Given that their coastal facility on the Etang de Thau puts them cheek-by-jowl not only with the vineyards of Picpoul de Pinet but with a wealth of seafood and seafood restaurants; and that they had established generic bottlings of Languedoc red and rose of exceptional quality-price rapport, Hecht & Bannier's white 2010 Languedoc was a natural development. But instead of it's being by appellation a Picpoul de Pinet - which, as they rightly note, is not exactly (sadly) an internationally-known mark of quality - they took the liberty of playing around and found that an admixture of 10-15% Roussanne (from the Garde) brought floral and texturally rich dimensions to the luscious melon, pear, and fig fruit and saliva-inducingly saline minerality of the Picpoul. I think I've just captured the essence of this 2010 - which I tasted the day it was bottled - and you should require no further inducement, though I can tell you that I took the bottle for a spin in a local restaurant and found its versatility almost as prodigious as that of its rose counterpart. There was a 2009, but it showed so much less well when tasted alongside that I have not published a note on it, and - even allowing for the obvious superiority of 2010 in white and for the added know-how of the team in year two - I would recommend relishing this 2010 over the next 9-12 months. Gregory Hecht and Francois Bannier's - for more about whose remarkable partnership, consult my account in issue 183 - are living up to the challenge they set themselves, namely to render, as negociants of a unique hands-on labor-intensity, wines that can stand comparison with those of each respective appellations top estates. They continue to focus on the same four appellations (for an account of their Cotes du Roussillon cuvees as well as an inaugural Maury, see the report on Roussillon that appears in this issue), although several other projects have emerged, including an Appellation Languedoc bottling that serves not only as an intro-level wine but as an outlet for fruit that does not make the cut for their four other dry red wines. Remarkably, U.S. retail prices for these extraordinary values have remained virtually unchanged since they first appeared in our markets - except for the couple of instances where they have been lowered! (I won't repeatedly note and literally underline references to value in the notes that follow; if you compare them with my scores and the prevailing prices, you ought hardly to need help drawing the appropriate consequences, however jaw-dropping!) "Selection was an interesting but especially tough job in 2008," notes Gregory Hecht, "because there was a lot of mildew pressure for growers to deal with in a relatively cool year with only two real heat spikes." The results illustrate precisely the distinctive virtues of this vintage. "Two thousand nine is obvious in its generosity and power," opines Hecht, "whereas 2010 is more nicely-dressed and elegant, with a crisp edge." The down-side of the enormously promising and already irresistible youngest offspring at this address is that low yields - when combined with Hecht and Bannier's stringent principles of selection and grower-loyalty - meant that the total volume of wine available under their label had to suffer a significant dip.Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700

The Hecht & Bannier 2009 Languedoc - whose sources are virtually the same as those of its immediate predecessor, and which had only been in bottle for a couple of weeks when I tasted it - once again offers sappy concentration of black fruits (approaching confiture) with a bittersweet cast thanks to fruit pit and licorice and tamarind. It displays a density and ripeness beyond that of previous instantiations of this cuvee, but I have learned my lesson with the 2007 about how this bottling can blossom with a couple of years in bottle, and I suspect that there will be more complexity with time - some, perhaps, even in the short-run - even if the forward nature of the fruit here suggests it will be best drunk over the next 2-3 years. Gregory Hecht and Francois Bannier's - for more about whose remarkable partnership, consult my account in issue 183 - are living up to the challenge they set themselves, namely to render, as negociants of a unique hands-on labor-intensity, wines that can stand comparison with those of each respective appellations top estates. They continue to focus on the same four appellations (for an account of their Cotes du Roussillon cuvees as well as an inaugural Maury, see the report on Roussillon that appears in this issue), although several other projects have emerged, including an Appellation Languedoc bottling that serves not only as an intro-level wine but as an outlet for fruit that does not make the cut for their four other dry red wines. Remarkably, U.S. retail prices for these extraordinary values have remained virtually unchanged since they first appeared in our markets - except for the couple of instances where they have been lowered! (I won't repeatedly note and literally underline references to value in the notes that follow; if you compare them with my scores and the prevailing prices, you ought hardly to need help drawing the appropriate consequences, however jaw-dropping!) "Selection was an interesting but especially tough job in 2008," notes Gregory Hecht, "because there was a lot of mildew pressure for growers to deal with in a relatively cool year with only two real heat spikes." The results illustrate precisely the distinctive virtues of this vintage. "Two thousand nine is obvious in its generosity and power," opines Hecht, "whereas 2010 is more nicely-dressed and elegant, with a crisp edge." The down-side of the enormously promising and already irresistible youngest offspring at this address is that low yields - when combined with Hecht and Bannier's stringent principles of selection and grower-loyalty - meant that the total volume of wine available under their label had to suffer a significant dip.Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700

