Cru Beaujolais and white Burgs

I'm a week late reporting on a terrific tasting at Storyteller last Friday. His eminence Marshall Manning from local distributor D'Vine Wine poured a mix of Kermit Lynch imports, with a special focus on what I call his Gang of 4+ producers. That's the basic four of Foillard, Lapierre, Breton and Thevenet, plus Chanrion in this case.

For starters, the 2007 Lucien Boillot et Fils VdP Blanc "En Souvenier du Beurot." This pinot gris from Volnay is labeled as Vin des Pays because that's not an allowable grape in the appellation. What wonderful pinot gris, something I rarely say or write. This smells and tastes like gris with soft melon fruit, but there's excellent minerality that says white Burgundy. I'm excited to try this fresh and compelling wine with seafood on the table.


Next, a quartet of Cru Beaujolais that once again shows all tasters that real gamay is serious, delicious and even ageworthy wine. First, the 2007 Guy Breton Morgon Vieilles Vignes, with a lovely fragrance of peppery meat and strawberries. Sometimes I find this producer's wines a little too funky, but this is gorgeous. Then the 2007 Nicole Chanrion Cotes du Brouilly, the most obvious and therefore slurpable wine of the bunch. Spicy dark brambly fruit, classic gamay noir with nice rock and stone character.

Next, the 2008 Lapierre Morgon, a favorite producer of mine that's showing a bit hard and closed today. Yes, this is wine for mid term in the cellar, and I'd happily put away a few of these to see where they go. And finally, the 2008 Jean Foillard Morgon "Corcelette," a special bottling apart from the regular Cote du Py I'm long familiar with. Wow, lovely depth and texture here, clearly a candidate for the cellar but showing why that's so with obvious richness and density. Love the tannin here. This is excellent wine.

As a bonus, there was the 2006 Guy Amiot Chassagne Montrachet "Caillerets," a terrific 1er cru white Burgundy. There's the golden yellow color, the sweet cream and toasted apple aromas and finely knit palate. In this line up, the wine seemed a little extra rich, but certainly there's plenty of cut and minerality to keep things fresh.

I'm left leafing through Kermit's book Inspiring Thirst, which I highly recommend, longing for prices of yesterday on wines like this. Still, these are all worth their cost, and cru Beaujolais remains one of wine's great bargains in the grand scheme of things.