How fabulous to have Anne Parent as a speaker in today's presentation for NYC journalists and trade about the terroir of Burgundy.

The audience consisted of the city's most vibrant journalists and trade representatives -- and even though most of us were familiar with Burgundy and its terroir -- it was so valuable to taste eight prime examples of the different terroir (four reds, four whites) and take part in a tutored tasting.

After this two hour seminar, guests joined others in a large scale tasting of several producers, including Anne Parent and Jeanne-Marie De Champs (above) of Domaines et Saveurs  who represents several producers, many of whom were also featured on a special "showcase table."

I had tasted several of her producers which you can find with this link ...

"I like a good farmer!" says Jeanne-Marie De Champs, owner of Domaines et Saveurs Collection in Burgundy. Jeanne-Marie represents over seventy producers and exports them to various countries, including the USA and my favorite wine stores.

Jeanne-Marie is responding to my question about how she chooses the producers she represents. Each one I've met over the years has been passionate about their craft.

"Every time I like a bottle of Burgundy, I turn the label around and see your name!" I have told her. But then again, bottles I buy at home are usually Bourgogne AOC and today we are visiting some of her very best producers with bottles selling for well over $100.

You can see all the producer visits here, but today we are visiting Clos de la Perriere, Domaine Gallois, Domaine LaMarche, Domane Meo Camuzet (the picture above is a barrel of wine that Jeanne-Marie bought at the Hospieces de Beaune, which is being raised by Meo Camuzet) and Chateau de la Maltroye.

Jeanne-Marie is very strict about the producers she accepts into her fold -- they must make wine as natural as possible. And all the producers I've visited with her have been absolutely passionate about making the best wine possible. Without exaggeration, the feeling one gets when they talk about their wine and offer tastes of it is as if the wine is their children. Every day, the winemakers are in the cellar, tasting it, listening to its needs ...

On this visit I discovered some fabulous producers and it is always thrilling to find oneself in a restaurant or a wine store, recognize the label on the wine bottle, and have fond memories of the visit..

“Your grandfather actaually used that press!” I can’t help but exclaim, looking at the large, crude, roughly hewn 12th century wine press in the equally antiquated looking cellar.

Anyone might believe it was used by ancient Mesapotanian slaves rather than a hard-toiling Burgundian winemaker atop a small hill in the appellation of Fixin.

Yet it is true. Winemaker and owner Bénigne Joliet , a gentle looking yet passionate, strong willed man in his thirties, remembers his grandfather (not great grandfather) working this ancient 12th century press once used by Cistercian monks.

If you have been to the Clos de Vougeot to see its medieval vat-house and presses, you can well imagine what I am describing. Beside the press are equally ancient looking straw baskets for gathering grapes. Joliet’s father modernized the winery and seemingly inspired in his son a quest to get the most of the grand cru terroir and literally put it on the map of the fine wine world.

Fixin was made a wine appellation in 1937, but dates back to the ancient Romans who undoubtedly took advantage of its pre Grand Cru status. You will find both red and whites here, Grand Cru and village level, yet the white Grand Cru is a tiny percentage and wildly coveted.

Curiously, though summer holiday makers pay a large entrance fee at the Clos de Vougeot to gawk at the Cistercian wine press and must fight off the crowds, there is no entrance fee or crowds here … unless you are discussing the Germans speeding through Burgundy en route to St Tropez, eager to stock their cellar with delicious Grand Cru from this tiny, two-church appellation.

Joliets holding their prized 1er Clos de la Perriè Blanc

I used the word “passionate’ and “strong willed” to describe Joliet because he is in the word of Jeanne-Marie DuChamps a “good farmer.” Beyond that, he is the sixth generation to work the land and as an enologist knows its full potential. In 2004 he was able to buy out other family members so that he could make the wine he wants to make, and after my tasting today must concur it was fabulous.

The second most important thing to remember when you taste at Domaine de la Perriere, with its ancient walls and small hilltop forest that serves as a “hail break” and spares the vines, is not to wear high heels as the cellar steps are steep, narrow, and hundreds of years old...

… and the first thing to keep in mind is that tasting Joliet’s wine is tasting history. Absolutely magnificent. One can only imagine what the wine tasted like when the ancient Romans worked the property, or the Cistercian monks with their 12th century press.

