To hear these sorts of complaints, you would think that “natural wine” is the only phrase in the English language that has ever described a fuzzy set or a gray area. A few months back, Steinberger used the words “traditionalist” and “classic” to describe the Barolos of Mauro Mascarello. These were apt descriptions because, as Steinberger wrote then, “although they have made some concessions to modernity—stainless steel, temperature-controlled fermentation vats, for instance—you will not find roto-fermenters or French oak barrels in their cellar.” And yet nobody complained that the word “traditionalist” was meaningless, or that it was illegitimate to call anyone a traditionalist so long as someone among them was willing to make an allowance for modern temperature-controlled fermentation vats. Had anybody done so, it probably would have provoked little more than eye-rolling, because if you compare what Mascarello does to what an unabashed modernist does and deny that there are material differences between the two, it will be understood either that you are fantastically ignorant or that you are playing cheap rhetorical games.

Read the full post at cellarbook.wordpress.com.

Usually I fly straight from Charles de Gaulle, but this year I took the TGV from the airport to Montpellier. Happily enough, I ended up doing a Grand Tour of France through some of my favorite wine regions, heading East through Champagne, South through Burgundy and the Rhône, then West through the Languedoc to get to my goal. And it only took 4 hours! Looking out the window as we flew at airliner speeds, I had to smile: even now, with years of experience under my belt, it always amazes me that such a small country (slightly larger than the state of New York) has so many different landscapes. From the flat green fields and farms of the north to the undulating rocky forests in the East to the dry bare stone of the South, this country has scenery for everyone.

The trade show itself is several halls worth of wines that have been made according to Organic and Biodynamic principles. It’s also (sadly) still an excuse for a lot of people to make a lot of bad wine. That said, and my blazé attitude aside, there are some really stunning things to be found these days. Of course, this also depends on the price, but that’s the nature of the business (and a business it is, make no mistake about that).

When these wines taste good, they’re great, really bright, living things, expressive of their origins and of the care the winemaker put into the vines and the winemaking. When they’re bad, they can (sometimes literally) smell and taste like shit. Bad Organic/Biodynamic wines take on an odd, nearly BO-like aroma and get sharp spiky notes in the mouth. Good Organic/Biodynamic wines, to put it mildly, go down smooth and feel alive, with vibrant fruit and lovely acidity and minerality.

The first thing that hits you when you walk through the door is the smell: it smells like WINE. And that just brings a smile to my face. For two and a half days, I wandered the tables of Millesime Bio, stopping to see people I knew and meet people I needed to know. I also had the chance to hang out with one of my winemakers, Pascal Pibaleau, who makes biodynamic sparkling, whites and reds in Azay-le-Rideau in the Loire (yummy stuff too but I am biased, of course). By the end of Day One my teeth hurt like Hell, and I’m pretty sure I yelped the moment the toothpaste hit them that first night (for those who don’t know, young wines tend to have lots of acidity, and that sensitizes the enamel on your teeth).

Like an evil wine-swilling Santa Claus, I had made my list and checked it twice, I knew which wines were naughty (already imported) and which ones were nice (undiscovered). Let’s face it, you can’t go in there without some homework: it would be like visiting the Louvre with no real clue of what works of art you wanted to see. You’d end up getting lost for days and someone would have to call Seal Team 6 to rescue you.

And for the record, it’s not an orgy of foie gras and cheese (sadly). In fact, most of the meals were pretty well-balanced, though the best part was sitting with various random winemakers and trying their wines at the table. I mean, wine is made to be both convivial and served with food, so this was a great showcase for them. As opposed to the relatively scientific method employed when standing in front of a table trying not to spit wine into your neighbor’s glass.

I will say that I still do love going to a table full of anticipatory dread, sort of like a child on Christmas Day running to the tree, hoping to unwrap something good but also hoping it’s not brown socks. More often than not in my line of work, it’s brown socks (some of these wines actually smelled/tasted similar to what I imagine old brown socks would be like). The worst part is finding something that’s delicious and checks off all your requirements, only to discover that it’s WAY too expensive. Talk about deflating your dreams…

On this trip, I found a few wineries I would love to work with, but there’s a lot of negotiations to be had before any hard decisions can be made. I was also lucky enough to have the time to visit some wineries I am working with south of Montpellier (there’s nothing like a few hours in the warm sun on a mid-January day to revive the batteries), as well as see another one of my winemakers, Christine Deleuze of Clos Bagatelle in St Chinian (while she doesn’t make Organic/Biodynamic wines, she does make some damn delicious ones using sustainable practices – again, I am shamelessly unapologetically biased, deal with it).

