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Demi-Sec from Domaine Huet, September 2009

September 2009 saw the arrival of Noël Pinguet in London, in a joint effort with importer Richards Walford, to showcase the latest releases which I have already written up under my review of the 2008 vintage. As if to reinforce his opinion that 2008 is a great vintage for the demi-sec style of Vouvray Pinguet also brought along a handsome collection of older examples of the type, beginning with recent vintages such as 2005 and 2002 (after the two from 2008 of course), then stretching right back as far as 1949.

Domaine Huet: Looking Forward

For those unfamiliar with the domaine, Noël is the son-in-law of Gaston Huet, who himself was the son of Victor Huet who acquired the nidus of the domaine, Le Haut Lieu, in 1928. Although it was Gaston who was largely responsible for building up the infrastructure to create most of what we see as Domaine Huet today (having added Le Mont and Clos du Bourg to the original Le Haut Lieu vineyard in 1957 and 1963 respectively) the quality of the wines produced today are undoubtedly down to Pinguet. He was drafted in when it became clear that Gaston's own children, Jean and Jacqueline, were not interested in following in their father's footsteps. It was Pinguet who introduced biodynamics to the estate in the late 1980s, and who has continued to push the quality up vintage-by-vintage ever since.

In a tasting which naturally focused my attention on great vintages of the past it nevertheless seemed fitting to quiz Pinguet on what the future might hold for Huet. Is there a new generation waiting in the wings, and if not is there a plan for succession on his retirement? The answer to the first question is no; on taking full control of the domaine in 2002, when Gaston died, Pinguet found himself in the same position as his father-in-law had before him. Although he had two daughters, Anne and Carinne, neither were looking to take on the life of a Vouvray vigneronne. This was the reason for the sale to the Filipino-American financier Anthony Hwang in 2003, a deal in which Hwang took an 80% stake in the new Société Huet, with Pinguet taking the other 20%. Financially secure, Pinguet's next task was to look for the 'next generation', so to speak, somebody to replace Pinguet on his retirement when he reaches 70 years of age, in 2015. He found it in a young Vouvrillon named Benjamin Joliveau, the son of a local vigneron and friend of Pinguet. Joliveau, who has gained some experience with several stages in other wine regions both in France and further afield, began work at Huet this year, so there is plenty of time for him to get to know the vineyards and their wines before Pinguet hands over full responsibility.

Demi-Sec - Archetypal yet Misunderstood

It seems to me that producing and selling any quantity of demi-sec wine is an uphill struggle. The prevailing fashion today is for dry rather than off-dry wines, and so I would think the sec cuvées of Vouvray are far more commercially viable. The moelleux wines remain in demand despite this trend though, as they appeal to a hard core of wine enthusiasts who appreciate sweet, long-lived wines and who search out the best examples. The moelleux cuvées from Huet certainly fit this bill, especially those that are designated première trie. So who will buy the demi-sec wines?

The truth is we all should, for several reasons. First, these wines are archetypal Vouvray. The division of the harvest into wines of different must weights, by running several tries through the vineyard and by careful selection, is a very welcome manipulation (because it gives us those savoury sec cuvées, and of course the fabulous sweet wines), but what the vineyard would give us if taken as a unified whole is a demi-sec wine. Demi-sec cuvées are thus perhaps the truest expression of Vouvray, no matter how delicious the other styles might be; thus, by extrapolation, if you don't know the appellation's demi-sec wines, then you don't know Vouvray. Secondly, we should be quite clear that these off-dry wines should not be lumped together with off-dry, supermarket-style generic Hock, Piesporter, branded Portuguese rosé and other naff wines where the sugar is false and simple. Any sweetness in these cuvées is natural, from the grapes, and it comes packaged with finesse and complexity. The only manipulation that might be involved at an appropriate moment is the addition of sulphur to ward off continued fermentation. Thirdly, let us also get past the notion that these are wines in limbo, half-sweet or half-dry, neither one thing nor the other. The concentration of residual sugar in a demi-sec cuvée is traditionally in the order of 10-20 g/l, although in practice the typical figure has been creeping up in recent years. But what counts is balance, and these wines certainly achieve that. Put together the right combination of sugar and acidity and you get a rich and fleshy wine, rather than an overtly sweet one. With age this becomes even more pronounced, the wines becoming drier and yet honeyed with more advanced maturity. These are complex and evolving wines which should not be ignored.

Demi-Sec - Ignored by the Critics

Sadly many people do ignore these wines, and this is noticeable in the opinions and scores of many critics who also seem to overlook them. Their excuse might be that they can find no use for the wines when paired up with modern cuisine, but this is an inadequate response as there are many fine potential matches, from the arenas of seafood, pork and poultry in particular, and I think as the wines go into early maturity this becomes even easier (as they mature even further they demand they be sipped on their own).

