French and American wines square off

By By Stan Torgerson / wine columnist
March 5, 2003
This report on last week's wine competition between French wines and American wines will please everybody or nobody. It was literally a tie.
The American chardonnay defeated the French chablis but, although it was close, I thought it was an unfair fight. We had ordered the Brocard Chablis les Clos 1999, but the state warehouse sent over the 1997 vintage.
One thing I've learned over the years is that the state warehouse does not treat their wines kindly, particularly white ones. The 1997 was six years old and in my opinion it had not been stored properly. Heat is the enemy of all wine and it appeared this wine had not been stored in the chilled room but rather in the main room without temperature control.
Two bottles were seriously flawed and had to be poured out. The others were drinkable and the tasters rated them highly. But the American Neyers was fruity and less subtle, more to the American taste, and it won by a slim margin. It was also a 2001 and was fresh and very tasty.
There is no excuse for treating wines badly, especially those in the $45-$50 range, but there is no recourse when the warehouse does it.
You can't take your business elsewhere in the state of Mississippi. Nor can you return flawed bottles for credit. You must buy your wines from the state warehouse because that's the law and you have no other choice.
Second round
The second match-up, California's Merryvale cabernet sauvignon 1999 against Chateau Cantemerle 1996, was also close but the French wine had the edge.
It had three more years to develop in the bottle and it had developed beyond the level of the California wine. The ratings on this pairing were all over the landscape. We had each table come to a composite rating and some came in with numbers in the low 90s for one and high 80s for the other. One table didn't care much for either one and gave them both ratings in the 70s, which means ordinary. My personal opinion was mid 80s for both, good but not great.
Final contest
The final pairing , however was something else again. The competition was between a 1995 Chateau Camensac from France and the 1999 Pine Ridge Winery of California.
Both were wonderful. In fact, one table rated the Camensac a 92 and the Pine Ridge 91. Now that's as close as it can get. Ratings in the 90 are reserved for outstanding wines that are very collectible. The majority of ratings for both wines were in the 90s with a few in the high 80s, perhaps one in the mid 80s, but nothing below that.
The Pine Ridge had a tiny edge but Americans love wines with great depth of flavor rather than the subtle nuances of a Bordeaux. The Pine Ridge was a blockbuster. I'd put either one in my cellar.
Some of you may wonder why I am so critical of a 1997 chablis, but not critical of a 1995 or 1996 Bordeaux. Simple. White wines are much more fragile. They do not really develop in the bottle, although they do age. Red wines are sturdier. Heat can still lessen their appeal, but they are more likely to resist a little abuse.
This wasn't at the level of the 1976 tasting in Paris, the greatest in wine history, but it was an enjoyable matchup of very nice wines.
Next wine and
cheese tasting
Now, a word to the wise. The next tasting is March 27 and it is one of our semi-annual wine and cheese tastings.
If you are unfamiliar with these, we go to New Orleans and purchase cheese you have never heard of, to say nothing of tasted. These are the great cheeses of the world from Spain and England and France and other corners of Europe, made in very small amounts, very expensive and unobtainable here in Meridian.
Then, we carefully pair them with the proper wines with a goal of showing the best of both the wine and the cheese.
We hold these only in March and September and they are the highlight tastings of the year. There's nothing quite like them. This is the third such tasting and both of the others were complete sellouts.
We are limited in what the room at Northwood Country Club can handle. As of this writing, 75 percent of the seats have been spoken for and there is no doubt we will have to create a waiting list within the next week or two.
A place for this tasting is $35 and payment must be made in advance. Call 482-0930 to make your reservation and/or send your check made out to Wines Unlimited, P.O. Box 5223, Meridian, MS 39302.