I had never heard of Charles Helfenbein until about a month ago, when I was looking for something to fill out a case at Chambers St and came across a Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban made by some other dude not named Texier. Well, I had very much liked the only other S-J-e-S-A I’ve tried in my life (this one made by Éric), so I thought I would give it a spin. I did a quick search on the internets and found that Helfenbein is a “young up-and-comer” in the Rhone, based in Brézème, whose first vintage was 2008. He uses a lot of demi-muds, and little new wood, making 100% syrahs in a “natural” minimal intervention style. Sound familiar? Anyway, I also scored a few of his Brézèmes at Astor (sold out now unfortunately…S-J-e-S-A can still be found at Chambers St), and thought it would be interesting to compare these wines to those made by the man who is an original pioneer of unheralded regions in the Rhone. Since I did not have Texier’s 2010 version of the S-J-e-S-A on hand, I substituted the 2009 instead. Note that these were spaced out over about a month, so I did not have a chance to try them side-by-side, but I did enjoy each over the course of several days in order to get a handle on their development.
In short, both producers make nice wines, but with the Helfenbein’s being a lot more accessible out of the gate, hence the higher scores now. The Texiers are clearly in need of age, and while I think the Helfenbein’s could benefit from some cellar time, they are really enjoyable now. They are also priced very attractively, so this is a producer that I will continue to keep on my radar.
Cheers,
scott
2010 Charles Helfenbein Côtes du Rhône Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban (11/8/2012)
Upon opening, there was a bit of reduction which blew off pretty quickly, but this took about an hour to come around. Once it hit its stride, this was brimming with olive tapenade and bacon fat aromas, though on a smaller scale than one might see in the big boys further North. Surprisingly open and accessible, with abundant tongue-staining black fruit, a touch of minerals, big suave tannins, and a whisper of vanilla oak (this was mostly aged in foudres I’ve been told). Given that there are very few wines made from this region of the Rhone, it is tempting to make comparisons to Texier, and as luck should have it, I tried his '09 version just last week. This is much more open for business than the Texier, which showed a lot more acidity and structure, but perhaps the Texier has just begun to shut down. I would peg this as an earlier drinker, perhaps best within 5 years, while the Texier will require a lot of patience. Still, this is a lot of syrah for the money, and would outclass many Crozes and St. Josephs at a much lower price. (91 pts.)
2010 Charles Helfenbein Côtes du Rhône-Brézème - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône-Brézème (11/21/2012)
This was delicious. I purchased this as a counterpoint to Texier’s Brezeme, which I tried a few days ago and found to be sorely in need of bottle time. This, however, was much more open for business, and was really firing on all cylinders. Lovely Northern Rhone nose of blackberries, bay leaf, tapenade and leather. On the palate, shows some meatiness and bacon fat to go with the black fruits, like a baby Hermitage. Really impressive from this new producer, and though this leans much more toward the modern camp than Texier, I suspect that it will not only show well now, but have a promising future. (92 pts.)
2010 Éric Texier Côtes du Rhône-Brézème - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône-Brézème (11/16/2012)
Really, really tight and in need of lots of patience. Still, showing a very promising wild and gamey syrah nose, but with lots of acid and tannin, that make for a lean wine that is difficult to taste now. It seems, however, that all the parts are in order, but these are definitely not for short term drinking. Even after being open 5 days, this had barely budged and was still tight as a drum. (89 pts.)
2009 Éric Texier Côtes du Rhône Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban Vieille Serine Domaine de Pergaud - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban (10/28/2012)
This is an extremely structured and backward wine at this point. Lovely aromatics, with smoked meat, mineral, matchstick and black cherries on the nose, but on the palate this is tight as a drum. Very lean, with the fruit masked by abundant acids and tannin, but this seems to have the stuffing to develop into something extraordinary with time. I drank this over several days, and when I finished the bottle on day 3, it was beginning to settle down into something enjoyable to drink and not just smell. This will require patience, but I think it will reward those who can wait. (92 pts.)
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