Hecht & Bannier's 2008 Languedoc incorporates primarily Syrah and a bit of Carignan the Terrasses du Larzac; Syrah from Saint Chinian; and Grenache from the Agly Valley of Roussillon, a mix that held essentially constant for 2009. This is pungently redolent of garrigue and hedge flowers along with distilled essences of purple plum and black raspberry. Ripe but tart-edged dark berries intensely and confidently assert themselves on an infectiously juicy, bright yet glycerin-rich palate infused with piquant fruit pit, thyme, arbor vitae, rosemary, crushed stone, and mineral salts. "Francois and I were trying to make a Beaujolais from the South of France," jokes Hecht, "? seriously, because we're big fans of Beaujolais crus, and wanted to create something easy and fresh." They went well beyond that mandate with this amazing value! But at 13% alcohol, it is certainly buoyant and all to easy-to-drink; and I detect an emerging note of rich beef marrow that I associate with, say, a top-notch Moulin-a-Vent. I suspect this will remain lovely for at least 3-4 more years, whatever its authors' intentions. Gregory Hecht and Francois Bannier's - for more about whose remarkable partnership, consult my account in issue 183 - are living up to the challenge they set themselves, namely to render, as negociants of a unique hands-on labor-intensity, wines that can stand comparison with those of each respective appellations top estates. They continue to focus on the same four appellations (for an account of their Cotes du Roussillon cuvees as well as an inaugural Maury, see the report on Roussillon that appears in this issue), although several other projects have emerged, including an Appellation Languedoc bottling that serves not only as an intro-level wine but as an outlet for fruit that does not make the cut for their four other dry red wines. Remarkably, U.S. retail prices for these extraordinary values have remained virtually unchanged since they first appeared in our markets - except for the couple of instances where they have been lowered! (I won't repeatedly note and literally underline references to value in the notes that follow; if you compare them with my scores and the prevailing prices, you ought hardly to need help drawing the appropriate consequences, however jaw-dropping!) "Selection was an interesting but especially tough job in 2008," notes Gregory Hecht, "because there was a lot of mildew pressure for growers to deal with in a relatively cool year with only two real heat spikes." The results illustrate precisely the distinctive virtues of this vintage. "Two thousand nine is obvious in its generosity and power," opines Hecht, "whereas 2010 is more nicely-dressed and elegant, with a crisp edge." The down-side of the enormously promising and already irresistible youngest offspring at this address is that low yields - when combined with Hecht and Bannier's stringent principles of selection and grower-loyalty - meant that the total volume of wine available under their label had to suffer a significant dip.Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700

This Hecht & Bannier 2007 Languedoc is constituted primarily of Syrah from Saint Chinian and the Terrasses du Larzac, and Grenache from Roussillon. The wine is so exuberantly and insistently redolent of fresh black raspberry, so salty, incisively bright, pungently herbal, and spicy, that it should act like a tonic on uninitiated and jaded palates alike. It certainly stimulated my appetite and finished with a broad smile. I would not wait in anticipation of more depth or richness here, but instead would plan to enjoy this wine over the coming 12-18 months. Gregory Hecht and Francois Bannier’s negociant partnership – entering its seventh year – is singularly quality-oriented, and their connections with growers and tireless tasting trips throughout the Languedoc and Roussillon (350-400 visits each year) are rewarding wine lovers wherever their limited production is sold. (Consult the Roussillon section of this report for their wines from that region.) Make no mistake: wines under the Hecht & Bannier label can compete with the very best being produced by individual estates in their respective appellations, making them among the world’s finest red wine values. (Prices have remained unchanged for three vintages.) The aim in selection of lots, as well as in elevage (much of which takes place in foudres or demi-muid), is to capture ripe fruit and rich textures while conserving fresh fruit vivacity and setting a standard of lift and elegance such as is possessed by only the best wines being grown today in the Languedoc and Roussillon. The partners (who met as students in Burgundy) will remain focused on just a few outstanding locations where a sufficient number of growers (typically 8-12 per appellation) practice low yields, hand-harvest, press impeccably, and will honor a handshake “contract.” At most, they suggest, a couple of additional appellations might one day be added to their line-up (which also includes a consistently delightful Syrah-based rose). As Hecht puts it, “for the protection of all parties, we intend to stay small,” both in total production per appellation and volume per grower. Meanwhile, in order to offer something less-expensive in higher-volume, a new cuvee has debuted this year – employing a new appellation that permits blending across both the Languedoc and Roussillon.Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700