From Everyday to Exalted
Making a Splash with Your Start-up Cellar
By Bernard Ledermann
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If you have by now taken pains to build or buy yourself a wine storage space that’s equitably balanced between proper temperature and humidity as I’ve detailed in a previous column, let’s see what liquid pleasures you might lay aside for future drinking, whether for those Four Star Dinner evenings with friends or for that ad lib Wednesday night light fare with your spouse. You’ll note emphasis is placed on partial case (less than 12 bottles) purchases—all for variety’s sake. Most wine merchants with the least flash of sales fire will offer 10% discounts, whether on a “solid 12” of the same wine or on mixed quantities of several favorites.
My contention is that most wine these days is made to drink soon after bottling—especially whites. Other wines—mostly reds—should keep well, even benefit from some aging, when stored properly. For purposes of this cellar-stocking advisory, we will therefore limit our thinking to reds, except for the specialty items noted, and think of whites as ad hoc purchases brought in for special meals; e.g., a French Chablis for sole with olives or a vivacious Italian Cortese with warm artichokes and fresh basil. For proper assistance with special purpose, or any whites, find a wine merchant who is menu savvy and knows which whites harmonize best with certain dishes.
Putting a varied “wine library” in place will allow you to taste how the character of certain wines changes over weeks and months. Such “spot-checking” will help you determine how many additional bottles/cases of a certain wine you may wish to store. Let’s hope your retailers have good supplies at their disposal. Always ask when you buy initially.
If you’re wondering why Merlot, the limelight red of the 90’s, gets short shrift here, it is the intense market pressures currently playing upon this vaunted varietal. Today’s pricing on many merlots simply can’t be justified. You might try moving to reds similar in soft, cherry-berry fruit and hints of sweet oak. There are affordable pinot noirs available—two are mentioned here—that may bring satisfaction; the same for a few value-leading Spanish blends, some of which have merlot-ish qualities.
Vintage Matters
Understanding vintages usually goes beyond a date on the bottle. What the customer is expected to remember often surpasses all reason. How are we to know what type of weather the seasons are bringing to the world’s wine-producing areas? Can we know with certainty that Burgundy had an authentically damaging hail storm in July? Is a retailer’s advertising on a certain vintage so aggressive simply because he over-bought it, and is now worrying that it will become part of a time capsule? Is one wine critic’s “charmer” vintage (Remember 1975 in Bordeaux?) another critic’s chimera?
Perhaps merely knowing that a majority of vintners in any given region brought in a harvest of healthy grapes and subsequently produced consistent, tasty wines with lovely fruit-acid balance will be enough information for most people who are establishing a cellar. Vintages will be mentioned here. Some were award-winners. Some were less favorable, but still exhibited some delicious wines.
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These days there is an abundance of well-made red wine waiting for your daily needs; in fact, such wines—now quite commonplace—were once considered premium. When you’ve loosed the genies found in these bottles, you too will experience some of the magical drinking to be had for non-wallet-threatening prices. Remember, all prices are discounted but do not include sales tax, and a total is given for the quanities mentioned, rather than a per-bottle price.
Five “foundation” wines are recommended. All are straightforward, show lively spiciness, good cherry-berry fruit and some mineral hints. Surprisingly, all are mouth-filling and may be served with a variety of foods, ranging from pasta to good cuts of steak. Try laying down 7 bottles of 1998 Andre Brunel Cotes du Rhone Rouge ($62.95 for all seven), a Robert Kacher selection (about whom more shortly) which you can drink over two years; six ‘97 Santa Rita ‘Medalla Real’ (Royal Medal) Cabernets ($70.15)—no other Cab from Chile beats its style, flavor and elegance and it can be held three years; six ‘97 Pedroncelli (Sonoma) Cabernets ($89.01)—soft, lush and juicy from a respected California winery bonded in 1904; four ‘98 Mas de Guiot Cabernet/Syrah blends ($42.81), another Robert Kacher find that drinks more like a stylish Bordeaux than a southern Rhone and is preternaturally dark and spicy. Also, choose six—any recent vintage—Fetzer ‘Barrel Select’ Pinot Noirs ($75.55), a silky, fruity and consistent award-winner with good critical press from a fine Mendocino, CA wine family. Enjoy now.
