Jean-Marie Guffens is considered one of the finest white wine makers in France. He founded his own négociant business in 1990 and set about sourcing top-quality grapes from small producers who would entrust him with the fruits of their labor.
And Guffens handles the fruit he procures with kid gloves.
He insists on a hand-picked harvest and uses small picking bins so that the grapes resting on top don't crush the grapes beneath. He hand-sorts back at the winery too, so as to eliminate any rotten berries or unripe clusters.
His credo is that "the best grapes make the best wine."
The fruit is gently pressed to extract its juice; never crushed. And he employs considerable sur lie aging (a technique whereby wine is allowed to rest atop its dead yeasts) to add both a flavor and textural boost to the finished wines.
Guffens crafts phenomenal chardonnays out of the Mâconnais part of Burgundy, a sub-region that has made a name for itself for easy-drinking, crowd-pleasing whites, and rarely for serious age-able bottlings that rival the best of the Cote d'Or.
Perhaps Guffens just has a nose for good grapes and good terroir, or perhaps he knows how to shape raw material into a stunning finished product. Pperhaps it's a combination of the two. Regardless, he's a wine wizard and there is magic in each of his many, many bottlings.
The Verget label boasts approximately 15 different offerings from the Mâconnais alone, plus many from Chablis and the Cote d'Or as well, and each is a stunning study in subtly and nuance.
Case in point: Not one of the five Mâcons I tasted for this column were even remotely similar to the other. Their only common denominator was the fact that they were far superior at cool cellar temperature than chilled.
At refrigerator temperature, the wines tasted as if they were in straight-jackets. They tasted as disjointed as a Picasso painting. At cellar temperature, they stretched across the palate like fondant: rich, creamy and stunningly rich with loads of complexity, minerality and extract.
It really doesn't get much better than this when it comes to chardonnay.
The 2009s are just hitting the market and Guffens touts the vintage as his best since 2002. As he describes them, the wines are "rich without opulence," the acidity is "remarkable" and the aging potential is "exceptional."
My personal pick among the '09s is the Verget Macon-Bussieres "Villes Vignes du Clos," but don't shy away from the 2007s.
The rule of thumb is that all great Burgundy, red and white, should be held at least five years before popping the cork. The 2007s are not over the hill. They are just coming into their prime.
Snap 'em up quick. They'll be gone before the ink is dry on the column.
Verget Macon-Bussieres "Vigne de Montbrison" 2007, $27: A delectable chardonnay, all honey roasted nuts and toasted oats
Verget Macon-Villages "Grand Elevage" 2009, $23: Like fresh apple puree or homemade applesauce in a glass.
Verget Macon-Vergisson "La Roche" 2007, $30: Oh. My. Goodness. This is a liquid browned-butter shortbread cookie.
Verget Macon-Charnay "Les Clos Saint-Pierre" 2008, $23: Densely mineral with a touch of green apple.
Verget Macon-Bussieres "Villes Vignes du Clos" 2009, $24: Like drinking "heavy water," Mineral, mineral, mineral with a touch of nut-crusted toffee apple.