Burgundy that won’t break the bank

The Wine Guys

By Tom Marquardt & Patrick Darr

With the credit statements just arriving for all those holiday presents, its hard to imagine finding room for a bottle of Burgundy. One of the most expensive wines in France, burgundy can easily topple $200 for the great vineyards.

However, we have found Maison Joseph Drouhin as one of the most reasonably priced — if you put this in perspective to the region. They are easy to find here and are consistently well made.

We have met with the operation’s patriarch, Robert Drouhin, many times and remain impressed with his infatiguable energy. Although he claims he is retired, he is still actively involved in all of his operations and serves as Drouhin’s iconic ambassador. His daughter, Veronique, is responsible for Domaine Drouhin in Oregon.

Drouhin owns 175 acres of vineyards of pinot noir and chardonnay in Chablis, the Cote d’Or and Rully.

We recently tasted several from the 2006 vintage that we really liked. Here they are:

• Joseph Drouhin Puligny-Montrachet ($66). A very refined chardonnay with exquisite floral and passion fruit aromas followed by tropical fruit flavors.

• Joseph Drouhin Gevrey-Chambertin 2006 ($48). Black currant, cherry and black berry flavors highlight this well-balanced wine with fine tannins and aging potential.

• Joseph Drouhin Vero Pinot Noir 2006 ($24). Short for Veronique, Mr. Drouhin’s only daughter, Vero is a simple, quaffable wine with cherry cherry and raspberry notes and a hint of white pepper.

• Joseph Drouhin Saint-Veran 2006 ($18). We like the chardonnays from this region for their crisp, refreshing acidity. Intensely fruity with tropical fruit flavors.



SPANISH FINDS

Here are some excellent Spanish wines we recently discovered:

• The Spanish Quarter Cabernet Sauvignon-Tempranillo 2006 ($11). This is an outstanding — really outstanding — value. Full of ripe cherry fruit, dark chocolate and sweet vanilla flavors with rich mouthfeel and a long finish. Buy it!

• Bodegas Bilbainas Vina Pomal Crianza 2003 ($12). The blend of this Rioja is 85 percent tempranillo, 15 percent graciano and mazuelo. It has a round mouthfeel with raspberry flavors and hints of licorice and sweet vanillin oak.

• Legaris Reserva 2001 ($27). From the Ribera del Duero, this wine is made entirely of tinta fina grapes. Rich, smooth texture with copious, ripe berry flavors, vanilla and a touch of licorice. Aged a year in oak. Given the age of this wine, it’s a great value.

LAYER CAKE

Jason Woodbridge, the creator and winemaker for Layer Cake Wines, has two releases currently on the market that we recently enjoyed. Layer Cake’s philosophy is to create wines from specific areas that are unique and reflect the terroir. Following are our comments on two of his offerings:

• Layer Cake Malbec Mendoza Argentina 2007 ($20). An amazing nose of blackberries, blueberries, chocolate and cinnamon spice. Ripe fruit but good acidity with blueberry flavor dominant and a nice spicy component. Very impressive for a reasonable price.

• Layer Cake Primitivo aka Zinfandel IGT Puglia Italy 2006 ($20). Primitivo and Zinfandel were declared genetically identical in 2002. An amazing nose of cherries, and berries with a hint of truffles and tar. Delivers in the mouth with ripe fruit flavors of deep black cherry and tar. Great by itself or with robust Italian dishes. An incredible value!



OTHER WINES

• Vermonte Reserva Sauvignon Blanc 2008 ($11). We’re not sure what makes this “reserve,” but we like it for its value. From Chile, it sports peach, orange and herbal notes with a crisp acidity.

• Meditrina ($18). From Sokol Blosser of Oregon, this lovely non-vintage blend of syrah (48 percent), pinot noir and zinfandel is one of those fun-filled drinks. Lots of simple raspberry and sweet cherry fruit. Meditrina is a little known Roman goddess of wine and health. She would be honored.

• Chateau Ste Michelle Artist Series Meritage 2005 ($48). We loved this utterly delicious blend of merlot (57 percent), cabernet sauvignon, malbec and petit verdot. It is not a wine you have to cellar to enjoy because the fruit-forward qualities and soft merlot fruit make it very approachable now. Refined, bursting in mouthfilling cherry flavors with chocolate and spice.

• Mandolin Monterey Pinot Noir 2007 ($12). This is a great buy in a category that usually breaks the bank. Lots of bright cherry and raspberry fruit with a hint of leather and good acidity.

• Starlite Vineyards Zinfandel 2006 ($42). We liked the generously ripe plum and raspberry flavors in this full-throttle Alexander Valley zinfandel.

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