Kacher if You Can.
So who is this guy mentioned earlier and why should you know about him? Few would argue that importer Robert Kacher, based in Washington, DC, is currently tops in sleuthing-out some of the least-known, best-tasting bargain wines France can offer. His primary haunt is the massive Meditteranean crescent of southeastern France known as the Languedoc Plain, which contains over 700,000 acres of vineyard land. Robert is unquestionably the first to give the wines of this region wide exposure in the U.S., and no other importer has his kind of influence among the better wineries in the Costieres de Nimes. Would you believe Bobby even acts as assistant wine-maker on some of his selections? (Imagine a French vigneron allowing an American to rule on blending decisions!) There are plentiful Kacher wines to be found in Western New York; all are worthy of your tasting attention. We’ve already noted two possibilities for your cellar. To those, add: six ‘97 Domaine des Amouriers Vacqueyras ($86.36), sometimes known as “a poor man’s Chateauneuf-du-Pape.” It is dense and ripe with some black licorice flavors and pigments that will have you looking for tooth-bleach after your first glassful. Also, four ‘97 Domaine Santa Duc Gigondas ($82.77) won’t be too earthy with jammy-side fruit in this Grenache-based beauty. Both Kachers will age gracefully.
Should you care to spend over the 2-grand limit, consider 3 bottles of ‘97 Font de Michelle Cuvée Etienne Chateauneuf-du-Pape ($106.65)—quite simply the most glorious wine of its type tasted from the 1990s. Limited supply.
California Stars.
Red blends from the Golden State will tantalize your guests and enhance numerous menus. You owe yourself four bottles of ‘97 Estancia Meritage/Cabernet/Merlot/Cab Franc ($79.17), a scarce item worth seeking; and three ‘97 Franciscan ‘Magnificat’ ($75.58), a meritage blend reminiscent of Bordeaux, except that it matures earlier. If you aren’t now a Zinfandel lover, prepare to be once you’ve tried the ‘97 Murphy-Goode ‘Liar’s Dice’. Lay down six bottles ($80.95). Its purity of black raspberry fruit framed by lovely, understated oak gives it an elegance not usually found in Zins. Drink over the next three years.
Another hint for the more extravagant: Use that sales bonus for three bottles of the ‘97 Phelps ‘Insignia’ ($225). A limited item but always fragrant, distinctive, and balanced with memorable flavors not to be missed. Perhaps the best of Claifornia’s premium Cabernet blends.
For the Longer Haul.
Red French Bordeaux and Burgundy are the thing if you’re looking for slower-developing wines; however, don’t expect to buy higher-classified growths. Now that the Bordelais know that their big ticket items will always have a market, we won’t find much discounting at the winery door. Still, you can cellar three fine growths (a Fifth and two Cru Bourgeois), all with at least 50% Cabernet Sauvignon (with varying percentages of Merlot and Cab Franc) in the blend. Drink all between now and 2006. Invest in four ($162) ‘95 Haut-Batailly (5th growth, commune of Pauillac), earlier maturing than most of its neighbors, developing into round, fruity-spicy drinking with some oaky subtleties. Two ‘Bourgeois’ growths, both in the Haut-Medoc district, the ‘96 Chateau Fourcas Hosten (6 bottles for $113) and the ‘96 Chau Lanessan (6 for $119) can produce wines that rival many Fifth Growths and are today known for styles more forward and satiny than under former ownerships. Decent Pinot Noir from Burgundy is even pricier and too often spotty. You will find some satisfaction—and relatively sane pricing—with the ‘96 Chorey Les Beaune from the Domaine Michel Arnoux Pere et Fils (try 3 for $67.40). This recommendation runs counter to critic Robert Parker’s who in the past has found the wines out-of-balance with too much tannin. For me, Arnoux Beaunes tasted since 1993 have shown cherry and brown spice flavors sufficient to counterpoise their soft, silty tannins. A rare value among today’s Burgundies.
