SPECTATOR WINE CLUB

French is best

Auberon Waugh

Bombarded as we constantly are by colonial and New World chardonnays, we are in danger of forgetting what a delicate drink white burgundy can be. The French have not forgotten, of course, and the trou- ble with rekindling a white burgundy fancy in Britain is the appalling price of the grander wines. It seems against all reason to pay such a huge amount of money for such a slight taste, however elegant or deli- cate it may be, while seriously good chardonnays with twice the fruit are avail- able from Western Australia, California, New Zealand, Chile and other places. But it would be a terrible shame if we lost the taste for white burgundy, and I make no excuse for including two of them, both at greatly reduced prices.

The Pierre Andre Reserve Bourgogne° is one of the flagships of the Pierre Andre operation. At £6.45 it has the smell of a much more expensive wine — a very prop- er, powerful burgundian smell — and those who enjoy their wine for the smell as much as the taste will be delighted by it. In the mouth, for those whose quiet enjoyment of white burgundy has not been spoiled by these noisy colonials, it is a correct, clean, light burgundy with nothing sharp or sour or impure. It might not be a bad idea to keep it for drinking in late spring or early summer.

Anyone who has been watching the mar- ket will know that to offer a premier cru Chablis at under £10 is something of a mir-, acle. This Cotede Lecheto, from the mag- nificent vintage of 1990, has a deep, really expensive smell and a taste which contains traces of those honeyed elements which separate the seriously good Chablis from the merely good. Although one of the fullest Chablis I have tasted this year out- side a few grands crus, it is a lighter wine than anything which comes from Margaret River.

Now for the reds. The southern Rhone seldom lets you down, and although 1992 was not a brilliant year there, this Domaine de Castelas has the great advantage of being at its peak, crying out to be drunk now. At under £5 is it smooth, fruity and good value.

Faugeres is a fairly new appellation in the Midi — a small village in the Coteaux du Languedoc. I think it may prove a major discovery. Gilbert Alquier is generally reck- oned the best winemaker. His 1992o is bril- liantly intense and meaty, hot, strong stuff, decently alcoholic at 13°, with a well- focused vigour for which you would expect to pay considerably more than £5.95. No doubt we will, when word gets around of this extraordinary wine. If anybody does not like it who lives in London or Somerset, I will be happy to buy it back.

I raved about the 1990 Chateauneuf Montjoie, but when I pulled one out to taste against this 1992o I found it had gone to sleep, and the 1992 was, if anything, showing more finery. When one adds that this wine is a great deal cheaper than it would otherwise be because of the compar- atively poor reputation of the 1992 vintage in southern Rhone, I think we have a real bargain at £7.50. It is a good, spicy wine with plenty of vitality and bounce and none of the lacklustre characteristics of 1992 in Bordeaux. Or so I thought, anyway. It is also very good for drinking now, whereas I don't suppose I will look at the 1990 again for another five years, by which time we may all be dead.

Burgundy did better than any of the other French regions in this accursed year of 1992 (some of its whites are brilliant). The Santenay Ste Agatheo is a really full, powerful red burgundy which will improve with keeping but already shows its paces in a lovely, burgundian smell and a slightly confused rush of taste sensations. Claret is expected to gain complexity with age, but with some of these young burgundies one rather hopes they will lose it and settle down to that single, solid, glorious bur- gundy taste. This is a proper burgundy and £7.95 is an amazingly cheap price. Anyone who can keep it for three to five years will bless me when they drink it.

The mixed case works out at just over £7 the bottle — not one of our cheapest offers, but then they are all French. Howev- er much we try to convince ourselves to the contrary, France continues to produce the best wine in the world.

ORDER FORM SPECTATOR WINE CLUB

c/o Longford Wines, Longford Farmhouse, Spithurst, Barcombe, Lewes, E. Sussex BN8 5ED. Telephone and Fax: (01273) 401497

Price No. Value White

Bourgogne Reserve 7993

(Pierre Andre) 12 Bots. 0740

Chablis 1" CM Cote de Lecher

1990 (Sauvissat) 12 Bots f113.40 Red

Cotes du Rhone 1992

(Domaine de Castelas) 12 Bois. £59.40

Faugeres 1992 (Gilbert Alquier) 12 Bats. £71.40

Chateauneuf du Pape Montjoie

1992 (Liogier) 12 Bois. £90.00

Santenay Prieure St Agathe 1992

(Pierre Andre) 12 Bots. £95.40

Mixed case, two of each 12 Bots. £84.50

TOTAL (Cheque enclosed)

Please send wine to: NAME ADDRESS POSTCODE TELEPHONE Own name & address, if different: NAME ADDRESS POSTCODE TELEPHONE Prices include VAT and delivery on the British mainland. Cheques should be made payable to Spectator Wine Club and sent with the order. This offer, which is subject to stock availability, closes on 17 Novem- ber 1995.