Jean-Paul Brun's Beautiful
2007 Beaujolais l'Ancien
Denied the AOC Beaujolais
Can you imagine the stupidity!
Jean-Paul Brun learned a couple of weeks ago that 5,222 cases of Beaujolais l' Ancien 2007 have been deemed as being atypical by the French wine police.
I've enjoyed a bunch of these bottles. They are fruity and elegant and a true pleasure to drink. So what's wrong?
They were not made with the miserable thermo vinification technique that Georges Duboeuf and the Beaujolais Establishment has decided is typical. The wine was not made with enzymes and cultured years but comes only from what the earth and the vine brought into the bottle. It was not made at high yields or high chaptalization, but is a real and natural wine.
This year, we at Louis/Dressner are importing more and more Vins de Table and wines without the AOC agreement. It is becoming increasingly difficult for the small minority of natural winemakers to continue to work in the context of the AOC because the AOCs want to enforce a uniform and medicore style with no tolerance for originality and authenticity. Somehow, these bureaucrats imagine that safeguarding the lowest common denominator norms will save the many regions in France which are suffering economically. In reality though, they have flattened out, if not lowered quality and made many of France's best winemakers the targets of an intolerant offensive. No one is calling for Duboeuf to be declassified out of Beaujolais, but why are the defenders of that style persecuting growers who work honestly and work differently?
The entirety of the Southern Beaujolais is suffering and only a few estates working authentically are still selling well. While their neighbors pull out vines to make way for housing developments for Lyonais looking to live in the country, the Bruns and Chermettes continue to prosper. The Beaujolais Bureaucracy doesn't seem to understand that to persecute the Jean-Paul Bruns of the Beaujolais (already Marcel Lapierre, Jean-Paul Thévenent and Georges Descombes have had problems) will only hasten the decline of the Beaujolais region.
Are the wines of Jean-Paul Brun and Marcel Lapierre plunging the Beaujolais into economic ruin? Just the opposite, those are the growers who have prospered because their wines have stepped out of the industrial cookie cutter pushed by Duboeuf and the Beaujolais authorities.
People buy Terres Dorées and all the best producers of the Beaujolais because they know that those growers are the true defenders of the Beaujolais' terroir. The overwhelming mediocracy of the region has become so depressing that the official authorities see no choice but to strike back at the few successful growers who continue to make distinctive and grand vin.
One-Third Is Classified as Beaujolais and the Rest is Unacceptable – But All the Same Wine!
The vindictive stupidity of this ruling only became clearer as more details came out.
The INAO regulations in Beaujolais are that you have to give five bottle samples for each batch of wine you want to be judged for the AOC. Each batch is limited to 300 hectolitres. So, if you want to get the AOC for 900 hectolitres, for example, you have to give at least 15 bottles and mark each one as coming from a different lot. But....if you have one 900 hectolitres batch of wine which is all the same, you still have to make believe that there are three different lots of 300 hectolitres because the INAO regulations mandate AOC status can only be given to a batch that is 300 hectolitres or less.
So, Jean-Paul Brun divided up the same wine into multiple samples. Nameless people at the INAO, who are all producers of Beaujolais, then taste the wine and decide if the wine is as good as Duboeuf or any of the other junk that gets the appellation.
Brun has had problems over the years. After you are rejected, you are allowed to appeal three times. Often, he has to go the third appeal because his peers find the wine flawed because it doesn't taste like the wines 98% of the AOC are making.
This year, his first batch was approved and we have been proudly buying and selling that wine. But subsequent batches were refused through all three appeals. So, the same wine was approved and refused and Jean-Paul Brun has lost the Beaujolais AOC for over 5,000 cases.
The refusal on the third appeal of the rejected wine reads
After the controls done according to the rules of the rural code concerning the analytic and organoleptic tests of wines of Appellation Contrôlée, and the laws of 8/20/2004 governing sparkling wines, and of 11/19/2004 governing other wines, this is the decision taken on the above-mentioned wine:
Rubber
Mushrooms
Volatile Acidity
None of these flaws were found with the first batch, which is now available in wine stores around America, even though it blood brother suffer from rubber, mushrooms and volatile acidity.
Sounds Orwellian? Impossible to understand? Don't blame me....
And these geniuses wonder why they are losing marketing share? Someone makes great Beaujolais and is arbitrarily penalized, someone who makes industrial plonk is rewarded!
Joe Dressner
New Releases from Eric Texier
Brézème Rouge 2006, Côte Rôtie 2006 and Ô Pâle 2007 are Now Available
We just received the following news from Laurence and Eric Texier:
Greetings to all, dear customers, friends and passionate lovers of wine,
We can look forward to balance and finesse. A little old-fashioned, to be sure, but we never get tired of that.
