I'm not in the habit of making lists, assigning numericals, giving puffs or any of that foolishness. I usually avoid making lists of "Best of...." and such.
But.
I am not immune to hero worship either.
Tonight at dinner at a tapas place (all sorts of food, of course) at Navarre in Portland, which has a really lovely little wine list with most wines by the glass, I ordered a Francois Cazin Cour-Cheverny and a Rueda Cepas Viejas (forgot the name, sorry).
Both were delightful, the Rueda in a creamy bright lemon zest spritz sort of way (great with the food), and the Cazin Cour-Cheverny was the unique delicious nature of Romorantin, vibrating with acidity but with a sheen of honey/almond/melon/soursop mingled aromas and flavors that were captivating.
If I did have a pantheon of best winemakers, Francois Cazin would be in it. If I made lists of most impressive...consistently and across the board most impressive...Francois Cazin would be on it. High up towards the top of the list. Everything the man makes is not just good, but as good as I can imagine it being. His Chevernys are downright astonishing in the best years; satisfying as hell even in the most troublesome years.
At the risk of future denial of wine for myself, I'm telling all of you here: if you haven't had any of the Francois Cazin wines, get off your ass and find some.