In Verset Veritas

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Comte Flaneur
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In Verset Veritas

Post by Comte Flaneur »

On September 11 2015 Noël Verset, the legendary winemaker in Cornas shuffled off his mortal coil. Born in December 1919 he was 95 years old so he had a good innings. Climbing up those 60 degree slopes seems to be good for one's health and his dad lived until he was over 100. Things were so tough in Cornas in the middle decades of the 20th century that Noël and other vignerons had day jobs. He only began to be recognised in the 1980s and 1990s - he made his greatest wines in his 70s (there is hope for all of us) - and John Livingstone-Learmonth was one of the first pilgrims to come knocking at his door.

It was ironic because three Fridays ago on the same day that Monsieur Noel passed away, Keith Prothero, who recently joined BWE, held a blind tasting of 22 wines for an August group of wine tasters (I was a last minute interloper). To cut a long story short his 1999 Verset waltzed away with the wotn accolade leaving everything else trailing in its wake, including the likes of Mouton 1986, which by the way was exceptionally good, and Haut-Brion 1990.

Although I neither count myself as a Northern Rhone expert, nor is is it my absolute top wine region, I have been enthralled by the wines of Noël Verset for the last several years. So when the news broke of Noël Verset's passing I contacted Richard Zambuni, London's top Northern Rhone aficionado and Noel Verset acolyte, to suggest we arrange a tribute dinner. It happened on Wednesday and John-Livingstone Learmonth, Richard's mentor, also came along so we were treated to a Northern Rhone/Verset masterclass.

It was a thrilling prospect going to this dinner in honour of the legendary, Noël Verset, because with Verset you are never sure which wines are going to show up. They can be sensational...; or painfully shy.

So this all added to the sense of anticipation.

Noël Verset Cornas

Act one: 

1988: Pure translucent maroon, wisps of November bonfire smoke and autumn leaves; minerals: iodine, iron, manganese, tungsten; cool red fruits; lean but not thin, delicate, underpinned by a stern spine of acidity; perfectly resolved and a point; dignified, cerebral and mesmerising with religious overtones - like walking into King’s College chapel. A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma it has a zen-like aura. A 

This is unlikely to improve but neither is it drying out, nor does it need to be drunk up post haste. It was a good idea of Richard’s to start with this because its intricately woven tapestry would easily be lost, and easy to overlook, in a group of younger, blunter, wines.

1991: More opaque, brooding but at the same time strapping, with a somewhat sweaty nose with a bit more going on. This came out of the blocks slowly, even a trifle awkwardly, but continued to improve throughout the evening. When we came back to it, it was spellbinding. On the nose it has a melange of cool red fruits, sauvage, feldspar and other minerals, pine needles, black olives and tapenade. Altogether, denser and more powerful on the mid-palate, this I would say is in the early phase of its drinking window. Give it plenty of air. Astonishing. A+

Act two: 

1994: Lively sweaty nose, with hints of hoisin, this opened beautifully initially out pointing the somewhat clumsy by comparison 1995. It came across as youthful and structured, but had a marvellous poise and raciness, and for a lesser vintage it really punches above its weight. Revisiting it at the end of the evening it really tightened up, however. A- 

1995: a bit clumsier out of the blocks, young and strapping, it was a bit clunkier than the 1994 and lacked its flight mate's poise. It showed some glimpses of how great this wine can be but never got going, and by the end of the evening it had meandered off the reservation. Good bottles of this are absolutely thrilling. B+ (the previous bottle I had was easily an A).
Act three:

1998: By far and away the best showing of this wine, which on previous encounters has been rustic bordering on agricultural. The 1998 was thrilling last night, it was open for business, multi-faceted, flawless and so true to the Verset style. Previous bottles have been in need of more time, but this hit all the high notes from the word go. To quote a controversial critic, it met, then exceeded parameters for judging a wine, in this case a Noël Verset. But does it have the magic of great bottles of 1990 and 1991? Time will be the judge of that. For now a solid A 

1999: Another dazzling showing for this wine, very similar to the one Keith brought to his blind tasting, and which waltzed away with the wotn accolade leaving 21 other wines trailing. What this has is an exoticism and exuberance that one would not normally associate with the wines of Noël Verset. A 

It is a shame that the prices of these wines have gone parabolic, out of reach of most of us. I count myself very lucky to own the odd bottle of 1990 and few bottles of 1995, 1998 and 1999, which I hope to retrieve one day soon. Based on last night's showing the wines were anomalously cheap a few years ago.

In the middle of the night I woke up and emailed RIchard Z and the other participants. I said whoever gets their notes out first should consider adopting the Leitmotif "In Verset Veritas." It summed up the occasion.
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Nicklasss
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Re: In Verset Veritas

Post by Nicklasss »

Great report Comte. Guess i never had a Verset, but lately bought a few 2010 and 2012 Clape. Hope they will reach the same hights, in the years.

Nic
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AKR
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Re: In Verset Veritas

Post by AKR »

I remember having a 91 Verset maybe 15 years ago and it was pretty good. Bizarrely I had knew little about the man and his wines and picked it up for a song. Consumed it casually but was surprised by the minerality and depth. Didn't know 91 was ok in that region.

All this was before Cornas became trendy. I'm ok with keeping a few of the AOC around, but that's about it.
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Michael Malinoski
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Re: In Verset Veritas

Post by Michael Malinoski »

Great tasting and outstanding notes, Comte, thanks for taking the time to share. I have not had the pleasure of trying a Verset wine, never mind one from a great vintage. I haven't lost hope, though... :)

Michael
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