Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 72

29th ANNUAL RESTAURANT POLL

FRENCH WINES

French wines are at an all-time high in our poll, making up 27.7 percent of our
respondents' best-selling wines. That's a gain of more than five points
over 2016, and nearly a nine-point lead over Italy, the second most popular source of best-selling wines.
Some of that success has to do with the magic word, "Sancerre," a wine
which sommeliers report continues to fly out of their cellars. "It's the
most popular wine in the restaurant if you total all of the glasses we sell, as
well as the same selection by the bottle," says Charles Puglia at Le Coucou
in NYC. "We go through ten cases a month at least, maybe fifteen. His
best seller? Vacheron-which holds the number-one spot on our Most
Popular French Wines list.
Not everyone falls in line behind Sancerre's runaway popularity; more
than a few sommeliers told us they try to persuade drinkers to look farther afield. "Often I will suggest crisp chenin blancs," says Molly Cohen
at Lure Fishbar in NYC. "I think that's a safe transition because you can
point out that it's the same region, or it's just a couple of towns over." But
the move may be slow-going: Save for Olga Raffault, with red Chinon,
the Loire hasn't yet broken into the top 20 of the Most Popular French
Wines list.
This year also saw the ascent of Chablis, with Patrick Piuze, William
Fèvre, Moreau-Naudet and Drouhin all within the top 16 brands from
France. Many sommeliers chalk up the friendliness toward both Loire
whites and Burgundy wines to a movement away from blockbuster styles.
In some cities, that trend is crystallized in the vogue for Beaujolais; at
Shift Drinks in Portland, Oregon, Anthony Garcia says the whole town
is obsessed. "Gamay is red-hot here right now," he says. "It's sort of a
Beaujolais town and I don't know if it's because there is such bang for
your buck or the fact that it's very food-friendly, and this is definitely a
food town."
Yet when it comes to French red overall, the Rhône outpaces Beaujolais, with JL Chave landing in this year's Restaurant Top 50, and Balthazar
and Graillot not far behind. "[Rhône reds] are the European reds that
people feel most comfortable ordering on their own, without the somm,"
says Stephen McGinnis at L'Etoile in Madison, Wisconsin. "I have no
problem selling Burgundy, but I hand sell it: There are a lot of them and
people ask for guidance. Châteauneuf, on the other hand, a lot of guests
feel comfortable ordering on their own. It's a crowd-pleaser, and I mean
that in the most complimentary way."

Even within the classic regions, I
think there are these little pockets
and places to be rediscovered.
When people are thinking about
Bordeaux, they think of the classic
communes, but if you choose an
amazing glass of Côtes de Bourg,
it's well received, from Bordeaux,
and doesn't cost an arm and a leg.
-Hai Tran, Lacroix, Philadelphia

"

MOST POPULAR FRENCH WINES
Rank Brand

Bottling

Avg. Price

1 Domaine Vacheron

Sancerre

$87
0.0

2 Gérard Boulay

Sancerre Clos de Beaujeu
Sancerre Les Monts Damnés

$118
$86

3 Olga Raffault

Chinon Les Picasses

$72

4 Lucien Crochet

Sancerre La Croix du Roy

$75

5 Alphonse Mellot

Sancerre La Moussière

$80

6 JL Chave Selection

St-Joseph Offerus
Côtes du Rhône Mon Coeur

$76
$60

7 Maison Joseph Drouhin

Chablis Clos Vaudon

$68

8 Domaine Moreau-Naudet

Chablis 1er Cru Forêts
Chablis Vieilles Vignes Pargues

9 Pascal Jolivet

Sancerre

10 William Fèvre

Chablis Champs Royaux
Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume

11 Franck Balthazar

Côtes du Rhône

$58

12 Yann Bertrand

Fleurie Phénix

$62

13 Alain Graillot

Crozes-Hermitage

$74

14 Claude Riffault

Sancerre Les Chasseignes

$66

15 Château Le Puy

Côtes de Francs

$89

16 Patrick Piuze

Chablis

$94

17 Benjamin Leroux

Auxey-Duresses

$84

18 Château de Sancerre

Sancerre

$65

19 Domaine Tempier

Bandol

$105

20 Edmond Cornu et Fils

Bourgogne

$60

21 Equis

St-Joseph

$60

Gigondas Cuvée Tradition

$70

Bourgogne Les Méchalots

$75

22

Domaine du Gour de
Chaule

23 Sylvain Pataille

$130
$65
$61
$59
$130

Bachelet-Monnot

Chassagne-Montrachet

Brendan Tracey

Val de Loire Capitalisme Rouge

$59

Muscadet-Sèvre-et-Maine Sur Lie Les Houx

$42

Domaine de la Pépière

Muscadet-Sèvre-et-Maine Les Gras Moutons

$51

Domaine Michel Niellon

Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru
Les Champgains

24 Joseph Landron

$125

$198

Because I'm from Provence and grew up close to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, I love to promote Provence, but
also, the Mediterranean flavors in the food work with Bandol, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and white Bandol or
white Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The white from Bois de Boursan, a classic old-school producer, both red and
white, not jammy, not hot, yet spicy and full, with nice acidity. You can go with that in a tasting menu.
-Arnaud Tronche, Racines, NYC

72

WINE & SPIRITS

APRIL 2018



Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - April 2018

Contents
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - Cover1
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - Cover2
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 1
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 2
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 3
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 4
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - Contents
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 6
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 7
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 8
Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 9
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