CORKAGE

Since we’re on the subject of lightweight but exceptional pinot noir , I went to Hatfield’s the other night and drank a pinot from the Loire valley in France.  The first thing I noticed on the wine list was not the Loire, however, but a Burgundy: a 2003 Pernand Vergelles from Rollin for 66 bucks. 

I have a big love for Rollin because his were some of the first red Burgundies I ever drank.  I lived on the Upper West Side of New York at the time, with my then fiancé, and every day I walked across Central Park to Rosenthal Wine Merchant on the Upper East Side.  Neil Rosenthal was and is a Burgundy Nazi all the way.  No Bordeaux in his store, and almost nothing besides Burgundy.  He’s an importer and his shop is a true boutique, selling only the wines he imports.  Rollin was always one of his imports, and as Rollin made wines from lesser-known Burgundy appellations, his prices were not out of control.  I could taste his village wines, then his premier crus, then his grand crus -- and in a few weeks taste through a whole hierarchy of red Burgundy for only a few hundred bucks.  (Might sound like a lot, but for a true palate education in red Burgundy, it's a steal) 

I remember a particular Ladoix from Rollin that was so brilliant, it was like a mushroom was springing up from the glass, perfectly proportioned, covered in red fruit.  I remember feeling stoned, walking back across the park to tell the guys at the store about the shroomy visuals I was getting off of this wine, when I came across the big Alice in Wonderland sculpture in Central Park.  The sculpture has a big mushroom, along with Alice, as its centerpiece!  Alice and the mushroom are both made from the same mushroomy color stone.  Alice was the fruit in the wine, and the mushroom was the mushroom in the wine.  I was tripping on red Burgundy.

All this is lead up to the fact that when I asked the waiter at Hatfield's which wine on the list was most special, and most "under the radar", he recommended the 2005 Menetou Salon Rouge from Domaine Gilbert (Loire).  He said he preferred it to the Rollin, and at 53 bucks I'd save thirteen dollars and try something new.  First I made sure it was the type of pinot I was looking for:  "I love pinot when it’s delicate, not heavy. My favorite red Burgundy has a silkiness.  And the very best I’ve had has a silky texture with a depth of power and intensity that seem impossible given the ethereal mouthfeel."  Yeah, too much information, but better safe than sorry.  The waiter assured me I'd be happy. 

This wine was something new.  Its color boded well, red-ish and almost transparent, without looking thin.  In the mouth, its lightness was not a silky lightness (like Rollin), because the acidity was more pronounced.  Balancing the acidity was a strong liqueury, almost medicinal, dimension.  In many California pinots, this liqueur flavor dominates, and the wine ends up tasting like ... a liqueur.  (Many of these wines receive high scores and have been recommended to me.  I hate these wines.)  It was great to encounter a very pronounced liqueur dimension in a wine that was balanced with good acidity.  And as the wine opened up, the acidity became more like a minerality.  The whole effect made the liqueur/medicinal thing seem wonderfully exotic, as opposed to cloying or candied.  Each sip was a wonderful tension/balance between the mineral and the liqueur, and all the while the wine maintained its sense of lightness.  Scrumptious.

It’s no wonder that on the whole list, this was the wine our server pointed to first.  And as my first Loire pinot ever, this was a pretty auspicious beginning.