The St. Veran Tete de Cuvee displays dusty mineral and ripe pear aromas. It is a fresh, lively, and focused wine with stone and gravel flavors intermingled with traces of sweet white fruits. Medium-bodied and extremely well-made, this offering will be at its best if drunk over the next 4-5 years. A Peter Vezan Selection (Paris Fax # 011-33-1-42654293), importers include: North Berkeley Imports, Berkeley, CA; tel (510) 848-8910, and a Patrick Lesec Selection (Paris Fax # 011-33-1-42843822), various American importers, including Bacchus Importers (800) 525-9699.

The St. Veran Tete de Cuvee is as good as the Macon-Villages Tete de Cuvee but quite different. Displaying earthy, steel and almond scents, this wine may not have quite the balancing acidity of the Macon, but it is denser and riper. Its flavor profile offers hazelnuts, touches of toast, minerals and an attractive mushroom component. (This wine was tasted from bottles purchased in the U.S.). It should be drunk between now and 2003. A year ago, Jean-Marie Guffens told me that 1996 was the greatest vintage of his lifetime. While he did not repeat that comment when I visited him in November, Guffens was bursting with pride as I tasted the wines. A Peter Vezan Selection (Paris Fax # 011-33-1-42654293), importers include: North Berkeley Imports, Berkeley, CA; tel (510) 848-8910, and a Patrick Lesec Selection (Paris Fax # 011-33-1-44706293), various American importers, including Bacchus Importers (800) 525-9699.