Yesterday morning we drove up to Chablis to visit Cyril Gautheron. He had been up since 2am guarding his vineyards against frost, but somehow managed a warm handshake and a smile for our 9:30 appointment.
We’ve opened a lot of white Burgundy over the past two weeks, and we can confirm St-Aubin remains one of the best values out there. From a forgotten valley wedged between two superstar towns, the wines of St-Aubin can be every bit as good as those from Chassagne and Puligny.
Spring is in full swing in Burgundy, even though here that means a range from below freezing at night to nearly 70 during the day. But wherever you are, and whatever the weather, it’s bound to warm up soon.
Last week winemaker Eric Chauvin took us out into his vines for our tasting. He believes fervently in organic winemaking, and wanted us to taste his wine en plein air, amid the rich earth from which they spring.
We spent yesterday afternoon tasting the 2017s at the Domaine des Varoilles. Winemaker Gilbert Hammel is a softspoken man making red Burgundies that are anything but. Gevrey-Chambertin is typically a bold, masculine wine, and the Varoilles cuvées are even moreso.
We spent yesterday tasting in the Northern Rhône Valley. From 9am through 5:30pm, we tasted dozens of meaty, intense, sinewy Syrahs, from appellations like Cornas, St-Joseph, Côte Rôtie, and Crozes Hermitage. They were chewy, delicious, and exhausting. After a day of teeth-staining reds, our final appointment finished with a golden, shimmering white wine: Condrieu from […]
White Burgundy is among the food-friendliest wines around. It works at the high end – think a perfectly aged Meursault, open for an hour, with veal medallions in just the right amount cream, a hint of lemon, carefully sauteed mushrooms, a sprig of parsley… you get the idea.
