From a gravelly, riverside site, Alliet’s 2005 Chinon Vieilles Vignes smells of ripe boysenberry, and bitter-sweet herbs and flowers. With dark chocolate and black fruits displayed on a juicy, ripe, yet decidedly un-sweet palate, this finishes with a youthful firmness that invites a year’s wait before tucking in. It has been just over twenty years since Philippe Alliet consolidated his family’s properties, and he has built one of the region’s finest reputations while personally remaining remarkably reclusive. (I tasted with Alliet’s wife, who took pains to explain that no offense was intended by her husband’s absence in his vineyards.)A Daniel Johnnes Selection, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300. Also imported by Beaune Imports, Berkeley, CA 94708; tel. (510) 559-1040