Palate presence revisited II

Can I be furiously trying to make amends to the past few months of absence? This is my second post in two days - very accomplished by my personal standard.

I just peeped into my wine fridge a few minutes back tossing around with the idea of cracking the Arnoux Bourgogne "Pinot Fin" 2002 open... I contemplated the state of my palate right at this time and decided against it. You know, it's just one of those moments when I thought that although I could appreciate the wine but the 'thirst' factor isn't there enough to warrant lonesome drinking.

Back to the review of the wines I had these past few months.

There were several stellar pinot noirs I tasted thanks to Andy. Brogan Cellars Russian River Valley 2003s were, by any standard, very accomplished. The owner is Burt Williams' daughter, and apparently this vintage her father made the wines. I had enjoyed some very nice Williams-Selyem pinots in the past. They have a cushy, mildly-extracted, cherry-scented, pliant flavours so unlike most Californian pinot noirs. I've tried three cuvees so far, but the Lone Redwood Ranch stood out. A dead ringer for a Chambolle Musigny (de Vogue comes to mind) not just in terms of aromatics but also palate precision. Despite the candied, sappy texture, this wine has a nice stoniness to it. I actually thought it was a burg, and the mistake was indeed warranted -- this is no simple wine.

Another bottle, Bannockburn Serre 2000, was, in a word, stunning. I wasn't expecting too much out of this vintage, but Gary Farr did an awesome job here. Instead of jamminess, I received freshness, an excellent cut and a very polished spiciness. Beetroot, spices, cherries, black raspberries, with a warm, pliant, rounded texture in the mouth, it had the group fooled way out into thinking that (1) it was a burgundy, (2) from Vosne-Romanee, and (3) it was a Grand Cru(?!) Now, if I were Gary Farr, I would be way proud of this. The Aussies, in my opinion, deserve the kudos. When they get close to Burgundy, they are dangerously close. They understand the 'dirt' factor, in my opinion, much more intimately than the Americans.

Talk about mind-boggling, this is certainly one of them: Marquis d'Angerville Volnay "Clos des Ducs" 1990. Hugely tight-fisted, deep/dark-fruited, bacon fat, and awesome structure, it challenged my perspective of what Volnay wine is. This wine is exceedingly youthful -- I was almost dead certain it was a 1999 (due to its depth and weight), but was shamed to learn it's nine years older than that. This is a master's work. Very enlightening.

Wine epiphanies... Have you had those? Interestingly, despite my unquestionable devotion to all things burgundy, whenever I get asked what are the most memorable burgs I've had, I am always at a loss of what to say. Reason? Simply because none really stood out in a very special way. It's hard to describe the magic, but when I encounter it, I know. It's one of those hair-raising, crotch-blood-circulating experiences. And recently I did it with J. F. Mugnier's Chambolle-Musigny Les Fuees 2002.

Here is what I'd call an exemplary burgundy. It does what every pinot maker in other parts of the world try to do but could never achieve. The key word is: RED FRUITS. 'Huh...?' you might say, but it's this very simple basic of pristine red cherries flavours encased in stony, transparent minerality with no apparent palate weight, neverending, never-overpowering silky sweetness that begin, hit the centre of the palate, and trails off endlessly into the finish in seamless timeless succession that would drive all new-World pinot maker completely bonkers emulating it. But here is a wine that displays all these characteristics, textural pleasure in a humble yet effortless package. The clarity, precision, liveliness, cleanliness of the fruits were beyond reproach, and the fruit colours were all RED. Awesome stuff... And it's not a grand cru, mind you?!