We have taken advantage of the sudden cold spell in November to bottle our last 2005s and 2006s.
The Whites
Because the 2006s do not have the structure of the 2005s, we have decided to bottle them before a second winter in barrel.
This wine is more bewitching and easier than its predecessor, showing the pedigree of the Bussières terroir but with less potential for aging.
Of the 8 barrels, 5 have been bottled (the 3 others have been blended into the regular Mâcon).
Brézème Blanc VV Domaine de Pergault 2006 (bottling in July)
An important new release this year: for the first time, the two best barrels, 100% François Pouchoulin's old vines "roussette", have been bottled separately. It is a suprising, almost mysterious wine. A lot more minerality than the regular bottling and the extreme saltiness of the terroir comes out in an almost brutal fashion. We really think that the full potential of this rare wine will not begin to express itself for some time to come. But how much time? There will be 24 magnums and 536 bottles.
Opale 2007
Harvesting the Viognier grapes from Vernon to Condrieu to make Opale has never been easier than this year. No extravagant ripeness, no broiling sun, cool nights and a strong and constant Mistral. 11% potential alcohol (19 brix – 79 degrees Oeschele) – acidity at 9.5 g/l (tartaric).
Our Kondrieu Kabinett finished at 6.5 % alcohol! Record production of 1820 bottles.
The Reds
Saint Gervais Vieilles Vignes les Cadinières 2005
In such a sunny year as 2005, the higher altitude and particularly cool terroir of the Cadinières allowed us to harvest remarkably balanced Grenache, less austere than the 2004s yet with the same potential for aging and not a trace of over-ripeness.
No pigeage this year because of the small yields. 8 barrels – 60 magnums and 2120 bottles.
Its been a several years since we have bottled any Saint Joseph. The Brézème Pergault have surpassed our Saint-Joseph in both finesse and purity of expression. After several years of work on the vineyards at Serrières and Vernon (for Opale), the grapes have nothing in common with our earlier vintages. We are therefore very proud to present you with the results with the 2005 vintage. We can't wait to hear your reactions. Non-destemmed, non-crushed, lightly punched down. Aged for 24 months without sulphur in 2 demi-muids. – 60 magnums et 968 bottles.
Brézème 2006
The vintage has changed, but the wine, not really. The same ripe Syrah at 12% alcohol, which could have grown on the granitic soils of Beaujolais. Less and less destemming, less and less pigeage and shorter maceration.
In the spirit of the 2004 vintage, with cleaner and up front fruit. – 8890 bottles and 600 magnums coming. (reservations are recommended).
The 8 barrels of our old vines Petites Serines will be bottled en April 2008 under Domaine de Pergault. (We will do some magnums and other larger bottles as well as a small no-sulfur production upon request. Contact us if you are interested).
Côte Rôtie 2006
Less excessive than in 2005, this vintage is classic Côte Rôtie. The Verenay terroir has stood out this year, as in 2004, though a bit less austere. These wines will be very pleasant to drink young but will also one day develop that particular range of iodine and graphite aromatics so characteristic of schist. Non-destemmed, non-crushed, lightly punched down. 5 barrels – 1348 bottles and 60 magnums.
Coming this Spring: Châteauneuf l'Improbable 2005, Brézème Pergault Rouge 2006, Brézème Roussanne 2007, Viognier 2007 (ridiculous harvest), Condrieu Janrode 2007, Châteauneuf Blanc 2006 (we still have a little of our 2005, so charming right now).
All these new releases are available now. Now is a good time to let us know what you will want as we are stuck inside for the winter.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and we look forward to sharing these new wines with you in Charnay or elsewhere.
Laurence et Eric Texier
Italian Real Wine Attack
Begins January 14th!!
Veni, Vini, Vici 2008 will Span Seattle to Portland to New York to Boston to New Haven to North Carolina!
Meet and taste the wines of 7 natural winemakers from different regions of Italy.
They all work organically and/or biodynamically, they use little or no sulphur, use only natural yeasts, no enzymes, no rotofermentors, no fancy consultants and they make delicious wines.
These winemakers will be presenting new vintages of their extraordinary natural wines along with other Italian Wines from Louis/Dressner Selections.
Click here to read the rest of this post...
Heinrich Mayr at Weingut Nusserhof
Bolzano
November 14th
Last November I did a deep plowing of the soil for aeration and to break it up. Also to break up the roots on the surface. Because of this the vines were a lot calmer this year, not reacting to rain so strongly.
