Wine Focus - February: Wines you truly love

[David M. Bueker]

We’re not talking about “yeah that’s one of my favorites” here. For Hallmark holiday February let’s discuss the wines we truly love. Let’s talk about wines that we can’t quit even when the price gets uncomfortably high. Alternatively, what’s a wine you always bought-often in quantity, and then it either disappeared or the price got to the point where you literally couldn’t afford or justify it anymore? These are the wines that mean something, that are so intertwined in our vinous lifestyle that losing them lessens the overall joy we get from wine. They are irreplaceable.

[David M. Bueker]

I might as well start.

Mugneret-Gibourg is my favorite producer by far in Burgundy. I was introduced to them in the 2002 vintage, and continued buying what I could in most years until I hit a wall in the 2019 vintage. The Bourgogne was offered at $75, and the Vosne Villages was $199. I just couldn’t do it anymore. Now I guard my stash like a dragon. The wild increase in pricing took the wind out of my sails. I still adore the wines, but now it’s a drink them at the right time thing.

On the other end is Dönnhoff. A favorite since the 1996 vintage (the first I purchased on release), the wines remain pinnacle experiences, and while somewhat pricier, they have not gotten crazy. The romance is still there!

For me it's Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. This is the one pricey wine I indulge in.

-Paul W.

[David M. Bueker]

For me it's Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. This is the one pricey wine I indulge in.

-Paul W.

I do love Montelena Cabs. Luckily/unluckily I did not have to pay for them.

Ridge Geyserville still holds a special place in my heart, though the vintages in the 2010s tested that love. Dom. du Pegau CdP is another, though I stopped buying them some time ago due to increases in price and ABV. But above all would be the wines of Dom. Dujac (with 15-20 years of age on them).

[David M. Bueker]

Dujac is wonderful, but oh current prices!

Dujac is wonderful, but oh current prices!

Indeed. Though I could say that virtually across the board for my favorite Burgundy producers.

[David M. Bueker]

Dujac is wonderful, but oh current prices!

Indeed. Though I could say that virtually across the board for my favorite Burgundy producers.

Same here.

Me, too. Even the negociant villages from the Cote d'Or are hideously expensive.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Funny, my first Burgundy love was a Leroy. The second, and at that time just a bit more affordable, was Dujac. We became infatuated after spending a week at the nearby Castel Girard. That same trip I fell in love with Chandon de Brialles, a winery I'd never even heard of but which we discovered by accident when trying to turn around in the chateau's driveway which over-excited the family terrier and we had to get out of the car to apologize to Madame who chased the dog. The friend travelling with us knew of them, however, from Hugh Johnson's books. When she found out that we were pro-Johnson not Parker (she spit in the gravel after mentioning his name--so French!), she invited us in. We bought several cases. Admittedly I never knew a lot about Burgundy, not the way many of you do, as early-on the company we kept weren't interested at that level. Now prices are such that I don't follow any of them but to splurge on the occasional Chevillon.

Funny, my first Burgundy love was a Leroy. The second, and at that time just a bit more affordable, was Dujac. We became infatuated after spending a week at the nearby Castel Girard. That same trip I fell in love with Chandon de Brialles, a winery I'd never even heard of but which we discovered by accident when trying to turn around in the chateau's driveway which over-excited the family terrier and we had to get out of the car to apologize to Madame. The friend travelling with us knew of them, however, from Hugh Johnson's books. When she found out that we were pro-Johnson not Parker (she spit in the gravel after mentioning his name--so French!), she invited us in. We bought several cases. Admittedly I never knew a lot about Burgundy, not the way many of you do, as early on the company we kept weren't interested at that level. Now prices are such that I don't follow any of them but to splurge on the occasional Chevillon.

Great story, Jenise. I'm also a big Chandon de Briailles fan. Interestingly, they share with Dujac the practice of stem inclusion in their fermentations. Unlike Dujac, they stayed affordable far longer than most of my favorite Cote de Nuits producers.

I visited Chandon de Brialles a few times in the mid-late 90s. An excellent estate, and Madame is most gracious. And as has been said the wines have stayed affordable longer than most.

-Paul W.

Pierre Trimbach apparently died in a car accident yesterday.

Noel Verset's Cornas is what got me hooked onto the Northern Rhone, thankfully before the prices went nuts. I bought a bunch of the wines when prices were reasonable-ish, and now of course they're going for eyepopping sums. I still have a handful but they bring me far too much enjoyment for me to think about selling/trading even at current tabs (or if they were to go to Gentaz-levels of $).
Those wines are pretty much the pinnacle of red wine for me - when they're on (more often than not), they sum up everything that I love about wine. And like some of these other old school Northern Rhones (like the old Barge and Vallouit Cote-Roties that David/I posted about a couple of months ago), they're time capsules to an era of winemaking that I don't think we'll see again.

Opened a 2000 a few weeks ago with a couple of friends and it was absolutely magical. Like David and his M-G, it's a producer where I'm saving each bottle for the right company or time.

