2005 L'Hermitage

"Two thousand six is a very good vintage but it is by no means an amazing one," said Jean-Louis Chave as we began our tour of the cellar. Chave, incidentally, believes that his 2005 Hermitage blanc is a wine for the ages. "It will shut down like crazy," he said, "but it will turn out to be a truly great wine, if you have the patience to wait 25 years, if not more." He also told me that, except in special years, "which doesn't just mean the ripest ones," he would never make anything but a single wine. "If all of the cuvees are running at the same speed I can't imagine a reason not to make a single Hermitage," he explained.

Tasting with Jean-Louis Chave is a highlight of my Rhone trip, and not just because the wines aren't bad. Plenty of time must be allotted for his philosophic musings and intellectual grappling with each of his cuvees' individual qualities. He constantly questions how close he has come to extracting the truest expression of each of his vineyards. One leaves a typical marathon tasting here with the sense that Chave is carrying almost six centuries' worth of responsibility on his shoulders-and, as a matter of fact, he is. The concept of terroir doesn't get lip service here, it gets a full dissertation. Not surprisingly, Chave has excelled in 2004 and 2005 with both white and red wines, and his 2005 Saint-Joseph looks to be a winner, too. It's unfortunate that the realities of the market have pushed the price of the Chave Hermitage beyond the grasp of all but the wealthiest or most crazed wine lovers, as they can be among the handful of the world's most profound drinking experiences. Speaking of market unreality, I was able to taste the 2003 Cuvee Cathelin, and I can count on one hand the number of wines I've had that can compare to it. Incidentally, there's another Jean-Louis Chave now, vintage 2006, ensuring continuity at this estate, which was established in 1481.