When it comes to seeing how the wine press view the demi-sec category,  however, nothing vexes me more than those critics who fail to see past the sugar in Vouvray. Yes, I understand that the great première trie moelleux wines, protected by their admirable but often not monumental sugar concentrations and also their firm acidities, have the capability to age and take on the rich complexity that can not be replicated by any method other than long years of patient cellaring. But are they automatically superior to the demi-sec wines, and are they in turn automatically superior to the sec cuvées, simply by virtue of the fact that they have more sugar? The answer is plainly no, but if this is the case why do so many critics persistently provide ascending scores for the sec, demi-sec and moelleux cuvées, as if the prime defining feature of a great wine in every vintage is how sweet it is? It is because they are seduced by sugar. The losers here are the demi-secs, because the sec cuvées will still sell, but the ill-informed buyer looking for a sweeter wine will look at the ratings for the demi-sec and the moelleux cuvées and then dismiss the former as an inadequate imitation, a wine that wasn't 'good enough' to be properly sweet and which was scored low as a result. It is a sorry state of affairs.

What better way to try to right these many wrongs than with a tasting of demi-sec cuvées, starting at 2005 and heading back in time as far as 1949. My tasting notes are below, all wines opened and tasted in London in 2009 in the company of Noël Pinguet and the Richards Walford staff. (3/11/09)

Demi-Sec from Domaine Huet - Tasting Notes

These wines were tasted in London in September 2009. All my Huet notes, including those below, are collated under my Domaine Huet profile. Although tasted in vintage order, I have grouped them here according to vineyard. Click to locate stockists.

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2005: Very expressive and obvious development here - we are in a very different arena than the 2008s. Brown sugar on the nose, honey and vanilla, all rather open and diffuse. There is good freshness on the palate, some nice structural elements, a little grip too. It is polished but overall rather flat today, and I think this is going through a very awkward phase fairly typical of maturing Chenin. It could be enjoyed now, but it would be much better left for another five years (or maybe many more judging by the subsequent wines); that will bring a better composition and depth of flavour too. 17+?/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2002: A lovely, expressive nose. There is more intricate complexity here than with the 2005, with nuances of lemon-honey and caramel crunch. This is certainly tighter than the preceding wine as well, and this is in keeping with my understanding of the vintage. The palate is lovely, very pure, polished and round, overall very well packaged. A very stylish and linear wine although certainly not revealing all it has to offer yet. Leave well alone. 18.5+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2000: Honeyed, crunchy golden nose, with ripe golden fruits. A lovely, caressing palate on entry, then a drier style through the midpalate with lots of broad punch here. Just a little tightness here still, structured, grippy with firm acids. Lots of substance and build. Linear, defined, sappy and stylish. But also tight and young. This needs time. 17.5+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 1988: A moderate golden colour, a significant change in comparison with the preceding wines. Real beauty on the nose here, gentle perfumed sweetness, with little elements of toffee and roasted nut. Golden fruits, all very fine. A lovely, fresh and really quite dry palate follows, gently fleshed out, rounded but firm, structured and composed. Complex, sappy, very delineated, with very good acidity, this is flattering, but firm rather than soft. A fine effort, and still on the way up for sure. 18+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 1971: A slightly richer hue here. A haunting nose, evolved, pure and defined, it has an ethereal outer character although in truth it is expressive and tangible, giving up powerful notes of citrus fruits and lime leaves mixed with toffee. Hugely impressive on the palate, perfectly composed, not drying out but certainly less fleshy than some other wines, defined, with a lemon-lime toffee character. Full, broad, with a lovely substance to it. Very harmonious and composed, really long too. This remains very tightly composed and amazingly I think this still needs more cellar time to show its best. A great vintage, although today it seems remarkably less generous than the trio of older wines, and it gives less pleasure as a result. But give it time. 17.5+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 1962: This a very different wine to the 1971, much more evolved. A gentle nose of swirled honey and caramel in combination, with elements of baked apple here, suggesting a little background oxidation. It is a fine nuance and doesn't affect the overall character on the wine, and it is a characteristic that probably varies from one bottle to the next. The palate is indeed very impressive, broad and sweet, honeyed, slightly caramelly, intense, balanced and harmonious, a touch richer and sweeter than some of the other wines. Although it seems a little drier on the finish. Good length. Brilliant wine which will continue to evolve although will show more drily with time if you keep it. 18.5+/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 1949: A very rich and golden colour, this is a strategic release as it has 60 years under its belt this year. A very round nose, fine and softly defined. A taste from a first bottle showed a hint of oxidation, and this was certainly carried through onto the palate which is fine, gently, sweet, with orange rind. But there are also notes of baked earth. It is very harmonious and worthwhile despite this element, although I would be surprised it if were scored very highly. A second bottle showed a much cleaner character, with freshness and more defined mature orange and sweet, caramel crunch aromas and flavours. Some bottle variation is to be explained in a wine this age of course. My score is based on the second bottle. 18/20

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Demi-Sec 1957: In truth the penultimate wine, tasted just before the 1949. A really interesting nose here, intense with sweet fruit which has a rather pastille-like intensity today. Dense, characterful, sweet but also with savoury threads, rather beefy at times, with notes of peppery stock. Lovely broad palate, the savoury element coming through nicely here and more than matching that intense pastille-character. In fact it isn't really that sweet, rather it is rich, with potential sweetness. Rich, broad, balanced, great structure and acidity, this is holding up very well. 18.5/20