Le (limite') Tour de France

Last year, as part of a sensory evaluation class at ATU-Ozark, I was asked to lead a tasting that showed the incredible variety of the wine regions of France. I focused on reds and chose a simple Burgundy, a syrah-based red from Crozes-Hermitage, a mostly grenache CDP, and two Bordeaux. One was left bank, the other right, which highlighted the difference between cabernet- and merlot dominated blends. Everyone seemed to enjoy it and the novices present learned a lot. I wanted to do something similar this year with friends, but since I have so few and wanted to do some whites as well, I made sort of a "J"-shaped route through France and went with a bottle per person. Hence the "limited" description of this event.

• NV Veuve Clicquot Champagne Brut

  France, Champagne

  What better way to start an afternoon than with a bottle of bubbly? One of the guests at the tasting had just won 3 gold medals at a local amateur wine competition the day before. I had selected the wines before that event, but the coincidence provided us all a reason to toast a friend's success. I purposely picked a Pinot-dominant Champagne since the second bottle of the day was to be a red Burgundy and "The Widow" got things off to a great start. Assertive without being overpowering; satisfying but whetting the appetite for what's to come. My favorite NV Brut.

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• 1988 Joseph Drouhin Charmes-Chambertin

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru

  I was worried about this bottle even though the color looked fine for a Pinot Noir wine of its age. My main concern was based on the fact that as soon as I pulled the bottle from the rack several days ago, there was some seepage through the capsule. The fill level was excellent, so I left the bottle on its side, planning to use a decanting cradle when the time came to open it. Fearing the worst, I didn't decant it until about 12:15 for a 1 p.m. tasting. This was going to be the second wine of the afternoon, and I figured that would give it about 1 1/2 - 2 hours in the decanter. The cork was very fragile, saturated and threatened to go into the wine with the fork opener I first used. Next was a conventional leveraged corkscrew and the cork disintegrated. Fortunately, the bottom portion remained intact and I was able to hook that last 1/2"; very few cork fragments went into the bottle. As soon as the cork was pulled, the effort was rewarded by the seductive scent of a mature Burgundy. Fruit, earth and very moderate alcohol. The color was quite ruddy going into the decanter, but there were no signs of the wine cracking up (bubbles on the rim, etc.). This must have been a massively concentrated wine in its youth, because there was more sediment in this bottle than any other red I've ever opened outside of a vintage Port. At the first taste, I made the comment that this was like a really good Oregon Pinot on steroids; not that it was so powerful, but the concentration of the fruit and earthiness was so balanced, so clear that it showed what ageworthy wines can build on and achieve if left to develop. It improved in the glass over another hour or two. At age 24, it probably wasn't going to continue to improve, but I do believe that it would have held its peak for some time to come.

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• 1985 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Decanted at 11:35 as the 3rd wine of a 1 p.m. tasting. By the time we got to it, the decanter had held it for about 3 hours. Bouquet was good on opening and improved over the course of the afternoon. One amusing thing about this bottle was the label, which showed the alcohol as between 11 and 14%! My guess is that it was closer to the latter figure, as one of the tasters commented on a slight sweetness; I suggested it was probably the alcohol level. Garrigue was present in spades, as was spiciness. This bottle was imported by Kermit Lynch, and I recounted a story recalled from his classic "Adventures on the Wine Route". He insisted at the time (and I'm sure still does) that his wines not go through filtration. I suggested to the group that one reason we were able to enjoy such a smooth and expansive flavor profile in a 27-year-old non-reserve bottling was that Mr. Lynch kept his clients from knocking the stuffing out of their wines. Good for him, and we thank him and the Brunier family. This was a bottle at or just over its peak, but not so far in decline that it suffered. It was one of the tasters' favorite wine of the day.

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• 1986 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  After having read some of the previous notes on CellarTracker, I decided to give this wine a good deal of time in its decanter. The tasting was at 1 p.m. and it was going to be the 4th wine poured. Opening it at 11 a.m. would give it at least 4 hours to stretch its legs. The cork extracted perfectly and my first impression as I emptied the bottle was that the color could be mistaken for a very youthful wine. It appeared to be at the stage just after the last hints of purple have subsided. Similar youth was present in the aroma. Even though the blend that year was recorded as 45% Cabernet to 35% Merlot, the mintiness of the Cab was leaping out of the vessel. By the time we got around to this wine, the only real change that had taken place was that a little of the alcohol had blown off. This still could have passed for a 4- or 5 year-old wine. The first taste was marked by tannins that were in the process of stepping from center stage. This must have been a massively tannic wine in its youth, as after 26 years there was still plenty to go around. Fortunately the fruit elements were present in such a degree as to assure me that the other 5 bottles I'm storing of this one will be truly magnificent in another 8 or 10 years. The fruit/tannin balance was just getting to the point it needed to be to make this an extraordinary experience. The finish just kept lingering--a really fine example of a long-lived claret.

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• 1986 Château Rieussec

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  This was a great "closer" to our tasting. From the refrigerator, I let it warm up a few minutes before opening. The color surprised some of the guests, but I assured them the wine was probably going to be just fine; after all, reds lose color in the bottle and whites gain it. Being 26 years old, this one had turned a deep, rich brown. Botrytis was evident in the scent as soon as the cork was pulled and the wine did not disappoint. To me, one of the true miracles of wine is how the great botrytized wines can be so sweet without being cloying on the palate. Technically, I know it's the result of the acid in the grapes/wine, but to taste it in a wine like this still fills one with wonder. Some salty, grainy Maytag blue completed the experience. Life, for a while, was very good.

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We were very lucky that the contents of all the bottles were in perfect condition. Part of the fun of tastings like this (for me, anyway) is to see how the glassware smells the next day--my theory is that if the glasses have good smells from the wine, there's probably more life in whatever was in them the day before. As I was cleaning the glassware, all but the CDP had held up; in fact, the Pichon-Lalande was absolutely stunning.