But it’s not easy: you’re on your feet all day from 8am to 5-7pm, there are long dinners afterwards with customers or winemakers, and your liver is just taking a heck of a beating even with the spitting, not to mention what must be happening to your teeth. And frankly, let’s not forget when you stumble onto a bad wine and have to remain poker-faced as the winemaker tells you his family’s been doing this for hundreds of years and thinks they’ve got the secret to success. Good luck with that one.

All in all, however, I am happy to report that there is a definitive qualitative trend that’s pointing upward. More people are making good Organic/Biodynamic wines at relatively affordable prices than at any other time. All it takes is the right importer to bring them in (Me! Me!). Cheers!

Michel Robert Abood runs Vinotas Selections. See their fan page on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.

As usual, it was a pleasure to taste with Julien Guillot of Domaine Vigne du Maynes, France’s first certified organic farm in 1964. Each time I taste with Julien, I understand a little more about why his table is always a throng of people trying to sample his wines. To me, he and his wines represent the top 1% of the growers at Millésime Bio. Hardcore Burgundians may dismiss his more southern terroir located in the Mâconnaise but, make no mistake, these wines are serious.

Read the full post at formaggiokitchen.com.

Spending a full week in Southern France’s Languedoc wine region was full of highlights. The week built to a full day out in the Languedoc countryside that really capped the week off.

I returned to Indiana Friday evening and have been recovering from the long flights. I have a lot of material to wade through. But I’m going to post some notes and build some albums as I got along.

Thursday was highlighted by a morning with Jacques Frelin who is a major figure in organic wine exporting to the U.S. His family is widely credited for starting the organic wine movement and starting the AIVB, the organic wine organization that sponsors the Millesime Bio wine fair.

Jacques took me to the 3 S bottling plant that serves many wineries in southern France and then on to Pezenas.

Thierry Julien’s family also has a long history in organic vineyard practices. Julien is the current AIVB president.

The two shared candid thoughts about the perception of organic wine in the U.S. and why there remains much confusion. Their remarks are quite interesting. I’ll be writing that story for Palate Press in coming weeks.

Here is a photo album built this morning from my Thursday in the Languedoc.

Southern France organic wine producers, and the Languedoc in particular, face an uphill battle in the United States trying to convince consumers that organically grown grapes and “organic wine” isn’t a simple discussion about sulfites.

That is the shared opinion from two of the movement’s leaders and founders. The AIVB’s current president goes even further. He suggested in a late afternoon interview in his office in St. Bauzille de la Sylve that some U.S. producers (and perhaps others) suggest no wine with sulfites can be called organic not for the most definitive definition of organic but simply to protect market share.

Thierry Julien, current Association Interprofessional Des Vins Biologigues (organic wine producers), believe some of the constant U.S. debate centered on sulfites is not a true debate but one to surpress the growth of wines produced from organically grown grapes.

That is a bit of a taste from an interview I did with Julien at his winery and in his office in Southern France. Most of material I gathered today will be used for a Palate Press story about organic wine.

My morning was with Jacques Frelin the first-ever president of the AIVB and General Manager of Terrior Vivants. Jacques is one of France’s leading exporters of organic wine. He works with 35 individual producers a negociant – or wine buyer.

Frelin’s family founded France’s organic movement beginning in the mid 1960s when his father-in-law was getting ill dealing wih chemicals used in the vineyard.

Frelin is an eloquent and passionate spokesperson for organic wine. He speaks about the health of vineyard farmers and doing the right thing for the Earth and the environment.

He escorted me through an informative tour of the lab which scrutinizes his wines and assures all government regulation is met. Jacques makes it clear it’s harder to produce wine made from organic grapes than traditional methods.

His and Thierry’s comments are insightful and even provocative.

This is my last post from Southern France. I’m off early tomorrow morning for a flight back to Indiana. It’s a long series of flights.

I have a world of material to share in coming weeks and months. I add a personal note of thank you to several people. First, thanks to the AIVB for including me on its annual press tour. San Francisco wine importer and distributor Vernonique Rasking and Maine importer Paul Chartrand for making the trip happen. Those two were also responsible for this remarkable day in the Languedoc countryside. And, one more thanks to Sarah Hargreaves, a local wine PR professional, for being my driver and translator today. We had great fun.

