2008 in Burgundy was getting railed by the press before the grapes were even picked. If you'd care to read an honest account of the vintage rather than hyperbole, I highly recommend Alex Gambal's detailed summary on jancisrobinson.com. Alex asks "should one harvest unripe, rotten grapes, or ripe grapes with some noble rot on the whites and have clean reds in significantly lower quantities - quantity or quality?" In short, 2008 presented growers with many challenges including rain, cool weather, and some isolated hail. Almost all of the reports I've read on 2008 credit the vent du nord, for saving the vintage. Alex adds "the spectacular weather we had, with a strong north wind for two to three weeks [before harvest], dried everything out. Sugars soared but quantities dropped".

Vineyard Brands imports a lot of quality, blue-chip Burgundies like Mongeard-Mugneret, Vincent Dauvissat, and Etienne Sauzet. I will say that the acidity in the whites took me by surprise. Daniel Haas (owner of Vineyard Brands) told me that many of the 2008 white Burgundies finished at about 50/50 tartaric to malic acid, comparable to 2002 (1996 was a 70/30 tartaric to malic year to give a point of reference). They also seemed delineated and mineral without a lot of botrytis. I'll go ahead and agree with Bruce Sanderson's B- assessment on the whites for now. Intermittent hail and rot may have affected the reds more than whites. I noticed flesh and a certain grittiness in the reds but most had good aromatic forwardness. The Thomas Morey Santenay Vielles Vigne 2008 had lovely purity and really wonderful cherry to cherry pit fruit, with pretty florals and minerals. While I've never been entirely impressed with the Thierry et Pascale Matrot whites, their 2008 reds were pure and singing. It was probably one of the most traditional producers on the table (there's little to no stem-inclusion here). I've been flummoxed by this "whole-cluster" issue for some time, and I intend to get to the bottom of it (in another post), but Matrot seemed to have the right approach this vintage. 

jessebeckerMS

peripherique selections

www.peripheriquewine.com

 

 

Between proctoring a Court of Master Sommeliers certified exam at the Hotel Palomar, and a Burgundy class at San Francisco Wine Center, I managed to squeeze in a tasting of 2006 Barolos and Barbarescos (plus a few others) at the huge Wine Warehouse tasting at Fort Mason Center. I typically avoid these kinds of mega-blowout distributor tastings like the plague. There's always too much wine and way too many people but I went anyway hoping to get a glimpse of the 2006 vintage in Barolo and Barbaresco.

2006 has already stirred a lot of controversy on the web. Jeremy Parzen at Do Bianchi has been keeping tabs on the whole saga. Essentially the whole thing started with decanter.com reporting Bruno Giacosa's decision not to bottle his 2006 Barolos and Barbarescos. The article stated that the wines did not meet Giacosa's 'exacting standards' but failed to mention that Giacosa's health and other factors that may have played a role. Then the excellent Prudottori del Barbaresco announced that they would not bottle their 2006 crus and the boards went wild! Antonio Galloni's 2006 Vintage Report here (and you can follow all the blogosphere drama you wish) but there's no substitute for tasting the wines and drawing your own conclusions.

The 2006s I tasted showed a lot of structure but were aromatic and had rich mid-palates. Wines that left an impression were Mariacristina Oddero's Barbaresco Gallina followed by the Barolo crus of of Brunate, and Rocche di Castiglione. Guido Fantino of Conterno Fantino showed Sorì Ginestra, Vigna del Gris, and Mosconi and I loved them all. Matteo Sardagna of Luigi Einaudi poured his Terlo (cinque vigne), Costa Grimaldi and stellar Cannubi bottlings. And I enjoyed meeting Manuel Marchetti and tasting his Marcarini Barolo La Serra and Brunate wines.  

jessebeckerMS

peripherique | selections

www.peripheriquewine.com

Austria Uncorked at Fort Mason Center in San Francisco was a rare opportunity to taste some of the top wines of Austria, from multiple estates (and multiple importers) all under one roof. There were many wines from the highly anticipated 2009 vintage on display. The 2009's have really wonderful flavor and definition while being tightly wound and concentrated. I've written a report on this vintage for an upcoming issue of Sommelier Journal, to summarize:

"...the early reports, including those of the Austrian Wine Marketing Board and jancisrobinson.com, projected 2009 to be a vintage of exceptional quality, although of smaller quantity. Michael Moosbrugger of the Schloss Gobelsburg estate refers to 2009 as being similar to the 2007 and 2005 vintages, both of which displayed exceptional character, quality, and longevity. Willi Kilinger, general manager of the Austrian Wine Marketing Board noted that "despite the hail and difficulties with the fruit set...the rest of the growing season was perfect, with dry days and cool nights, resulting in fully ripe and beautifully healthy fruit. Those who have loved the 2008 vintage for its finesse and purity can savor 2009 for its balanced richness, taut acidity, and strength of character..."

jessebeckerMS

peripherique | selections

www.peripheriquewine.com