot’s mineral style of Meursault would question that he makes the best examples. But with the emergence of the equally gifted Jean-Philippe Fichet, Roulot is no longer necessarily the clear leader.
Little-known outside Burgundy until recently, Fichet’s pedigree is well-established, with a track record of stunning Meursaults since the 2000 vintage. And he has achieved this primarily with village level lieu-dit (non-premier cru) vineyards. In fact, if I had to choose just one grower’s lieu-dit Meursaults to drink from the past decade, I would have a very hard time choosing between those of Roulot and Fichet. And if cost were a consideration, Fichet wins hands-down, since his wines can be had for about two-thirds the price of Roulot’s comparable cuvées (not to mention those of Lafon and Coche!).
The Glorious 2007s
As good as Fichet’s wines have been since 2000, the greatest measure of his talents can be found in his newly released 2007s. It’s a vintage made for his style of winemaking, and he took full advantage, producing wines that are breathtaking for their purity and the way they reveal the soil.
Next week you can find out for yourself, as Fichet’s 2007s are featured in The Rare Wine Co. newsletter. Showcased are his overachieving Bourgogne Blanc Vieilles Vignes, made from a high proportion of vines a stone’s throw from the premier cru Meursault-Charmes; his thrillingly diverse Meursault Tesson, Chevalières, Gruyaches and Meix Sous le Chateaulieux dits; and his lone Meursault premier cru, Genevrières, of which just two barrels were made.
Subscribers to our newsletter should receive their copies on Monday or Tuesday next week. But everyone can see the offer Monday night at www.rarewineco.com.
Video Feature
In the meantime, we’re delighted to share with you some footage from our recent vintage with Jean-Philippe, who talks with RWC’s Blake Murdock about his special parcel of Bourgogne Blanc Vieilles Vignes.
By Mannie Berk and Blake Murdock on November 23rd, 2009
Almost every wine aficionado knows about the divide between “modern” and “traditional” winemakers in Piedmont. But far less has been written about a similar clash of philosophies in the Northern Rhône. Both disputes date back to the 1980s; yet, the results have been very different.
In Piedmont, the modernists threw down the gauntlet; openly criticizing the traditionalists and boldly spelling out the transformation they would forge. This not only drew battle lines, it served to educate the world about the differences between the two schools of winemaking.
Today a majority of collectors understand what is meant by a “modern” or “traditional” Barolo or Barbaresco. Had modernism crept in quietly, traditionalism could be on life support today. But the stridency of the modernist manifesto had the opposite effect: to make the world aware of the beauty of the best old-style wines. And the great traditionally made wines of Giacomo Conterno, Giuseppe Mascarello and Bartolo Mascarello are even more sought–after today than they were at the birth of modernism.
But not in the Northern Rhône …
The Northern Rhône is in a completely different situation. In the late 1980s–the very moment when modernism was taking off in Piedmont–the Rhône was awakening from a century of domination by large négociants. The few domaine bottlers were mostly old-fashioned in their approach, fermenting in whole clusters, using relatively slow fermentations, and aging in old barrels. Among the giants of this school of winemaking were Marius Gentaz, Noël Verset, Auguste Clape and Raymond Trollat.
A view from La Landonne (Côte-Rôtie), overlooking the Rhône.
However, the late 1980s and early 1990s opened the door for many more Northern Rhône growers to become domaine bottlers. At most estates, the winemaking started out as traditional, but that lasted only a few years. Some domaines–like those of Gentaz and Trollat–had no younger generation to take over. At others, the winemaking was passed on to an enology-school-trained generation, which was influenced not only by the stunning success of Guigal and Chapoutier, but new developments in Europe, America and Australia.
Modernism moves in
Their eyes widened, the young vignerons soon filled their cellars with new barrels, slashed their yields, altered their fermentations to enhance color and extraction, and began to destem all their fruit in search of a softer palate. Today, the number of Northern Rhône domaines producing wine under their own labels has skyrocketed. But how many winemakers under the age of 40 make wine even remotely as their fathers and grandfathers did?
It can be argued, of course, that this is all for the good. The standard of small-domaine winemaking in the Northern Rhône 30 years ago was, in fact, well below that of the traditional winemakers in Piedmont. For every Gentaz or Clape who made magical wines, there were a dozen vignerons making overly tannic or unclean wines. Wasn’t winemaking in Northern Rhône in desperate need of the makeover it received?
A report from Sunday’s Trimbach Cuvée Frédéric Emile dinner
at Absinthe in San Francisco.
Prejudices exist to be discredited, and one that’s particularly annoying is that white wines—particularly ones released at $50 or less—aren’t riveting enough for vertical tastings. Granted, most white wines aren’t worthy, but neither are most reds. It takes a wine that offers both real longevity and real complexity to be worth sitting down to a three-hour vertical.
Anyone who was at Absinthe on Sunday night certainly got the message. The outstanding menu provided a perfect backdrop for four flights of Trimbach’s Riesling Frédéric Emile dating back to 1979. True believers of Freddie Emile would anticipate a truly memorable evening. But we suspect that most wine lovers would not. After all, “The Fred” isn’t even Trimbach’s best Riesling (that honor goes to the iconic Clos Ste. Hune). And it’s too cheap (released in its normal cuvée at about fifty bucks) and too available (3000 cases in a good year). But that doesn’t keep it from being France’s second best Riesling and a wine that ages for decades, revealing stunning nuance and complexity.
My first visit to Anselme Selosse’s cellar was on January 17, 2004, and now, nearly six years later, I haven’t forgotten the feeling of awe I had that day. In a region not known for breaking down barriers, here was a winemaker born not only to question dogma but to use his extraordinary gifts to produce wines the likes of which have never been seen before. It quickly became clear to me why he was his region’s most celebrated winemaker—and why so many observers were saying that he was changing the face of Champagne.
I remember the date of my first visit so well because, in response to my questions about his most famous wine, Substance, he grabbed a knock-down cardboard box and drew the most elegant schematic of the “solera” that produces it. The drawing showed how the solera has traveled over time since its start in 1986–nurturing many releases of Substance (or “Origine” as it was once called). He kindly signed and dated the drawing, fixing the date forever in my mind.
Three years later, Anselme and his wife Corinne honored The Rare Wine Co. by making us their U.S. importer. This ended a six-year period during which they had no representation in America—and the only Selosse Champagnes to be found here were a few bottles purchased by American merchants in Europe. Ironically, it was during this period that Anselme was becoming Read more…
