2007 Faugeres Valiniere

Dark cherry preserves and plum paste tinged by brown spices and pungent citrus zest inform the dense, finely tannic and richly ripe Barral 2007 Faugeres Valiniere. The combination of grip and vivacity here is striking, even if the seamless ripeness and sense of fluidity comes at the price of faint alcoholic heat in what is otherwise an utterly formidable finish. This ought to be worth following for the better part of a decade. (Unfortunately, I was unable to locate bottles of Barral's two other 2007 cuvees, of which he professed to being entirely sold out. I sought to remind readers in issue 183 to lay plans for securing some and then did not heed by own advice!) Didier Barral - for much more about whose often singular methods consult my account in issue 183 - remains tirelessly experimental and optimistic. And while most of his attention and his passion in conversation revolves around viticulture, that doesn't mean his ambitions fail to take into account other practical matters, an example being the enormous new split-level cellar he is having meticulously built out of schist, allegedly solely for bottle-storage. The 2009s had predictably not been assembled when I visited, but were characterized by relatively thick richness, abundant tannins, sweet floral perfume, and pungent brown spices. Barral's vintage 2010 raw materials are nothing short of sensational. I would have been overjoyed to drink the Cinsault by the pitcher, and even the sweetly-concentrated, tank-raised share of Grenache and Carignan destined to inform Barral's basic 2010 bottling is as transparent to nuance as its color is opaquely dark. Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524