Mr Joliet was kind enough to open several bottles of red, from 2010 to 2006.  Though the terroir is 1st cru, he makes two styles of reds, one from old vines, and one from younger vines. Both wines see 2 - 3 years of oak maturation depending on the vintage. The color, again depending on the vintage, is a beautiful clear translucent garnet. This is because he does not believe in punching down or pumping over for color. Fermentation is kept fairly low, under 32 degrees, and the wine is put in barrels made by French coopers using wood from three different forests, medium toast.

The wine from the young vines has core cherry fruit and is quite delicious, yet the old vine wine from all vintages have a clear succulent beam of cherry fruit that is unmistakable and rare. I tried the 2008 which is a fabulous vintage and incredibly well balanced with racy acidity and that delicious cherry. And the white wine (very precious!) 1er Clos de la Perriè Blanc was incredible - rich and succulent with east Indian spices.

If you visit Burgundy you must stop by for an appointment!
 

http://perso.orange.fr/joliet

 

One of the most fabulous things about Manhattan is that one has no need to jump on a jet to explore exotic wine regions, as the regions themselves come to us.

On March 16, Burgundy Wines came to Manhattan to educate journalists about "the lesser known village appellations from Burgundy."

Leading hte seminar was Jay Youmans, Master of Wine, who was brilliant and had a great sense of humor.  Jay took us through a tutored tasting of eight wines, showing us on a map (very helpful!) how the different village plots differentiated against one another in terms of aspect. At times we had two wines from the same producer, the key difference being the year and also the differenet vineyard and its "aspect."

After the tasting, guests could meet the three dozen producers and taste their wine.

Pictured above is Jean-Marie Du Champs, who had some examples of top producers with her. Jeanne-Marie is super keyed into Burgundy, and you can read more about her and our visits to different producers here.

One of the hallmarks of a good sommelier is the ability to match customers with the right wine, as well as match wine to the correct dish. Only a floor sommelier can tell you which is easier, yet one of the things I like best about Aldo Sohm, head sommelier at Le Bernardin who was named Best Sommelier in the World 2008, is that he is very good at both.

At Le Bernardin recently, I selected a wine -- yet when he approached, he said he knew I was coming from the guest list and had selected a new wine for me to try. The Minervois is an upcoming quality region in the Languedoc, and though young (2008) it was quite delicious with flavors of boysenberry, raspberry, and curious flavors of mocha and chocolate. It was a young wine with elegant flavors and a good pairing for braised meats.

Anne Gros and Jean Paul Tollot, two veteran winemakers from Burgundy,  choose Minevois for ite diversity of soil types (limestone, clay, sandstone) as well as for the wide age range of the vines. The vinyards lie at around 220 meters above sea level, the same altitude as Anne's estate in Vosne-Romanee.

This cuvee of grenache, syrah, carignan, and cinsault (replacing the traditional grape of mouvedre) comes from soils dominated by Assignan sanstone, facing north and west. The small plots are surrounded by scrubland, with pines:, thyme, and rosemary. I hope to visit them in the Languedoc this summer!

Imagine how lucky you would be to experience Burgundy right in the middle of Manhattan! Several lucky journalists were able to experience six wines from Burgundy, and two Cremant (sparkling wine) on December 8th 2010.  Narrating the seminar was Anne Parent of Domaine Parent, a very important producer in France that has been in the Parent family for generations.

I first met Anne - very briefly - at a tasting by women winemakers in Pommard a few years ago. She was an excellent presenter today, speaking in very good English about the terroir of Burgundy and why it is so special. The first three whites were Saint Veran Les Cras 2007 from Domaine des Deux Roches, Mersault 2007 from Albert Bichot Domaine du Pavillon, and Chablis 2st cru Vaulorent, 2007 from Jean-Marc Brocard.

I will speak of the three whites together, as each seemed a good example of their terroir. The Saint Veran was delicious, and had such intense minerality one of the group thought it was oaked. Yet it was rich, buttery, and racy, with intense acidity. It actually seemed a bit more buttery than the Meursault, which in contrast was a bit more elegant and had more finesse. More restrained in its vibrance. The Chablis 1er Cru had a very elegant expression of terroir and a restrained nose.

The reds included Givry 2008 Domaine Michel Sarrazin, a very juicy wine with concentrated fruit and a savory, rich, almost candied cherry nose and palate, Beaune 1er cru Les Champs Pimont 2007 from Domaines Jacques Prieur, one of my favorite wines - very well balanced with a long finish.  I liked its intensity and texture, and found the tannins tame yet refreshingly assertive. In my last travels to Beaune in November I ordered wine from Beaune quite a bit, impressed by the flavor profile and value. The Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru, Les Combottes, 2007 Domaine Alain Jeanniard was deeper than the other reds in color, nose, and palate, with substantial and intense fruit. It seemed as if it need at least three more years in bottle to fully appreciate.

