Author: Thomas Wilcox

À la famille. We recently celebrated our sixth year as a père et fils business, a multigenerational approach that is common in Burgundy. The Belland family in Santenay is a particularly impressive example. Their domaine has operated since 1839, and today Roger and his daughter Julie comprise the 5th and 6th generations. With 176 years of experience, the Bellands know their terroir intimately.

The Bellands have used no herbicides for more than 20 years, and their wines are all careful, pure expressions of their origin. This is not a flashy domaine — there’s a small sign next to the door on the street, and you have to enter their cellar before seeing any of their many winemaking awards. But Clive Coates calls them “one of the best sources in Santenay,” and we agree.

Autumn White Burgundy.  In the past few years we’ve focused on Belland reds, which are bright, punchy, and delicious, with excellent minerality and fruit. But during our visit in June, his lineup of whites stole the show. We struggled to narrow our choice to three, and we’re pleased to introduce the first today — a village level Santenay. (Keep an eye out next month for white Belland 1er crus from Santenay and Chassagne.)

Belland’s Santenay blanc “Comme Dessus” is a beautiful white Burgundy. The nose is floral and pretty, with white flowers and lemon rind. The mouth is particularly intense, with impressive length and excellent tension. Belland employs very little oak, and this wine is about purity, minerality, and fruit. The ample body makes it lovely on its own, but the solid acidity means it will also match well with food.

We’d serve this with a roast chicken on a Sunday afternoon, though if the bottle is opened when the chicken goes into the oven, you may need a second by the time it’s done. We’ll toast you with thanks for another year in the business, and you can toast the Famille Belland.

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BELLAND Santenay “Comme Dessus” 2013
Ansonia Retail: $34
case, half-case: $29/bot

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AVAILABLE IN 6- AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS

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Email Tom to place an order.

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Fermentation.  Most of Burgundy completed the harvest last week, with all signs pointing toward an excellent 2015 vintage. As once tractor-filled streets return to their sleepy normalcy, the excitement and celebration in the air has given way to the sweet, yeasty smell of fermentation.

Most wines go through two fermentations — the alcoholic fermentation, happening now, converts natural sugars into alcohol. The second, the “malolactic” fermentation, converts malic acid (found in apples and tart fruits) into a softer lactic acid (found in milk). The effect effect of the malolactic fermentation is to soften a wine and to thicken its mouthfeel.

“Thickness” can be an attractive quality in white wine, provided it’s not overdone, as it is in many New World wines. The best white Burgundies possess a bright acidity that helps keep them lively and balanced. One of our favorite styles of this thick but balanced white Burgundy comes from the Domaine Ravaut in Ladoix.

Cool Weather White.  The Ravaut family is the ultimate local wine source. A generation ago the Ravauts developed a clientele among the workers in the quarries next door, and today they continue to sell more than half of their wine to local customers. They fly mostly below the radar of the international wine press, and we feel lucky to have found them. (Pictured above is Vincent Ravaut during the 2013 harvest.)

We’ve bought out the Ravauts’ remaining stock of 2012 Bourgogne blanc, and it arrived in our warehouse last week — it’s a delicious wine at an impressive price. With a rich mouthfeel and beautiful balance, this is a wine for gourmands – it’s generous, easy to drink, and pairs beautifully with food. There are faint notes of fennel and coconut, next to the traditional lemon and toast. And the richness makes it a perfect cooler-weather white wine. Try it with a risotto – squash or mushroom are our favorites.

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RAVAUT Bourgogne blanc 2012
Ansonia Retail: $25
case, half-case price: $22/bot

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AVAILABLE IN 6-  AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS

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Email Tom to place an order.

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Now’s the time.  Many wine collectors seek out red Burgundies for their longevity. Aged well, the best can improve for decades. With time in the bottle, these wines develop extraordinary nuances, unlike any other food or drink. But not all red Burgundy requires such patience.

The 2013 Maranges 1er cru from Roger Belland has only had about a year in the bottle, but it’s astonishingly drinkable today. The wine is bursting with young and bright fruit, but the mouthfeel is remarkably smooth and the tannins beautifully soft. It’s a drinkable red Burgundy priced for a weeknight.

Dark and dense.  In an era when intra-regional blending was more common, Maranges was called “le Médecin” (the doctor), known for darkening up weakly colored reds from elsewhere in Burgundy. Belland’s 2013 Maranges would qualify as a “doctor” in intensity rather than tannin – there’s concentrated, rich, juicy red fruit that is sometimes lacking in wines from Burgundy’s less famous appellations.

The nose is deep cherry and blackberry, very clean and ripe. The mouthfeel is midweight and dense, with tannins that are firm but round, with no hint of raspiness. Next to a Vosne 1er cru, a Maranges might seem a bit rustic, but there’s a time and a place for everything. Next to a grilled steak and sautéed greens — and at a fifth of the price of the Vosne — the bottle of this we enjoyed last night was perfection itself.

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BELLAND Maranges 1er cru 2013
Ansonia Retail: $34
case, half-case price: $28/bot

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AVAILABLE IN 6-  AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS

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Email Tom to place an order.

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Graphite and Cranberry.  The wines of Beaujolais get an unfair rap. Their brand has been linked to the Beaujolais Nouveau, a cloying, fruity wine made just weeks after the harvest. But those drinkers who avoid the region entirely miss out on some exceptional wines.

Beaujolais produces much wine besides the overhyped nouveau and some of it — namely those from the 10 “Beaujolais Cru” villages — can be extraordinarily good. One of our favorite Crus is Juliénas, a small appellation of just over 2 square miles. These sturdy, low-alcohol, refreshing wines are a lovely match for the coming fall.

Unpretentious.  Wine has been made at the Chateau de Juliénas since the 15th century. Today the Condemine family runs the domaine with a friendly modesty, and their wines are similarly welcoming. Last night we opened the 2011 Juliénas Prestige, and found it delicious and unusually complex. The nose was graphite, deep cranberry, and wild honey; the mouth showed a juicy attack followed by a muted, softened mouthfeel.

Beaujolais can be serious wine, but it’s rarely self-righteous. As Jancis Robinson puts it, “Beaujolais is meant to be drunk, rather than discussed or collected.” We cooled last night’s bottle for a half-hour in the fridge, and serve it over beside grilled chicken with visiting guests. It wasn’t the star of the meal, but it wasn’t supposed to be; and there certainly wasn’t any left to save for the fridge.

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JULIÉNAS Cuvée Prestige 2011
Ansonia Retail: $24
case, half-case price: $18/bot

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AVAILABLE IN 6-  AND 12- BOTTLE LOTS

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