Famed French vintner visits GOH
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This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from November 1999.
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Tall and elegant Laurent welcomed the several dozen diners as they assembled and introduced them to the first wine, Macon Villages, naturally fermented. He talked about the importance of the "terroir", that elusive combination of the right everything all coming together in harmony - soil, climate, altitude, exposure and, perhaps most importantly, the hand of the winemaker.
Winemakers Maison Joseph Drouhin are very much a family affair, he explained, with his father Robert at the helm, Laurent's brother, Phillippe, in charge of the vineyards in France, his sister Veronique in charge of US operations in Oregon, where his father was a pioneer in growing Pinot Noir grapes, another brother in charge of the English market, his mother, Françoise, also an interested party, and Laurent himself in charge of the Caribbean, which, he said, has really exploded in the wine market over the last decade.
He next introduced a Drouhin Chablis Premier Cru, of which the family devotes 35 hectares of its land to growing. He described the Chablis as an easy wine, simple, crisp, and not complicated. It was, he said, flinty, chalky, white, with ripe fruits, long in the mouth, finesse in the nose, pleasant but simple. But, he added, those are just words, the best description of all, he maintained, was the smile on the face of the taster.
With regard to the family vineyard in Oregon, he said his sister had decided to try to grow Chardonnay there, which was tasted that evening and which had a deep buttery flavour, delicate and pleasant, not too complex. This wonderful wine found great favour with the guests, who thought it a fine example of a French-style Chardonnay from the new world. He pointed out the Drouhin vineyard is situated at the same latitude as Burgundy, and has the same climate. His father purchased the Oregon property in the early 1960s.
Third up was a Nuits St. Georges 1996 with very little acidity. With his fine French nose deep in the glass, Laurent observed, "this is not wine, this is art, this is dream, this is pleasure." Or, for those opting for the fish course, a Puligny Montrachet 1997 with complex, structured flavour, elegant nose and tannins at the end of the mouth. This was a superb example of the toasty, nutty style of the appelation.
Lastly the Grand Old House diners were served a Cote de Beaune with a chocolate impression, ripe fruit, soft tannins, good length and a strong cherry nose. But I needn't go on. One had only to observe the smile on my face. Joseph Drouhin wines are available at Jacques Scott and the Wine Cellar, and other fine liquor stores on the island.
