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Domaine Huet Update, The 2008 Vintage

I have already tasted the nascent 2008 vintage from Huet in Angers at the Salon des Vins de Loire in February this year, and so September's Huet tasting, hosted by the importer Richards Walford in the Quo Vadis restaurant in Soho, London, was an excellent opportunity for me to revisit the wines and see how they have developed since I first met them. Even in February it was clear to me on tasting those embryonic cuvées that 2008 was a brilliant vintage for demi-sec at Huet, these wines being the most thrilling and racy, with a vibrant, floral and perfumed character backed up by great linearity and definition. I certainly expressed this sort of sentiment at the time. It seems that Noël Pinguet (pictured below), the 21st century doyen of Huet who was present at this most recent event, is in agreement. And as if to reinforce his belief that this is above all else a demi-sec vintage he also brought along to this tasting a selection of demi-sec wines from older vintages.

2008: A Demi-Sec Vintage

I will publish my notes on those older wines as soon as possible, but for today I am concentrating on the 2008 vintage, which was after all the principle reason for the event. The hurdles of vinification and bottling are now well behind them, and so this was a first exciting opportunity to taste the finished, definitive wines from this vintage. On the whole they showed very well, as I am sure my tasting notes below will reveal. Most reassuringly, the demi-sec cuvées were just as convincing as they were seven months ago, even if they are now settling down into a more harmonious and reserved character. It remains clear on this tasting that this is still very much a great vintage for this style, and I would countenance extensive purchasing and cellaring of these wines. The main stumbling block for British buyers is of course the weak pound, which means that during the course of this year prices in the UK have increased significantly, and the present exchange rate also harms us étrangers who would tend to buy at the cellar door. In comparison to the best wines from Burgundy or Bordeaux, however, I think the top wines of Vouvray, such as these, remain good value.

There is just one detail on the vintage I would like to bring out before getting to my tasting notes, and that is a point of interest on the 2008 Clos du Bourg Première Trie, which is unusual in that it underwent a full malolactic conversion before the alcoholic fermentation got underway. The malolactic fermentation, when indigenous bacteria convert the sharp and appley malic acid, a major component of the natural acids found in grapes, into the softer (more 'milky') lactic acid, is not actively pursued at Huet. In fact it has only been seen once before in the experience of Pinguet, in a small proportion (about 20% of the final wine) of the Le Mont Moelleux 2003. A spontaneous conversion prior to the alcoholic fermentation is unprecedented, and Pinguet has no explanation for why it occurred. As far as the character of the wine goes, it is rich and impressive, and in terms of its structure it remains as fine and vibrant as I would expect it to be, although I note the analysis shows it has a significantly lower total acidity than the corresponding wine from Le Mont in this vintage. (13/10/09)

Domaine Huet, The 2008 Vintage - Tasting Notes

The wines below were tasted in London in September 2009 with the team from importers Richards Walford. All my notes on the wines of Domaine Huet, including those below, are collated under my Domaine Huet profile. Click to locate stockists.

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2008: Residual sugar here is 15 g/l. Minerally nose, fresh, with rounded pear fruit, aromatic, a touch floral even, and more integrated that when tasted in February. The palate is harmonious, full and fruit-rich. Ripe fruit, with a good midpalate grip, and overall a lovely fresh quality. Good substance, very toothsome, and it has lots of spicy length. Really fine. 17.5+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Sec 2008: Residual sugar here is 13 g/l. Pears, honeyed fruits, floral tones, very fresh. Very good style on entry, a touch fatter than Le Haut Lieu, and more spice here too. More depth. Still a delicious wine, just as it was in Angers. Lots of grip and spice in the midpalate here, and overall really great substance, leading into a fine, honeyed-fruit finish. 18+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 2008: Residual sugar here is 27 g/l. This has a beautiful and captivating nose, to describe it as breath-taking would not be over the top. There are complex nuances here, of fresh vanilla pod, beeswax and crystalline flower petals. All the same it does have it does have a rather softer, rounded character than Le Mont today. Full, fleshy, flattering, with lovely tingling acidity at its core though. Great bright fruit, honeyed and stylish, rounded, with a fine supporting backbone of grip. There is a background touch of caramel richness in the end too. Long finish. Stunning wine. 18.5+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2008: Residual sugar here is 27 g/l. This has a beautiful nose, floral and aromatic, fresh with waxy fruits and crystallised flower petals. The palate is similarly very fine, not really sweet just full-textured and generous. Lots of bright substance. A little plumpness through the middle, fresh and balanced, and with good grip. True harmony here. This is great wine, very substantial, very good length too. 18+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Moelleux 2008: Residual sugar here is 54 g/l. A fine, fresh-fruit nose here, with a touch of exoticism too, and nuances of honey, caramel and thyme. There is a crystalline element to the fruit. Very open and gentle, soft and broad, but with a little more grip and punch through the midpalate. Good acidity, although overall it is less well defined than some of the preceding wines. Delicious flavour though, round and polished but a little plump. This will make good drinking, will cellar well, and may offer good value. 17+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Première Trie 2008: Residual sugar here is 65 g/l. Not so open or expressive on the nose as some of the other wines. This is reserved, tight, with some honeyed fruits. Fleshy and very fine on entry though, broad. flowing out nicely on the palate. It seems to display much more aromatic character on the palate than the nose brings forth. It is, despite that initial reticence, remarkably attractive. Broad and appealing, very rich, stylish, sweetly polished but rich and more savoury rather than simply sweet. Very long. 18+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux Première Trie 2008: Residual sugar here is 66 g/l. This is the mysterious malolactic cuvée, a wine that underwent 80% malolactic fermentation prior to alcoholic fermentation, an unprecedented and unexplained event. On the nose it has youthful and fresh flavours, sweetly herbal and aromatic, with vibrant pear character. This remains extraordinarily primary in character, a combination of components rather than an integrated wine. Hugely impressive though, a silky polish to its mouthfeel, cut through by fine acidity. Harmonious, touching on ethereal, this is a stunning wine of superb potential. 18+/20