1999 Saint-Joseph Cuvée Papy

The voluble Stephane Montez characterizes the 2000s as fruity, round vins de plaisir especially compared to the '99s, which are firmer, more tannic wines made from grapes with chewier skins. "We started with less color and tannins in 2000, and it was necessary to work the grapes, with the objective of getting fat and color but not more tannins," he explained. Following his normal week-long cold maceration, Montez did more punching down of the cap and pumping over, and up to a full month of maceration.

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.