1998 Condrieu

The young, enthusiastic Montez took over his family small estate with the '97 vintage, having worked two years with his father while in school, then serving stints in the wine trade in England as well as for wineries in South Africa, Australia and California. During his time in England, he got a crash course in wines from around the world and developed a preference for "strong wines from very ripe fruit." As a result, he told me, he harvests later than his father did. This is an extremely rustic operation located in the family home above Chavanay, where Montez's mother produces the local cheese Rigotte de Condrieu from her herd of goats. I was especially impressed by the domain's Saint-Joseph and basic Condrieu bottlings, but tasting barrel samples of red Saint-Joseph is a bit of a crapshoot here, as the American importer apparently has considerable leeway to make his own blends.