Thanks to Alice Feiring for finding it.

I spend most of the day with Paul Chartrand, a Maine importer of wines made from organic grapes. Paul, his northeastern distributor “Sam” and I made the rounds tasting plenty of wines and talking to current suppliers and tasting wines Paul may wish to carry in the future.

I was hoping to interview a couple of more people yesterday but I found the experience of tasting with a veteran wine buyer too valuable to pass up.

We started our morning with a lengthy session (maybe 30-45 minutes, for this show a long time) with Perlage of Soligo, Italy. Perlage is one of, if not, the leading organic producer in Italy. Perlage is located in Prosecco, Italy’s northeast region opposite Piedmont.

We tasted through several wonderful Prosecco sparkling wines all made from organic grapes. Though not a huge fan of sparkling wines, I’ve always found Prosecco among the most enjoyable. These were outstanding examples.

We chatted with family estate General Manager Ivo Nardi and his sales manager Marcella Callegari. Ivo speaks limited English so we conducted a short interview with Marcella acting as interpreter.

I learned a lot from Paul as he charted wine prices using a spread sheet to add shipping costs, his margin, and what he could sell the wines per case to U.S. distributors. Paul works in a certain price point. He takes the organic wine world seriously having been involved in food and wine issues since his college days.

And, you do get every winemakers full attention as a U.S. wine journalist. But when you have a U.S. wine importer along, that doesn’t hurt either.

I should note for readers close to my home in Indiana, that Perlage is available in Indiana and many surrounding states. Friend Derek Gray of GrayBull Wines is Paul’s Indiana distributor.

The Rest of the Day …

Yesterday was the final day of Millesime Bio, the organic wine trade show, here and what a full day!

I spend most of the day with Paul Chartrand, a Maine importer of wines made from organic grapes. Paul, his northeastern distributor “Sam” and I made the rounds tasting plenty of wines and talking to current suppliers and tasting wines Paul may wish to carry in the future.

I was hoping to interview a couple of more people yesterday but I found the experience of tasting with a veteran wine buyer too valuable to pass up.

We started our morning with a lengthy session (maybe 30-45 minutes, for this show a long time) with Perlage of Soligo, Italy. Perlage is one of, if not, the leading organic producer in Italy. Perlage is located in Prosecco, Italy’s northeast region opposite Piedmont.

We tasted through several wonderful Prosecco sparkling wines all made from organic grapes. Though not a huge fan of sparkling wines, I’ve always found Prosecco among the most enjoyable. These were outstanding examples.

We chatted with family estate General Manager Ivo Nardi and his sales manager Marcella Callegari. Ivo speaks limited English so we conducted a short interview with Marcella acting as interpreter.

I learned a lot from Paul as he charted wine prices using a spread sheet to add shipping costs, his margin, and what he could sell the wines per case to U.S. distributors. Paul works in a certain price point. He takes the organic wine world seriously having been involved in food and wine issues since his college days.

And, you do get every winemakers full attention as a U.S. wine journalist. But when you have a U.S. wine importer along, that doesn’t hurt either.

I should note for readers close to my home in Indiana, that Perlage is available in Indiana and many surrounding states. Friend Derek Gray of GrayBull Wines is Paul’s Indiana distributor.

The Rest of the Day …

We made many more stops throughout the day and in the afternoon Paul went into “power tasting” mode. We rushed from stand to stand but once Paul arrived at each customer’s table he gave them individual attention and took the time to appreciate their wines.

We tasted outstanding whites from the Loire region, some more Italian, and a large range of Languedoc wines. Paul even took a suggestion from me and visited a producer I liked. We were rushing up until 5 p.m. when it was time to catch our buses back into the city.

Thursday

Today may be the best day for photos and learning more about Languedoc. I’m spending the day at three wineries and talking to the current AIVB president and past president. We’re having lunch in a small village and visiting wineries and wine cellars. Friends, it just doesn’t get any better than that itinerary for a day in Southern France.

We made many more stops throughout the day and in the afternoon Paul went into “power tasting” mode. We rushed from stand to stand but once Paul arrived at each customer’s table he gave them individual attention and took the time to appreciate their wines.

