Talley Vineyards

First, we had it at Gramercy Tavern, then later in the week at Daniel Boulud’s incomparable Bar Boulud on Broadway at 63rd Street. Bar Boulud’s wine director, Michael Madrigal, probably said it best. There’s a reason why the rich, bright, magnificently balanced 2006 Talley Estate-Bottled Pinot Noir was featured for so long at Daniel’s place. The food at Bar Boulud is less about elaborate ‘cuisine’ than it is about freshness and purity; the fish, the vegetables, the herbs — subtle combinations of flavors, each of which tastes like it was harvested that morning. So when we asked Michael why he had chosen the Talley Pinot and why the wine was such a hit at the restaurant, he said: “The Talley wine just speaks of what Bar Boulud is all about. You don’t need overblown cuisine when you have that much purity and precision.”

But our history with Talley Pinot Noir goes back 16 years. The first time we tasted a Talley Pinot, it hadn’t even been made by Brian Talley’s winemaking crew. We were at The Wine Cask in Santa Barbara in 1993, when proprietor Doug Margerum directed us to a new release from his friend, Jim Clendenen, at Au Bon Climat. The wine was the legendary 1991 Au Bon Climat Pinot Noir Talley Rosemary’s Vineyard, an amazing California Pinot with a rare sort of penetrating wholesomeness. A few days later, almost 16 years ago today, we made a beeline for Talley Vineyards.
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Andre Bonhomme

The first time we met Andre Bonhomme, it was 25 years ago. We had driven from Paris to Macon after drinking a bottle of Bonhomme 1978 at Taillevent. Jean-Claude Vrinat had told us where to go, and the sommelier had arranged the visit, adding quite simply, “C’est le Meursault de Macon” (”It’s the Meursault of Macon).

Andre Bonhomme, even in 1983, was a throwback– that kind of madly determined French winegrower who was possessed by Chardonnay. That first tasting of Bonhomme’s perfectly crafted Chardonnays, lightly kissed with oak, started with the luxuriously rich 1978 — the wine the sommelier had paired with scallops at the world’s greatest restaurant. But it didn’t end there. Andre sensed our excitement with his wines, and by the time we got to the perfectly preserved, incredibly youthful 1969, it was clear that the sommelier had undersold Andre Bonhomme. This wasn’t just Meursault; this was the quality of the very best of Meursault.
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Domaine Beau Mistral

When Robert Parker described the 2007 vintage in the southern Rhone as the best “top to bottom” in 30 years, we agreed. But, there’s something else that we’ve discovered in 2007, about which not enough has been said. We like to call these the “super-cuvees,” tiny-production bottlings — usually less than 500 cases — of astonishingly powerful, long-living, rich and chewy blends that put too many Chateauneuf-du-Papes in their place. What do these wines have that’s so special? Tremendous concentration and what the French call la mache, the kind of chewy fruit density that stands up to anything, even JP’s cassoulet.

We were dining at Regalido in Fontvieille with our winemaker friend, Bruno Lafon, talking about the super cuvees of 2007. We had ordered the requisite cassoulet (more on that below), when Bruno told us about Jean-Marc Brun’s super cuvee — the ancient-vine Rasteau Florianaelle. “The secret to la mache in 2007,” Bruno told us “is the Mourvedre.” He took a forkful of chef JP’s fabulous stew, then said. “If you had Florianaelle with this cassoulet, you may never pay the price of Chateauneuf again.”
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Rubissow Vineyards

Second generation winegrower Peter Rubissow had seen enough. Back in 1983 his father George and his partner Tony Sargent, both Berkeley scientists, had purchased 45 acres of largely maritime-influenced acreage on Mount Veeder, believing they could make Left Bank Bordeaux there. The first wines had Pauillac structure, and were occasionally superb, but inconsistent. As Peter saw it, hopping planes to taste with top sommeliers from San Francisco to Chicago, New York, and Aspen, the market wanted more richness to back up the elegance. Maybe the structure really could be Bordelais, but the fruit had to be pure Mount Veeder.

Peter and his sister Ariel saw something else, and in 2003 they convinced the scientists to allow the brother and sister team to remake Rubissow — from the ground up. The results of this Mount Veeder facelift couldn’t be more striking. The 2004 Rubissow Cabernet Sauvignon is deep in color, like the best mountain Cabernets from this warm, highly touted vintage. But Rubissow 2004 is something else. It’s racy and mountain-fruit rich, but also structured and chiseled, benefiting from those Pacific Ocean breezes.
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