WTN: Louis/Dressner Wine Dinner in Raleigh (lengthy)

I engaged in conversation and didn't do justice to the wine notes but will offer what I did write down. Ashley Christensen is the owner/chef of Poole's Diner. She opened the restaurant three years ago in a former diner in downtown Raleigh after making a name for herself as chef at Enoteca Vin. She was featured in "Bon Appetit" in an article about "Women Chefs: The Next Generation." The food was wonderful and incorporated lots of local ingredients--corn, tomatoes, okra, etc. I sat next to three people connected with Louis/Dressner--the local distributor, Damon Haynes, of Centerba Selections based in Durham, Shawn Mead, the former sommelier at Campagne Restaurant in Seattle, and her friend Nathan who has experience harvesting grapes in Italy. Apparently the "tour" goes on to Charlotte because I saw a link for a tasting at the Wine Shop at Foxcroft (or at least the Louis/Dressner wines arrive Sept. 3rd. Not sure if Shawn and Damon are also in attendance.)

We were greeted with a FRANCOIS PINON VOUVRAY BRUT Non Dose' (no dosage of sugar added.) I asked if it was non-vintage and Shawn said yes but actually the grapes were from one vintage but then she and her cohorts weren't sure if they were harvested in 2006 or 2008. Pale coloring. Tiny mousse mostly along the side of the flutes, not in the middle. Steady stream of mousse. Focused acidic bite--slightly citric (grapefruit). From Chenin Blanc grapes.

Shawn told us a little background on the wines Louis/Dressner imports--originally only France but now some from Italy as well. "Real" wines with minimal intervention. Hand-harvested and use ambient or native yeasts.

With a tomato and Vidalia onion emulsion over pink-eyed peas, diced cucumber, sweet corn, more diced Vidalia onion, etc. we enjoyed a 1999 PIERRE LUNEAU-PAPIN MUSCADET Sevre et Maine sur Lie. Listed as 13% alcohol. Surprisingly young and vibrant tasting for a 11-year old Muscadet and convinced me why some people like Muscadet with a bit of age to it. It tasted very fresh but also had a minor note that probably came from maturity. Surprisingly long finish. Slightly chewy. One bottle was slightly off so they poured from another. The wine was available for purchase at $39. At the end of the evening we got a taste of the Pierre Luneau-Papin "Clos des Allees" Muscadet (2007 vintage?)

The next dish was crispy fried chicken thigh which had been brined and buttermilk-soaked over tomato/okra and a mild rooster sauce. People were commenting that they don't know how Ashley fries chicken but they would like to have the knack. No grease but a crunchy crispness and great flavor. Tender meat. Our accompanying wine was FRANCK PEILLOT ALTESSE ROUSETTE de BUGEY MONTAGNIEU 2008. Maybe my first Altesse and I hope not the last. Shawn said the planting area is very limited as growers turn to Chardonnay and other better known grape varieties. This white wine had a lifted note and a delicate floral touch of white flowers (Alpine flowers Shawn suggested.)

I got behind in my notes describing the next dish but it involved a complicated method in which the Berkshire pork shoulder was allowed to dry out as it cooked (not braised or brined) and then liquid was reintroduced as a glaze and caramelized with the meat soaking up the liquid because of its dry state. The pork was served over corn, sweet peppers, lima beans, etc. The meat was fall-apart tender.The wine was 2008 ARIANNA OCCHIPINTI SP68 NERO d'AVILA and FRAPPATO from Sicily. Arianna is a young winemaker and SP68 is the road the vineyards abut. I loved the nose on this red wine which is said to be best when consumed in its youth. Deep garnet or ruby color with some transparency. Ripe berry fragrances and flavors. I thought this would be a hit at a church fundraiser and bought some at $27.

Our final official wine of the evening was the 2005 CLOS ROUGEARD SAUMUR CHAMPAGNY. It was served with Piedmontese beef tenderloin over risotto with porcini mushrooms and wine jus. I am used to Saumur as a white wine from Chenin Blanc but this was the red wine from Cabernet Franc and is reputed to be a benchmark example of a Cabernet Franc--world class. I could see the quality of it, but it just isn't one of the grape varieties that really resonates with me. Very dark color and powerful aromatics and flavor. 100% Cabernet Franc. In France considered a cult wine and limited export to the USA. The gentleman sitting across from me is a huge fan of this wine. I got hints of raspberries and blackberries--more a berry liqueur on the nose. When they offered the "Clos des Allees" Muscadet I needed a glass to taste it in and poured the small bit of Clos Rougeard still in my glass into the remains of the Occhipinti wine to the consternation of Nathan. As I told him, I hadn't intended to finish the glass anyway as I had to drive back to Fayetteville. This wine was on sale that evening at $69 a bottle.

Dessert was a chocolate-flavored flan or custard.

Poole's Diner is normally closed on Mondays so the wine dinner had the place to ourselves around one long table. One young lady participating has some musical theater background and was persuaded to sing a number for us. She had a powerhouse of a voice and starred as Maria in a community production of "Westside Story."