Italy, Spain, and the Aussies Weigh In.
There is no shortage of good, affordable wine among these wine-producing entities. Together, they’re responsible for close to four billion gallons of wine every year.
Let’s consider some gems for cellaring. From Italy’s Tuscany region, lay down four ‘97 or ‘98 Villa Vignamaggio Chianti Classico DOCG ($66.93) and three ‘96 dell Ornellaia ‘Le Volte’ ($52.63), a coastal Tuscan blend of fine concentration showing nuances of mocha and cedar. Sure to last until 2005. A third Italian entry, C. Umberto’s ‘96 ‘Liano,’ is produced in Emilia Romagna and is a glorious Cabernet/Sangiovese blend. This wine deserves four bottles ($68.37). Spain’s Rioja and Ribera del Duero growing districts offer two cellar-worthy entries: the ‘95 Riojan Marqués de Riscal (four at $68.37), still a sales leader and doing it right with some Cabernet in its tasty, complex blend. A newcomer in the U.S. is the ‘98 Conde de Siruela Crianza, Ribera del Duero (4 at $61.17), rich and deep with layers of roasted nuts and coffee beans. Welcome the Australians of McLaren Vale with one of their gutsy, tarry Shiraz bottlings. Your cellar deserves six ‘97 d’Arenberg ‘Footbolt’ Shirazes ($80.95). Over the next four years enjoy the distinctive lingering flavors of black raspberry fruit. Ideal with many hearty menus.
Specialty Wines.
Save shelf space for a few wines of limited ‘moment’, but essential for special occasions. You may think you don’t like sweet dessert wines until you open your first late-harvest German Riesling. At any rate, the perfect celebratory wine, Champagne, should have a place. Prepare for that spontaneous toast with three Taittinger ‘La Francaise’ ($110.68), always a classic and showing price stability. For the eventual men’s gathering in the library—with cigars—a bottle of ‘94 Barros Port ($25.20). A very good vintage bottling from a large, if unknown, Oporto house. Already the brandy is uniting nicely with the wine and chocolatey delicacies are starting to show. Does liquid dessert intrigue you? Hold off on the chocolate and try a ‘97 Dr. Weins-Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese ($24.80 for 750ml), a balancing act between sweet peaches, pineapple and grapefruit. Zing! and it’ll hold over five years.
From one of the superstar producers in Germany’s Rheinhessen region, try a ‘97 Gunderloch Nackenheim Rothenberg Auslese ($25.20/750ml). You won’t forget the intense richness of apricot fruit and long aftertaste. Will improve until 2005. No, Sauternes is not out-of-favor. Overpriced, yes, although you might keep any Doisy-DaÎne of the 90’s among your holdings ($44.90 & up). Sleek and smoky with gobs of honey flavors. Open for the arrival of year 2010.
If you believe in wine, its flavors, its food-like properties and its salubrity, you’ll be eager to get started with a cellar. It’s hoped this less-than-definitive guide to stocking will set in motion what will certainly become a life-long search for good wines at reasonable prices that will enrich, perhaps prolong, your life week after revelation-filled week.
Lest we forget, the final numbers for this triennial exercise show 105 bottles (3 short of 9 cases) accumulated at a before-tax sub total of $1,849.39. Add eight per cent sales tax and the final total comes to $1997.34. Put the surplus $2.66 toward your next round of cellar purchases.
Bernie Ledermann is a wine retailer and occasional commentator on the ruckus of the wine scene. Now that he’s survived triple by-pass surgery, Bernie intends to spend more time studying the French Paradox, or why wine is good for you and your heart.
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