The 2006 Puligny-Montrachet Champ Gain (of which there are six barrels) is another succulently fruity, rich white from Camille Giroud’s current collection. Hazelnut paste, marzipan, honeysuckle, and pear nectar in the nose ally themselves on the plush palate with deep subtly bitter notes of toasted nuts and fruit pits. Impressively rich and ripe, this nevertheless preserves an impressive sense of clarity and no lack of sheer refreshment in its finish. It should be worth cellaring for at least a half dozen years. This received no new wood; other wines in the collection receiving up to 25%. Readers should consult issues 160 and 170 for details on this house owned by Ann Colgin and a group of Americans. They and their winemaker David Croix are as he puts it “trying to develop our program with whites, but it’s really hard to find good material.” The 2006 whites here prove that even with a relatively late harvest, one did not have to sacrifice clarity or minerality, nor be burdened with high alcohol. Clearly, this team is exercising unusual vigilance with their handful of growers. Croix took these wines from barrel early – after passive contact on the lees and careful preservation of CO2 – and then held them in tank for several months (the condition in which I tasted all but one them) before bottling unfined and unfiltered. The aim of extended time in tank was to further preserve freshness, and to insure that the wines and their levels of sulfur would remain stable. Various Importers. A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet; fax 011- 333-80-24-29-70