[David M. Bueker]

Great notes JC. I appreciate the info on the 2005 Clos Rougeard, as I was only able to procure one bottle. I will leave it resting in the cellar for a while. although perhaps I should airlift a small pour to Nathan!

David, we were talking about wine blogs and forums (fora?) and I mentioned meeting participants at offlines--you, Dale Williams, etc. It was either Damon or Nathan that said they had met you.

[David M. Bueker]

I had dinner wth Nathan in Chapel Hill a long, long time ago, back when I had business in Durham. Was the Damon you mentioned Damon Levy? If so then I know him as well.

This is Damon Haynes. His background is in restaurants (Fearrington Village, Il Palio in Chapel Hill where he knew Lil Laccasagne, the owner of St. Jacques Restaurant in Raleigh, who led the trip to Provence I was on in 2008.) I think he said he has been distributing wine for about three years now. It's interesting the way the chefs, restaurant owners, sommeliers, etc. have interconnecting careers in the Triangle area. Scott Howell, chef/owner of Nana's in Durham mentored Sarig Agasi (of Zely and Ritz) and I believe Ashley Christensen also worked at Nana's for a time. Lil was maitre d' at Il Palio before opening St. Jacques. Andrea Reusing, chef at Lantern, cooked at Enoteca Vin prior to Ashley's stint there. The chef at Vin Rouge in Durham is a friend of Damon's, etc. etc.

David, we were talking about wine blogs and forums (fora?) and I mentioned meeting participants at offlines--you, Dale Williams, etc. It was either Damon or Nathan that said they had met you.

JC,
I would presume that Nathan is one in the same with the Vulgar Little Monkey (author of the VLM-TR), a former WLDG participant who still frequents a few other boreds (as he would have them). He is a huge fan of Clos Rougeard.

Mark Lipton

You pegged it, Mark.

Wow, $69 for a Saumur? Maybe the Loire is getting 'tres cher'!?!

Wow, $69 for a Saumur? Maybe the Loire is getting 'tres cher'!?!

Rougeard has been expensive for a while and is priced significantly above most other wines in the appellation. Many would say that it is justified.

Yup, fan of Clos Rougeard here. $69 is for the "BASE" bottle. There is the second higher level is the "Les Poyeux" and that is anywhere between $89.99 to $109.99 for the 05 (they can charge that spread because there are so few of these). The highest level is the Le Bourg and that can be from $130-$169 a bottle. This year I noticed that some shops rationed their "Le Bourg" so that people had to buy at least one bottle of their base one in order to be able to buy one of the "Le Bourgs".

The 05 allocation when crazy fast regardless in MA I was able to get one mixed case. I tried to secure some more in London and having called several retailers, I ended up with exactly zero bottles.....

Rougeard has been expensive for a while and is priced significantly above most other wines in the appellation. Many would say that it is justified.

I've had it twice (can't remember the specific bottlings as these were at bigger dinners), both times served blind and found nothing that came even remotely close to justifying the price tags.

Give me a bunch of Baudry instead.

I've had it twice (can't remember the specific bottlings as these were at bigger dinners), both times served blind and found nothing that came even remotely close to justifying the price tags.

Give me a bunch of Baudry instead.

I sure hope Grezeaux and Croix Boissee don't approach the pricing of Clos Rougeard.

Croix Boissee is probably the better analogy though, because Poyeux and Bourg are much more polished and refined than the slightly-rustic (in the best possible sense of the word) pleasure of Grezeaux. And I think the Rougeard wines definitely occupy their own niche because of the geographic, stylistic (and price!) differences, so I wouldn't just fold them into Chinon.

That said, I don't think I've ever bought them in the States. I loved the Poyeux at 20-30euros in France, including older vintages, and enjoyed every bottle. But there's too much other stuff for me now that they are pushing $100. But those who have the money and buy them don't seem to be complaining.

Gah. Baudry hitting anything near those prices would bring me to tears. And possibly bankruptcy.

And I can't think of too many young reds I've had that showed anywhere near the finesse, elegance and silken touch of most Baudry Franc de Pied (my favourite bottling of theirs) or Croix Boissee (shit, why do I only have 2 bottles remaining from my case of the '07?). Haven't tasted enough from Grezeaux, but I'll be grabbing some from Chambers soon...

Thanks to Damon, Dressner wines can be found all around the Triangle. Damon has had less luck in Asheville (and worse luck now that The Usual Supects has changed hands). But that's all right, I don't mind driving to Chapel Hill once in a while to load up at Three Cups.

I asked if Louis/Dressner participates in Triangle Wine Experience (an annual charity event mid-February.) They said they aren't able to because of small staff and limited production of many of the wines they import. It just isn't practical for them to donate quantities of wine to an event like that. But Damon did say their wines are carried at The Wine Merchant, Raleigh, Seaboard Wine Warehouse, Apex Beverage Company, etc.