We tasted outstanding whites from the Loire region, some more Italian, and a large range of Languedoc wines. Paul even took a suggestion from me and visited a producer I liked. We were rushing up until 5 p.m. when it was time to catch our buses back into the city.

Thursday

Today may be the best day for photos and learning more about Languedoc. I’m spending the day at three wineries and talking to the current AIVB president and past president. We’re having lunch in a small village and visiting wineries and wine cellars. Friends, it just doesn’t get any better than that itinerary for a day in Southern France.

There are 587 wineries from around the world participating in the 19th Millesime Bio here and there seems to be just as many stories.

Men of 70 and 80 years old with domaine and chateau names which just sound historic are plentiful. But you also see the young guns. There are a substantial number of 30-something and even 20-something year old winemakers. Some are following in their father’s footsteps while others sought out the life of vineyard work and winemaking on their own.

Cyril Bonnet is a very young winemaker with a very long history. He is the seventh generation to make wine. Most of that history is in Champagne where his father and family still live making the iconic bubbly at Chateau Bonnet-Ponson. But Cyril wanted to go out on his own and now has Chateau Bonnet in Villaudric, just northwest of Toulouse.

Bonnet is one of those 587 producers trying to make a name for himself. He grows an odd little variety most outside of Southwestern France have never heard of before. He blends Negrette with other more common varietals and even makes a 100 percent Negrette wine.

Being a young winemaker at 28 with an obscure grape means marketing is important. He also is a believer in organic practices and is fully certified.

“It’s very, very important, to be exported to the clients and be here at Millesime Bio,” Bonnet said. “If you can’t come to this type of fair it’s impossible to make contact to customers. My father told me this one is important because it’s very professional, very simple and we love it.

“Maybe 30 years ago it was possible to make it just working in your vineyard with what you sell there at the farm. But now maybe 50 percent of the work is to go to find customers and the other 50 percent is to make a good wine.”

Bonnet is serious about organics and grew up knowing nothing else. His father started organic practices in Champagne in 1979. “My father is very sensitive to all ecology and puts more of an emphasis on being all organic. I agree with this position, but I don’t like the extreme side when it goes toward biodynamic.”

The wines were interesting. I liked the Negrette grape and it definitely has a different flavor profile. The wine was light on the palate and it made for very drinkable red table wine. Bonnet is producing about 2,200 cases of wine each year.

I was able to do 6 interviews and get a lot done today for future blogs, Palate Press, and the newspaper column. I am getting together with U.S. importer of organic wines Paul Chartrand, who works out of Maine, to taste our way through more wineries Wednesday.

*Antica Enotria *- Luigi Di Tuccio was handing the pouring, sales, and marketing chores mid afternoon at his family winery’s table. He could also be described as a young guy. He was worked every aspect of the business with his father. His father was one of first in Italy’s Puglia to make the move to organics and became a leader in the region.

The winery has some great varietals that aren’t household names – Nero di Troia, Aglianico and white wine grape Falanghina. His wines are available on both coasts. The family makes approximately 8,000 cases annually.

Other stops …

Romain Bouchard – Two young brothers with no real family history in the wine business decided to buy a winery that had gone out of business in the Chablis region. They are now making two Chablis and have found some success with wines being exported to New York.

Chateau de Fosse Seche – This fun young couple are making wines in trhe Loire Valley’s famed Samur region. I tasted their Samur Chenin Blanc and found it not as light as others I’d enjoyed but sure tasty. They also had a very nice Cabernet Franc.

Sitios De Bodega – This started out as a case of mistaken identy. I was looking for a winery I would find later then the language barrier with a Spanish woman and my confusion gave us a laugh. I ended up tasting and liking her first vintage of Verdejo which I liked very much. Export manager Alejandra Sanz was a good sport, with pretty good English, in telling me about the new effort.

Domaine de Picheral – Boxed wine in France seems a pretty ridiculous opposites attract kind of thing. But I’ve seen lots of boxed wines at the fair. I approach with my typical Tew Parl Ongleah? “Do you speak English?” to get two shaing heads and plenty of laughs for the three of us. What the heck, we used hand signals and pointing – a universal language – to taste a pretty darn good Rose, and a rather forgettable red. It was fun.

