1 | Wine | Chenin Blanc, $20 to $50, 86 or higher

"Bursts from the glass in an exuberant bouquet of buddleia and apple blossom; quince and intimations of wet stone. This transcends the poise and clarity exhibited by several immediately preceding Clos du Papillon bottlings and suggests that – chronologically speaking – we have moved up into a new echelon of expressiveness. The bitter, piquant notes of toasted nut, quinine, white pepper, and fruit pit here are extremely subtle and integrated into a matrix of lusciously juicy pear, white peach, and quince. A salvia-inducing salinity and scallop-like sweetness ally themselves to the stony mineral elements in this wine’s long finishing colloquy with flowers and fruits, and there is a levity and refreshment – a sheer drinkability – that I have not noticed in previous Baumard Savennieres – particularly pre-2007. Yet there is still ample sense of glycerin-richness and subtle oiliness. The combination of roughly a half percent less alcohol and more expressive acidity renders this drier-tasting than its 2006 and 2007 counterparts. Florent Baumard admits that a lesser percentage of his 2008s went through malo-lactic transformation than in most vintages, though I did not have chance to check precise analytical data on that. This sensational value is a delight to drink now. Whether it will “suffer” on that account a reduced “life span” must remain to be seen, although if anything my intuition is that this will be lovely for a decade, but that you would be foolish to deprive yourself of its short-term pleasure."

"This wine has depth and cut, with a salted butter edge giving a mouthwatering feel while pear eau-de-vie, green plum and quince flavors hang in reserve. A lovely salty minerality is embedded in the long finish, which is dry and nervy, but also stylish. Should age gracefully."

"A plump, full-bodied style, with a toasted brioche edge to the creamed pear, fig and apple notes. There's creamy mouthfeel and ample length, with a lingering note of hazelnut for a flashy hint."

"Smells effusively and exotically of ripe quince, mango, litchi, and pineapple, along with Chartreuse-like suggestions of distilled floral and herbal essences. In contrast with the corresponding Haut-Lieu, here the acidity is largely integrated and keeps its powder dry for successfully holding at bay the finishing onslaught of residual sugar. Notes of marzipan and peach preserves further add to the almost garish array of nearly over-ripe fruits."