Due to a spring that was hot very early, the vines started the year precociously. The flowering was at the end of April. Also, the work of defoliation around the grape bunches was done in June. In this way the grapes were, from the beginning, exposed to the sun and moving air which allowed the grapes to grow better and to develop better tannins in the skin – an important thing in resisting attacks of odium, powdery mildew or gray rot. Until mid-June it was hot with little rain. This was followed by a period of variable weather, cool and rainy without creating any problems, Then at the end of August, there was new beautiful weather.
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Dard & Ribo Harvest Report
From René-Jean Dard, Mercurol, November 17th
We started harvesting on September 19th and finished on October 5th , only a couple of days later than usual.
The growing season was difficult, disease was rampant, but from early September through the end of picking, good weather saved the crop.
The grapes were healthy, so we did not need to do much sorting on the vines. Ripeness wasn't bad, maybe slightly lower in potential alcohol in Crozes , red and white: we didn't reach record highs this year, but everything was picked above 13 degrees potential. Our harvesting team was great.
Vinifications went quietly.
Yields were good for the whites, but in red we are 1/3 below a normal crop (we removed lots of grapes during the summer and have no regrets about doing it.)
This vintage doesn't resemble 2005 and 2006, which were highly structured, but it is still a little early to tell with certainty, there are many differences between the AOCs and their particular terroirs. On the whole, we are satisfied with the vintage.
Bernard Baudry Harvest Report
From Matthieu Baudry, Cravant-les-Coteaux, November 7th
April: sumptuous. Summer: rainy. September: happy Winemaker: overwhelmed. Winemaker: demoralized. Winemaker: reassured.
2007 could be summed up as a serialized story with multiple cliff hangers. Keep in mind that this is the year we decided to convert all our vineyards to organic viticulture, with an ambitious plan of using herbal treatments and of banning chemical products altogether.
The winter was mild, without frost. March and April were superb, with hot temperatures, dry weather and wines which started to bud 3 weeks ahead of schedule. Never seen before…. Blossoming started in the middle of May instead of during the first week of June, which is the normal time. At that point we were experiencing a best of all worlds kind of feeling.
Then May turned rainy and we had to do treatments at a hellish rate. From May 15th till the end of August, it rained every single week, and we had to be in the vines on our tractors at the same pace to contain the dreaded mildew. The first symptoms of the disease became visible in June and got worse in July. Despite our best and quickest efforts, many grapes got contaminated on our wettest terrains.
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Vito Perrini in Salento
Castellaneta
October 26th
The 2007 harvest is still on, but almost done, and perhaps is the best I have ever seen!
Every grape is perfectly healthy, with great flavor, uniform color throught the bunch, persistent perfume and lots of intensity...the 2007 will be a year for the records!
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Angiolino Maule
at La Biancara in Gambellara
Taken from his blog
Biancara, Vicenza
July 12th
I have finished the plowing and the thinning of grape bunches (where it needed to be done). For the leaves near the grapes, we'll wait until it cools at the end of August which seems will be early this year. It has not rained since the beginning of June and it is very hot. After 30 days of this hot wind and drought the vines have had enough. The plants have shut down and I am quite worried because this is an important moment for the vine. We need a bit of water or a change of temperature so the plants can start working again. I hope it changes; I fear another year like 2003.
August 22nd
After a summer not as hot (as expected) but dry we had a hailstorm that hit the highest hill. They were small but violent hailstones. We quickly did a treatment with magnesium silicate and already after a few days, the plants are healing themselves and, happy to say, so are we.
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Thierry Puzelat on 2007 Crop
From a Phone Conversation with Joe Dressner
I spoke with Thierry Puzelat today. He was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the crop at Clos du Tue Boeuf and at his négociant house, but bemoaned the small quantities. On the whole, they averaged a bit over 22 hectolitres/hectare in vineyards where 40 hectolitres/hectare would be a small harvest.
of Iroshi Matsui, a wine retailer in Osaka
Almost everyone I have spoken to in France the past two weeks has spoken about the small size of the 2007 harvest. This comes at a bad time for the American market. The dollar is very low, but European growers will be unable to make price concessions since they will have so little to sell and will be hurting from the small quantities available.
Joe Dressner
Salvo Foti at I Vigneri in Sicily
Randazzo
October 17th
Considerations on the 2007 Harvest
The climatic progression in eastern Sicily for 2007 was an anomaly, characterized by moderate rainfall levels in the fall-winter period that were prolonged through the normal season. Morever, in June, highly unusual in Sicily, there was abundant rainfall that allowed a particularly virulent outbreak of powdery mildew that in certain cases caused very significant damage to yields (from 15 to 40% less than in 2006). The rest of the summer was drought, without rain at all. This made the vines shut down and sped up the maturation.
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