Loire Pinot: Rare and delicious

The most frustrating thing about featuring Loire wines in our monthly Wine Focus is that so many of these tasty wines are limited in quantity and hard to find.

The Touraine wines of Puzelat-Bonhomme, for instance, as I wrote in March 2012, are ultra-limited in production, hand-made wines are both rare and well-done.

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Brothers Thierry and Jean-Marie Puzelat have worked together since 1994 on their family’s wine estate, Le Clos du Tue-Boeuf, in the Touraine region of the Loire, making tiny quantities of traditional Loire wines using organic and biodynamic techniques. Those wines are sold under the Clos du Tue-Boeuf label.

In 2004 they added a “negoçiant” portfolio – wines made from purchased grapes. They were initially labeled as “Thierry Puzelat.” then “Puzelat-Bonhomme” when Pierre-Olivier Bonhomme joined the company in 2009.

Made in limited quantities, these unusual wines are mineral-driven, subtle and complex, offbeat to be sure, but in a good way. As Thierry Puzelat says on the winery website (translated by Google Translate from the French), “During winemaking, the objective is to support grapes, let them show in the wine that they carry within them. … we can not claim that they appeal to everyone but fans are everywhere.”

I love the wines, but they are difficult to find and, in recent years, seem to be becoming even more elusive. The Puzelat website has gone back to Tue-Boeuf, grimly hinting that Puzelat-Bonhomme has disappeared. Meanwhile U.S. retailers have been largely limited to New York City. I’ve made it my business to try to find at least a few bottles every year. For my tastes, the prize is well worth the quest, and I hope it can continue.

Meanwhile, we’re inviting you to taste any of the wines of the Loire Valley and talk about them on our online forum! Pull a cork and fill a glass, jot down a note about your impressions – it doesn’t have to be fancy, no special skill is required – and come on in to our WineLovers Discussion Group’s Wine Focus, where we’re covering all the wines of the Loire this month.

To join in, simply click over to the WineLovers Discussion Group – you can quickly and easily log in via Facebook if you use it – and use this link to read and participate in the conversation “Wine Focus for June: The Loire!”

 

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Today’s Tasting Report

Puzelat-Bonhomme 2012 Touraine Pinot Noir ($22.99)

Puzelat-BonhommeVery dark ruby, as dark red as fruit juice. Intriguing floral scents of old roses and violets, plus a hint of something like concentrated cherry syrup and a whiff of white pepper on the nose. Consistent on the palate, tart red fruit with complex nuances, good acidity and appropriate tannic astringency, Pinot character and an intriguing hint of stony minerality: dry and long with dark cherries and roses in the finish, a food-friendly 12.5% alcohol. U.S. importer: LDM Wines, NYC, Louis/Dressner Selections. (Tasted twice: Feb. 18, 2015, and Nov. 28, 2014)

FOOD MATCH: This versatile wine goes well with a range of flavors across red and white meat, poultry and cheese, but its subtle complexity calls for interesting, complex flavors. We enjoyed it on the first tasting with a thick mushroom and onion ragù with pistachios over fettuccine. The second tasting, on a cold, wintry night, called for an old-fashioned red-wine-scented beef stew in the style of daube de boeuf de ma grand-mère.

WHEN TO DRINK: I don’t see this as a long-term ager, but there’s no need to hurry to drink it; and given Pinot Noir’s good but unpredictable cellar-worthiness, it could be an interesting experiment to cellar one under good conditions for five years or so, just to see what happens. Don’t count on it for investment value, though!

VALUE: Good Pinot is rarely cheap; by that standard, I’ll grab this fine wine in the lower $20s without asking questions.

WEB LINKS Here is importer Louis/Dressner’s essay on the Puzelats at Clos du Tue-Boeuf. You might also enjoy British wine writer Jamie Goode’s article on his blog, The Wine Anorak.

The Puzelats’ Clos du Tue Boeuf website is here (French only). .

FIND THIS WINE ONLINE:
This specific wine is going to be difficult to find. It is produced in tiny quantities and sells out fast. However, You can use this link to find sources and prices for Puzelat’s wines in general on Wine-Searcher.com. To browse the wines of Clos du Tue-Boeuf, click this Wine-Searcher.com link.

Also, the good folks at Chambers Street Wines are my No. 1 source for Puzelat and other interesting, offbeat wines of the Loire. Click this link to contact Chambers Street, and seek their advice on this and similar wines that you’ll enjoy. Click here if you’d like to browse their entire current Loire selection .

 

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