1999 Chapoutier Ermitage Cuvee de L'Oree

I was never a big fan of white Rhone wines but in the last year or so I've been drinking more of them as I have a freind who is addicted to them and can't understand why I'm not gaga over them like him. SO, I've been drinking a lot of them lately looking for that epiphany wine and I found it in the 1999 Chapoutier Ermitage de L'Oree. This is a white wine with balls enought to be a red wine yet sleek and sophisticated enough to be classified next to the great white Burgundies of the world. While the l'Oree has the oily mouth feel that many white Rhones exhibit it was a bit more unctous than oily. The nose was a powerhouse of hazelnuts, petrol, nectarines, orange zest and flowers, the palate was bone dry with a bracing minerality of wet stones all backed up with an intense layer of fruits ranging from white peaches, pears and exoctic fruits. Amazing depth and longevity on the finish left me wanting more. A+ on the Dale scale.