Le Mont! The near-Loire green marl and silex site also shines through the 2008 Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Première Trie, which opens so discreet and subtle but also so intense, deep and dusty on its lemon-peel nose, that you want to sniff the bouquet for hours. On the palate, this is a wine for purists and terroirists because it is not just clear and precise but also piquant, straightly vertical and marked by its high acidity level and lingering salinity, whereas the fruit is completely interwoven with melting and weathering stones. The finish, however, is so juicy and aromatic, so sensual and tender but also so mineral in the aftertaste, that you might be thinking of crushed firestones on your palate. So much tension and salinity here, but finally it is the fruit that lingers. A fascinating '08! 2008 was a small, low-yielding vintage with tiny, thick-skinned berries that were difficult to press without the result of over-extraction. - Stephan Reinhardt

Intense, with green tea, ginger, quince, green fig and heather notes offset by a bracing streak of melon rind on the long, pure finish. A delightfully sweet wine, with a long, chiseled feel. Should cruise in the cellar for a decade at least. Drink now through 2025. 750 cases made. –JM