The Gambal 2007 Puligny-Montrachet smells delightfully of Normandy cider, white peach, and sweetly-perfumed lily and gardenia. The heady floral perfume wafts onto the polished, plush palate along with luscious orchard fruits and diverse citrus. This lacks the energy, mineral interplay, or incipient complexity of Gambal's Saint-Aubin cru, but is irresistible and impeccably pure. I would plan on enjoying it over the next 2-3 years. American Alex Gambal (for more of whose improbable story, readers are referred to issue 171, and for more about whose 2007 harvest, consult the introduction to this report) has established a solid reputation for his negociant firm both within France and abroad. And like so many negociants of both the bootstrapping and well-established sorts, he is seeking to benefit from every possible opportunity to access top-quality fruit or vineyards, and at the same time to purchase vineyard land I promising but less-celebrated locations. After a collection of 2006s that showed the precarious, borderline blowsy side of that vintage, it is a pleasure to report on a far more entertaining not to mention elegant crop of 2007s. Gambal was very sparing and early with batonnage, and tends to rack all of his wines out of barrel in mid-summer, bottling one portion before the next harvest, and leaving his more concentrated crus (or any that were especially late to undergo malo) in tank until February. Various regional U.S. importers

A fresh, rich white, whose lemon custard and apple notes are buoyed by the vibrant structure. Moderately long finish. Drink now through 2015. 75 cases imported. -BS