Sunshine so brilliant greeted our arrival in Chablis for this week long "fete" to showcase the treasures of Burgundy it was in direct contrast to the rain and chill of two years prior, where umbrellas and coats were necessary to protect against the winter chill.

One of the hazards of being a wine educator and writer is that as one palate's evolve, so does the price of the wines. It may be a slow progression for some -- a step up from village level Chablis to one from a trusted producer, and before you know it, you are buying first and grand cru.

Yet tasting through the village level Chablis in the 2008 vintage at the Union des Grands Crus de Chablis tasting this past Monday any wine lover would be pleased to buy on this level. It was a treat to see so many producers whose name I recognize from my local wine store standing by their wines, offering pours. And in contrast to two years ago, everyone seemed to speak English -- had my daily hour with Rosetta Stone Language software been in vain?

The wines I tasted were fresh and delightful with very high acidity and a strong mineral content. Depending on the producer and nature of his or her terroir, even the village level wines seemed to have enough balance, concentration of fruit, and acidity to age for quite a while.

As for the crowd, last year I saw Ed McCarthy, author of Champagne for Dummies, from New York but he said he wasn't going to make it. This go round I was pleased to see my friend Becky Sue Epstein along with Elin McCoy, a fellow member of Manhattan's Wine Media Guild.  But where was my friend Panos?

Amanda, a fellow Master of Wine student I tasted with during the Hospices du Beaune, said hello in the room reserved for the Grand Cru Tasting. You probably know there are 7 Grand Cru yet can you identify the differences? Identifying them may be a lifelong process, yet as time goes on and the more Grand Cru Chablis I drink the more the individual terroirs make themselves apparent.

Differences between Grenouilles and Bougros seem easier to note than the other Grand Cru areas. Bougros seems to have a very strong nose and palate of extreme minerality. Les Preuses, specifically Domaine Nathalie & Gilles Fevre, seemed to have a pronounced element of lime and citrus, and curiously, the acidity was not as racing as the Grand Cru Preuses from Domaine Simonnet-Febvre.. Perhaps it could be chalked up to Fevre's forty year old vines.

The entire 2008 vintage across all the Crus was showing quite well, with all wines having incredibly high acidity, solid concentration of fruit, excellent balance between the fruit and acidity and alcohol, and very gentle oak. The AOC that one my vote yesterday was Grenouilles - I particularly liked La Chablisienne Chablis Grand Cru Grenouilles 2008.

I also liked Blanchots, both Domaine Laroche "Reserve de l'Obedience 2008" and Chateau de Viviers which had quite a bit of texture, possibly from battonage and 15% aging in French oak barrels. Laroche was a particular study in balance, very elegant, with a pastry cream sort of aroma. It had been aged 9 months on lees, with 80% in French oak barrels.

Domaine des Malandes Chablis Grand Cru Vaudesir got notes of praise for its balance, finesse, and delicious palate of citrus and pastry cream. Le Clos, as represented by Domaine Servin, struck me as exceptionally full bodied - perhaps due to 100% alcoholic/malolactic fermentation and maturation in oak casks (average age 3 - 4 years).

Also great to see darkly handsome Jean Francois Bordet showing his First Crus - Jean Francois had been one of three Chablis producers who came to New York last fall on a media tour. And I was able to meet in person young Romain Collet, whose wine I wrote about during a Master of Wine related tasting practice.

The buffet was an extravaganza of incredible cuisine from the area's celebrity chefs.