Ploder-Rosenberg – Austrian winemaker Freddy Ploder was the most congenial host of the day. The short, stout man was an enthusiastic wine tour guide through is tasting. Sharing just the right amount of wine geek talk, history, and good humor. I liked the entire line. Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc … with several of he wines done in different winemaking styles.

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I visit arguably the most important wine country in the world and two of the three best wines I tasted today were Italian. What are the odds?

The three-day Millesime Bio opened today with thousands of buyers, importers, more than 100 press people and nearly 600 wineries presenting wine. The 19th annual gather here on the Mediterranean coast has to be seen to be fully appreciated.

Part of my day was taken up by a couple of interviews, technical problems, and getting my laptop somewhat functional. I still managed to stop by 8-10 different winery booths. Picking up printed brochures, taking notes and photos is just one of the ways to remember details.

My first stop was at the table of Casina Di Corina of Tuscany’s Italy region. The winery and family estate is located near the south central city of Siena. I spent a good bit of time with Julien Luginbuhl who just returned to his family wine-making business.

Julien’s father bought the property in 1979 and immediately began organic farming practices in the vineyards. “It was just his way of thinking then and it’s still the same now,” Luginbuhl said. “It’s my way of thinking.”

That wasn’t always the case because Luginbuhl initially decided he would make his name in different forms of agricultures and went off to university. But just this year he returned to the family land is now living in one of the guest houses and working the family winery.

He worries though that the family’s small property won’t be big enough as his older brother and he slowly take over the business. The winery currently produces a modest 2000-3000 cases a year. Julien is thinking the brothers might have to look at buy more hectres for grape production.

The two wines I tasted were his Chianti Classico and Chianti Classico, both from 100 percent Sangiovese. Beautiful cherry fruit and understated acidity made these as good as any $10-$20 Chianti I’ve tasted. No regular wine drinker could pick them out as “organic” or anything else.

And that’s really the point of this gathering. The organic farming practices are very important to these world leaders in the organic grape growing business. But the first thing they have to do with each vintage is make great wine. No one will listen to anything about organics, not to mention buying a bottle, if it doesn’t taste good.

These Chianti wines were great examples of good Italian wines.

Nice Wines from Italy’s Piedmont.

The other stop at an Italian table was with gentleman winemaker Alessandro Uslenghi of Nouva Cappelletta. I’ve tasted more good to great Chardonnay this trip than I ever expected. Cappelletta’s Chard was light but rich in Chardonnay flavor, mild acidity, some nice pear on the nose. I also enjoyed his Cortese, three Barberra wines (one without sulfites) and a wonderful Rose.

Nebbiolo is many wine drinkers favorite grape and certainly one of mine. Monday I tasted my first Nebbiolo Rose’ and it was fabulous. It was my “suprise” pick of the day. It had wonderful structure and acidity and intense fruit on the nose.

Allessandro’s single vineyard Barbera, Minola, was just great wine. I’ve never drank a lot of Barberra but this one could change that habit.

Other stops …

Domaine Virgile Joly – Every region has its up-and-coming star, even if not everyone agrees on who that might be. Virgile Joly s certainly one of those rising stars (if not already established as a leading winemaker) in the Languedoc.

He joined us for inner on Saturdayt night and I tasted through his wines Monday. He has a new Grenache Blanc that’s wonderfully interesting and light white wine. I plan to sit down with Virgile today or tomorrow for an interview.

Domaine des Cedres – This Cotes du Rhone winery has solid Cotes offerings. Frankly, nothing spectacular but very solid representation of the region.

O’Vineyards - Here is a great story I’ll be writing in in more detail in near future. Ryan O’Connell and parents moved from Florida to Southern France in 2004 and opened a winery. Beside the unusual migration, Ryan is setting new standards for social media and exploring ideas of wine tourism that are fresh for the area. His blog “Love That Languedoc” is a big hit.

Best Wine of the Day – But the very best thing I tasted all day was a traditional Languedoc blend from Carle and Courty and wine maker Frederick Carle. His Cuvee Marion (his daughter) was rich, nice acid, great balance, and lingering finish red wine. It’s a blend of 70 percent Syrah, Carignan, and Mouvredre. It won a gold medal at this year’s Millesime Bio competition.

Odd and ends …

I certainly did taste more wines …. and more wineries. Those were some of the highlights. I’m hoping to catch up with importer Paul Chartrand today. Tomorrow he’ll show me around to some of his favorite winery tables.