A separate note - I was never impressed by the wines that his nephew Alain Verset made. But Alain's daughter Emmanuelle Verset seems to have taken over at the estate (the wines are now under the label A&E Verset) and I've really enjoyed the handful I've had. Terrific Cornas, very classic and old-school (though with the richness/ripeness we get with modern vintages and climate change), every bit as good as what I'm also getting from producers like Despesse or Gilles in Cornas.

along the same lines, the old Muller-Catoirs made by Hans-Gunther Schwarz (RIP) are some of my absolute favorite wines ever. Truly masterpieces, and the thing that always blows me away is what he accomplished with Scheurebe and Rieslaner, not just his Rieslings. (His Burgergarten Muskateller is one of my bucket list/white whale wines, I hope at some point I'll run across a bottle at auction or retail.) Got into those in grad school (thanks David, thanks Jay Miller) and bought a whole bunch wherever I could - I'm down to my last couple of bottles but treasure those.

[David M. Bueker]

Yeah, the HGS wines were something special. Franzen was getting close (that Muskateller we shared was 99.5% of the 2001 HGS version), but now he has left Catoir. Who knows what’s next.

I visited Chandon de Brialles a few times in the mid-late 90s. An excellent estate, and Madame is most gracious. And as has been said the wines have stayed affordable longer than most...

Do you still think that about recent release prices? Gone up quite a bit, although you could maybe make the argument that not as much as others.

[Jenise]

Great story, Jenise. I'm also a big Chandon de Briailles fan. Interestingly, they share with Dujac the practice of stem inclusion in their fermentations. Unlike Dujac, they stayed affordable far longer than most of my favorite Cote de Nuits producers.

Mark, tying ex-favorite Burgundy producers into a favorite other topic, gamay, guess what I just picked up at auction? A '19 Leroy gamay.

Great story, Jenise. I'm also a big Chandon de Briailles fan. Interestingly, they share with Dujac the practice of stem inclusion in their fermentations. Unlike Dujac, they stayed affordable far longer than most of my favorite Cote de Nuits producers.

Mark, tying ex-favorite Burgundy producers into a favorite other topic, gamay, guess what I just picked up at auction? A '19 Leroy gamay.

Wow! I didn't even know she made a Gamay. Not a Passetoutgrains, even? I'm not sure how I'd feel about it, though, as the Leroy approach to Pinot Noir (insanely low yields, concentration) seem antithetical to what I look for in Gamay. Maybe she takes a different approach to Gamay than she does with PN. You'll have to be the judge.

[Jenise]

First I'd heard of it! And I hear you re style, but I couldn't resist. Either way will be an event whenever I get it home and around to sharing it.

let’s discuss the wines we truly love. Let’s talk about wines that we can’t quit even when the price gets uncomfortably high.

I was reading this yesterday, shortly after I found four Vin de Francois 2015 that Cellartracker said I didn't have.

Francois Naude was viticulturist and winemaker at L'Avenir Estate from the beginning. He planted its vineyards. When the owner sold the estate Francois decided it was time to retire. But he grew bored and worked as a consultant to a number of wineries. He annually chose the top barrels (8 at first then 10) and blended them to make his Vin de Francois. Two years after vintage he sold them in one night by auction. The only way to get Vin de Francois was by bidding for them at the auction, or from someone else who had.

So last night I had one of the missing bottle. Eleven year old now, it was paling brown with soft sweet fruit. It just slipped down.
Francois died in August 2025. He was the best winemaker in the Cape, apprpached for advice by many an freely giving of his experiences. And my good friend.

My report on the 2017 auction is http://www.pinotage.org/2017/03/vin-de-francois-2015-launched.html

Alternatively, what’s a wine you always bought-often in quantity, and then it either disappeared or the price got to the point where you literally couldn’t afford or justify it anymore? These are the wines that mean something, that are so intertwined in our vinous lifestyle that losing them lessens the overall joy we get from wine. They are irreplaceable.

There are a couple of wines I've bought in quantity. One I've bought 3 cases (i.e. 36 bottles) at a time. It's Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Azienda Agricola Contesa Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Vigna Corvino which we have with our weekly pasta. It's really drinkable and doesn't require going through Cellartracker to decide what to have. I just take a bottle from the kitchen ready rack. But it's not expensive and so I continue to buy more when stocks get low. I finished the 2022 two weeks ago and have just started on the 2023 https://contesa.it/prodotto/vigna-corvino-montepulciano-dabruzzo-doc/

[David M. Bueker]

Two very good stories Peter!

Your Montepulciano reminds me a lot of my dad, and his love of the Ruché from a producer called Crivelli. That was his go-to wine for years.

I've been thinking about this one. Two categories of wines I love but rarely drink spring to mind.

1) Wines which have become too costly. Like many people, I find that Côte d'Or Burgundy, both red and white, has reached impossible prices. Certain bottles of red Burgundy still in my collection are even earmarked for the auction room, though I keep putting it off because of sadness at the thought of separation. Some of the outlying areas in Burgundy, like the Chalonnais, Auxerrois for both colours, Mâconnais for whites and even some Chablis are more affordable but still represent mostly mediocre QPR compared with wines from other French regions and other countries.

2) Sweet wines. I love sweet wines but never find a suitable occasion for drinking them nowadays, except for the occasional port or VDN from Roussillon with chocolate desserts or Stilton cheese around the Christmas season. This difficulty even extends to German prädikat Riesling derived wines, most of which, especially in their Kabinett and Spätlese categories, used to delight me with their fine acidic core perfectly balancing their gentle sweetness. However, the rest of the household does not like their RS. About 10 years go, I auctioned 150 bottles of sweeties, Mosel, Nahe, Sauternes, Vouvray, Tokay........retaining about a couple of handful of bottles of the best. This tiny stock has hardly depleted since then.

[David M. Bueker]

You present an interesting subcategory Tim - wines you love but have no practical use for.