The presentation was excellent, and I really enjoyed seeing the maps along with the presentation, which was really well structured and organized. You can read more about my travels to Burgundy here:

Have you tried a themed tasting? In studying for my MW (Master of Wine) program, I typically ask wine stores to send wine blind (wrapped in bags) to try them with a friend before dinner and deduce what they are. Just recently, I decided to ask the stores to create "themed" tastings, which is more similar to the MW program in which students are given 12 wines grouped into "themes" and asked what the wines are.

A psychic would have little luck on these tests, as naming the correct answer will gain few points. It's all about the argument of "why" a wine is believed to be a certain varietal from a certain region.

So tonight we had one of our first themed tastings of three Pinot Noirs. The clerk wrote that one is from California, one from Oregon, and one from Burgundy. They were labeled A, B, and C and in the end A was Clairborne & Churchhill 08 from the Edna Valley (CA), B was Montinore Estate 09 from Wilhamette Valley, and C was Bourgogne "Les Charmeux" 07 from Henri Prudhon and Fills.

We are cautioned against making an assessment before taking careful notes on the wine, so I repressed my thoughts until the final analysis, and took the extra step of comparing them against one another.

I am pleased to say that I made the correct choices, with "C" chosen for Burgundy because of several reasons yet mostly the way the light translucent color belied the incredible power and muscle, with the wine also having a certain finesse and elegance the others didn't.

"B" was chosen for Oregon because of its dark color and assertive nature, and also a "tobacco" sort of characteristic I associate with Oregon, along with other factors too technical to mention.

"C" was California because, though very delicious, seemed as if it had been a bit "overdone" with slightly too much oak, too much intensity, too much of whatever the producers did to "enhance" the grape's natural flavors.

To see Day 2 please click here

To see Day 1 please click here
 

Today was the day to celebrate the Maconnais – one of the sunniest and most southern areas of Burgundy. The soil is limestone here and the wine is high in acidity, but riper than Chardonnay in the North. You can find good value in terms of price. Quality levels are as follows: Mâcon; Mâcon Supérieur; Mâcon-Villages or Mâcon followed by the village name. I spent a lot of time comparing all the different villages to one another, but quickly found that vinification between the producers was a factor, as well as the specific plot. More producers spoke English than two years ago, and overall they seemed very energetic and upbeat.

macon tasting

That afternoon we went to domaine Anne Gros à Vosne-Romanée for an event honoring Burgundy’s female winemakers. There was a line to get in and the sky looked as if it was about to rain. Once inside, we made our way through the crowded room, took a picture of Anne Gros (elegantly dressed like all Burgundian women) and with some heightened degree of excitement made our way to the back of the room where aged Burgundies were being poured. After tasting nearly a week of ’08 it was great to taste the library wines.

That night, we were very excited and honored to be invited to the home of negociant Becky Wasserman and her husband Russell Hone. I had met them both in New York when they had led a tasting for the popular London Lennie’s restaurant. We had navigation but very curious if we would find their house in a village outside Beaune.

Ultimately we made it and the evening was so fun! Both Becky and Russell are accomplished chefs and very kind hosts. They live in a farmhouse that is very romantic and broke out all their best bottles for us. We had to get up super early yet could have stayed hours more. http://awinestory.com/2010/01/secrets-of-pairing-wine-with-seafood-at-london-lennies.html

Day 2 of Les Grands Jours de Bourgogne 2010
(to see Day 1, please click here)
To see Day 3 please click here
To See Day 4/5 please click here

People who are new to Burgundy are often amazed at the high price, especially when it comes to the red wines of the Cote de Nuits. Yet when one considers the tiny plots, and the way the tender Pinot Noir grape is constantly in danger of hail, rain, wind, or pests – one can see this wine commands the prices it does.

So on the second day of Les Grands Jours De Bourgogne we got up, bought a baguette from the nearby bakery (curiously, you have to go somewhere else on the other side of town for coffee to go with it) and headed toward the Cote de Nuit.

View from hotel ...

For this 10th edition the domains and wine-merchants of Fixin, Gevrey-Chambertin, and Marsannay came together in one place, which was the Maison de Marsannay on the Route des Grands Crus.

