Tasted from a representative selection of barriques (for more on the Mann Pinots and their origins consult my report in issue 188), the 2009 Pinot Noir Clos de la Faille reflects a uniform ripeness which permitted the site for the first time to be harvested in a single session and which the Barthelmes decided could support 20% whole clusters with stems in the fermentor. Charred wood (though there is only a very low level of new oak) and a barnyard-like note cohabitate with fresh black raspberry and cassis on the nose, the latter fortunately dominating in juicy profusion on the palate. Even after a good shaking, this is reduced in a way that will demand a racking, but prospects are promising for an animated and well-concentrated if probably never complex Pinot to serve over the next 3-4 years. Although Maurice and Jacky Barthelme continued to pick their 2009 Rieslings into October and achieved satisfyingly ripe flavors, they did so without suffering high alcohol or unbalanced sweetness. Unsurprisingly (whether or not verifiably), they implicate the accumulated experience and effects of a biodynamic regimen in these results. Equally importantly, the levels of acidity in their 2009 Rieslings are ample and efficacious. With Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer, they were forced to discharge high must weights in the form of almost universally high residual sugar, with attractive if seldom distinguished results. The Mann 2008s are characterized by particularly concentrated and positively efficacious acidity, all of the Rieslings weighing-in at what on paper might look like an excessive 9 grams or more. Not only have the Barthelme brothers been together now for 21 vintages – to me it still seems like yesterday that I “discovered” their 1988s – but they point out that most of their present crew has been together for nearly a decade, which is bound to have been instrumental in their having been able to repeatedly expand into new vineyards without sacrificing the highest standards, not to mention with their enthusiasm still youthful.Importer: Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA; tel. (610) 486-0800