2009 Tokay Pinot Gris Reserve

Boxler’s 2009 Pinot Gris Reserve represents declassified Brand. Scents of brown spices and a prickly pungency in the nose put me in mind of spice, pickled watermelon rind, and a similar, slightly sweet-sour impression is accompanied by musky, smoky notes on an expansive, oily, sultry palate. There isn’t much primary sap to the finish, though there is some sense of persistently pungent stimulation. I would be inclined to drink this soon. Jean Boxler relates that in 2009 he picked some parcels of young wines early due to stress, then sold off the juice; and any under 15 years’ age he didn’t even bother to pick. Eventually, when he harvested his older vines and best sites, the sugar levels were the same – but not the flavors. He deftly charted a course with most of the resulting wines between alcohol and residual sugar, but to the extent it was unavoidable, sinned on the side of sweetness. From 2008, almost predictably given the track record at this address, Boxler rendered sharply focused, minerally complex, yet seductively fruit-filled wines that should prove excellent both as keepers and as partners with cuisine. Boxler compares these wines with his 2002s and finds then “definitely more interesting than the 2001s.” While most of the 2008s finished fermenting already by Christmas – which is par for the course chez Boxler – he points out that several of the extraordinary wines from the Brand lingered into spring. (For some detail on among other things Boxler’s different Riesling parcels, see my report in issue 188.) Importer: Robert Chadderdon Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 757-8185