It was a gorgeous day and I was in the mood to taste some delicious wine. Marsannay and Fixin are getting a lot of press recently, perhaps because they are “reasonable” in comparison to Grand Cru. This tasting was a bit rushed, as there were two other tastings to attend that day …

Clos de Vougeot and Vosne-Romanee, presented by the Clos de Vougeot Defence Association and the Richebourgh-Romanee Defense Association. This was also the day to taste Chambolle-Musigny and Morey-Saint-Denis.

After a full day of tasting, and a brief rest, we drove toward the village of Marsanny to take part in “La Paulée de Marsannay,” a party to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the “appellation Marsannay” to take place at the Château de Marsannay. Our host was Fabienne Gaillard-Nicot, who was working with the Syndicate of Marsannay on press matters. The region seems very determined to make a name for itself – months earlier at the Hospices de Beaunes press lunch, wines from Marsannay were poured and a representative of the area got up to speak.

It turns out that as recently as 1987, the wines were sold as generic Bourgogne followed by the specification Marsannay or Rosé de Marsannay. Upon discovering this I could see why this region has such tremendous pride.
 

marsanny2

The village of Marsannay used to be known for their rose. The region has been producing wine since at least AD 658. According to Burgundy by Anthony Hanson,after the battle of Rocoy in 1643 the population was reduced to thirty. Then during the 18th century Dijon doubled in size and Marsannay made fortunes and showed it by building town halls and churches. Wines are said to be attractive and fruity, if lighter than those of neighbouring Fixin.
 

Now the La Paulée de Marsannay,” party was incredible fun. Before dinner, producers, journalists, and other VIPs mingled and I was surprised (but should not have been) to realize I know most of the journalists in the room, Elin McCoy of Bloomberg, my friend Becky Sue Epstein from Boston, lots of people I’ve met in different regions of the world through the years.

Because Marsannay is so out of the way, I was surprised to find that one guest actually booked a hotel near the Chateau so she could get to the party (if you don’t have a car, transportation is very limited). It turns out, she walked to the party in this gorgeous formal dress and high heels.

The party was fun – all the Marsannay producers were out in full force, really ebullient that their wine was finally receiving world-wide recognition. Seated at our table were many producers, most of whom spoke English, and by the middle of the meal virtually every producer was jumping up from his or her respective seat and running around, bottles in hand, pouring wine so that all the journalists and VIPS in attendance could taste.

It was really a Fete and I was so glad I was there to celebrate this appellation’s success!

Other Burgundy articles

Wine friends, I’ve been obsessed with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir since my visit to Burgundy to take part in the Les Grand Jours De Bourgogne – a very exciting week in the lives of journalists and trade professionals, and of course the winemakers throughout Burgundy. This was my second visit and the officials who have organized it have done a spectacular job. This year, also, the weather cooperated, as two years ago I arrived in Chablis for the first day’s tasting in a suit without a coat.
 

Maison des Vins de Chablis - in the sun!

Now, if you have been to Chablis, you know that Saks Fifth Avenue is not exactly around the corner. And if you have not seen Chablis, but have been to Disneyland and have seen the castle of Sleeping Beauty, you get a sense of what this charming village is like. Making up for the freezing rain and wind that day two years ago were the delicious 2006 Chablis and the very warm welcome of the producers of Chablis and Auxerrois.
 

chablis room

This year, the welcome was equally warm – and so was the weather. I had dressed for a Siberian blizzard in anticipation of the grey cold, yet the sun was so gorgeous and warm it felt like St. Tropez. Though only two years had passed, this year I knew many of the producers by name, since a key team of producers from Chablis had come to Manhattan.

Also, Laurent Droughin had his own tasting, and I got some voice commentary about grand cru.

I was able to say hello once again to Jean Francois Bordet, last seen in Manhattan where after an impressive seminar and tasting he was off to shop. It was also thrilling to meet the producers whose name I had only seen on the bottles of Chablis, such as young Romain Collet whose family had been making fine wine for hundreds of years.
 

chablis buffet

In addition to knowing so many of the producers from past visits to Burgundy, such as the Hospices de Beanue, I recognized many friends I have made on many other trips to wine regions around the world, partly through WSET and the Masters of Wine program. During the incredible buffet lunch (the French do things so well) showcasing traditional cuisine from Chablis and Auxerrois, guests were able to taste all the different wines, as well as earlier vintages.

The first day of Les Grands Jours sets the tone for the rest of the week, and seeing all my favorite producers, tasting the new vintage and meeting new producer friends, was so fabulous I left just knowing the rest of the week would be fantastic!

(to see Day 2, please click here)
To see Day 3 please click here
To See Day 4/5 please click here