The Tragic Tale of Lamarche
Sometimes, a wine seems like a sure winner, a lock if you will. Such is the case with a 1999, Grand Cru. As readers may recall from such episodes as: Yesterday, '99 was an incredible year for Burgundy, regarded by many as the best in recent history. Echezeaux located in the deep within Burgundy's vaunted village of Vosne-Romanee. Of course, there is nothing village-like about a Grand Cru.
Sadly, there is no such thing as sure-bet, and I would have rathered a Roumier village wine than this Lamarche folly. My cup brimmed over with cacophony! What was this fruit? Why so many tannins? Is that cream? This is not my beautiful wife! Was this wine young or just awful? I imagined that someone had taken of those sets of smells for wine lovers and dumped them into a big vat. The oak presence was proper, but overall the Echezeaux had about as much of a sense of bearing as the pacifier packing party-kids stumbling out of the most recent incarnation of the Limelightl at five on a Saturday morning.
Winemaking scion, Francois Lamarche does not confine himself to squandering Echezeaux. No, he also plies his cruel art upon some of the most coveted land East of Grammercy. La Grande Rue, also from Vosne-Romanee is a monopole of, perhaps, the finest land in all of France. Coates reminds us that the 1.65 ha strip shares the same aspect, positioning, and terroir as La Tache; a glance at the map reveals prestigous neighbors such as La Romanee and La Romanee Conti directly across the street. Unfortunately, the Lamarche family is not particuylarly motivated, and their ill tended vines produce 8,000 bottles of disapointment! The yield is often processed into an insolent ink oddly offering big tastes of fruit, weed, and rasberry. Most of all the wines are sloppy; their definition, or lack thereof inspires thoughts of Bill Clinton testifying about sex.
Lamarche seems to enjoy making muscular wines, but the result is a kin to an East German swimmer and entirely devoid of finesse! There are many maxims about great producers and their brilliance really manifesting itself in off years; clearly this does not work in reverse! A poor producer prepares pathetic wines in even the best year! Further, we see that man can not live on terroir alone. Finally, we are offered a manifest moral: the cru system in Burgundy is not based on wines, but land!!!
What is worth is that the glamour associated with the Vosne-Romanee name provides little incentive for improvement. Franc's swill still commands prices over $150 a bottle in many outlets.
However, should a change of heart happen, the quality of the earth should make the task somewhat less daunting for Franc! In between patronizing points, Coates does point out that Lamarche has recently upgraded their casks, and we can only dream about what can be!
Sadly, there is no such thing as sure-bet, and I would have rathered a Roumier village wine than this Lamarche folly. My cup brimmed over with cacophony! What was this fruit? Why so many tannins? Is that cream? This is not my beautiful wife! Was this wine young or just awful? I imagined that someone had taken of those sets of smells for wine lovers and dumped them into a big vat. The oak presence was proper, but overall the Echezeaux had about as much of a sense of bearing as the pacifier packing party-kids stumbling out of the most recent incarnation of the Limelightl at five on a Saturday morning.
Winemaking scion, Francois Lamarche does not confine himself to squandering Echezeaux. No, he also plies his cruel art upon some of the most coveted land East of Grammercy. La Grande Rue, also from Vosne-Romanee is a monopole of, perhaps, the finest land in all of France. Coates reminds us that the 1.65 ha strip shares the same aspect, positioning, and terroir as La Tache; a glance at the map reveals prestigous neighbors such as La Romanee and La Romanee Conti directly across the street. Unfortunately, the Lamarche family is not particuylarly motivated, and their ill tended vines produce 8,000 bottles of disapointment! The yield is often processed into an insolent ink oddly offering big tastes of fruit, weed, and rasberry. Most of all the wines are sloppy; their definition, or lack thereof inspires thoughts of Bill Clinton testifying about sex.
Lamarche seems to enjoy making muscular wines, but the result is a kin to an East German swimmer and entirely devoid of finesse! There are many maxims about great producers and their brilliance really manifesting itself in off years; clearly this does not work in reverse! A poor producer prepares pathetic wines in even the best year! Further, we see that man can not live on terroir alone. Finally, we are offered a manifest moral: the cru system in Burgundy is not based on wines, but land!!!
What is worth is that the glamour associated with the Vosne-Romanee name provides little incentive for improvement. Franc's swill still commands prices over $150 a bottle in many outlets.
However, should a change of heart happen, the quality of the earth should make the task somewhat less daunting for Franc! In between patronizing points, Coates does point out that Lamarche has recently upgraded their casks, and we can only dream about what can be!
posted by The Baron | Wednesday, April 19, 2006
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