Saint Emilion is an old place. Founded by Romans in the 4th century, the town is named for a monk who lived there until 787, and who began construction on the cathedral that stands today. Because of its location on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, Saint-Emilion has been a cultural and commercial hub in southwestern France for over a thousand years.
Alsace is beautiful any time of year, but it’s particularly charming in spring. Colorful flowers spill from window boxes on half-timbered houses, water spouts from weathered stone fountains in the quaint village square. No wines better capture this springtime spirit than those of Francis Muré.
Chardonnay grows in nearly every corner of the winemaking world. With a large spectrum of styles hailing from a wide range of origins, it’s hard to pin down what the grape itself tastes like. But our best suggestion is Chablis, or what wine writer Jon Bonné calls “the world’s great, BS-free expression of chardonnay.”
In Burgundy as in real estate, location is everything. Today’s wine comes from a vineyard classified as a Premier Cru, but surrounded by five Grand Crus. It sits along the famous stretch of Grand Crus between Morey-St-Denis and Gevrey-Chambertin, and today many believe its classification has as much to do with centuries-ago politics as any geography.
Thomas Keller’s Marinated Skirt Steak — this is a great way to get a lot of flavor out of an inexpensive cut of meat. The longer you marinate, the more intense the flavor; make sure to brown the meat well.
Good Muscadet should be three things — refreshing, inexpensive, and served next to something from the sea. At its best Muscadet is a dry, precise white wine that’s the pinnacle of freshness. Grown near the mouth of the Loire River, Muscadet is at once brisk and hearty — the essence of the windswept Atlantic coast.
Moules Marinières — we were feeling decadent so added some cream to the broth before serving. Made bread à la Tartine to accompany. We let mussels soak in flour/water for an hour — meat was clean and plump.
As this weekend’s April showers spill into the month of May, we’re reminded that the arrival of warm weather is rarely dry or smooth. If the sweltering days of July and August require a well-chilled rosé, this transition time between spring and summer calls for a refreshing, mid-weight red. For this we usually direct readers to the Pinot Noirs of Burgundy and Alsace, but today we’re suggesting something a bit different.
Known as the “Garden of France,” the Loire Valley winds leisurely across nearly two thirds of the country. Though dozens of grape varietals grace its gently rolling hills, none is more famous than Sauvignon blanc. Planted as far afield as California and New Zealand, Sauvignon Blanc finds its purest expression is the Loire Valley, particularly in the neighboring towns of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé.
Mass production Champagne is easy to find in the US. You’re as likely to run into a bottle of Veuve Cliquot at your corner convenience store as on a restaurant wine list. And at around $60 (or $160 in a restaurant), the actual contents of the bottle often disappoint; it’s that orange label you’re paying for more than what’s in the glass.
Burgundy is at the heart of our portfolio. Most domaines in Burgundy are small and family run, just like Ansonia. But we always like to have a few wines around from the other “B.” Bordeaux presents a larger scale of operation — it’s about 10 times the size of Burgundy — and also a wealth of grapes, styles, and delicious wines.
The wine regions of France are enormous and diverse. The wide spectrum of vinification styles, climate patterns, and grape varietals provides a staggering range of wines. France offers enough diversity to keep us busy for years, and in some regions we feel as though we haven’t even scratched the surface.
Winemaking began in the Languedoc around 125 BC, and over the last two millennia, little has changed in its basic chemistry. Though the past century has seen the advent of new chemicals and measurements, winemaking is still the combination of grapes, yeast, and time.
Gevrey-Chambertin has long been considered Burgundian royalty. The vineyards surrounding the town, first planted around 640 AD, are known for their clay-rich soils, which produce wines of unusual intensity and muscle. Last summer we discovered a new source in the village, the Domaine Gérard Quivy.
Nicolas Maillet is an unusually passionate winemaker. He discusses the finer points of rootstock selection and fermentation chemistry with the same intensity most reserve for Les Bleus (the national soccer team). Even more impressive is how Maillet manages to breathe this energy into his wines, which shimmer with complexity and life.