Climate change has made most winemakers’ jobs more difficult, but in some sectors it’s brought more good than harm. One area basking in the abundant sun these days is the Côte Chalonnaise, a sub-region of Burgundy just south of the Côte d’Or. Vignerons here do have to manage drought, powerful storms, and other new challenges, but the struggle for ripeness is largely a thing of the past.
Weeknight Burgundy is not an oxymoron. Yes, pricing for the famous names in Burgundy has gone a bit nuts of late – and while the wines have never been better, many cuvées now occupy the “special occasion” tier for most consumers. But we’re happy to report that with legwork and a bit of patience, there’s still value to be found.
Chassagne-Montrachet is a town synonymous with opulence and richness. Its wines combine weight without heaviness – everything you want in a top class white Burgundy – but usually comes with a hefty pricetag. Roger Belland’s Santenay 1er cru “Beauregard” blanc is not quite as complex or long-lived as a Chassagne premier cru, but for half the price it does an admirable impression, and we think it’s a steal.
The soils of Sancerre are famous for their flint. This unusual rock gives the region’s wines a note of smokiness and minerality — a perfect foil for Sauvignon Blanc’s lush grapefruit notes. Our Sancerre producer, the Domaine de la Garenne, makes several delicious wines – but their flint-heavy cuvée is our favorite.
Pierre Vessigaud is our newest white Burgundy source, and he’s among our most exciting finds in years. A committed, Demeter certified biodynamic vigneron (the highest organic classification), Vessigaud’s wines are extraordinary in their complexity and sophistication. He’s brand new to our portfolio, but his wines have already stolen the show at several Depot tastings.
If you know anything about Margaux, it’s probably about the iconic Chateau Margaux. But there’s lots to the appellation besides the famous First-Growth chateau. Margaux’s sandy, gravel-filled soils produce some of the Left Bank’s most elegant red wines; Jancis Robinson cites their “haunting perfume,” and “silky texture.”
Burgundy’s Côte d’Or produces most of the region’s iconic red wines. They can exquisite, other worldly expressions of Pinot Noir, but they often come pricetags to match their famous appellations. In recent years we’ve found ourselves spending more time in Burgundy’s other corners, in particular the Côte Chalonnaise and the Maconnais – the names are less recognizable, but the bills are much friendlier.
After four consecutive vintages of small crops in Burgundy, 2022 finally delivered relief. “Beautiful and bountiful,” writes Jasper Morris of the 2022 red Burgundies; “very good wines and plenty of them.” William Kelley calls them “succulent, suave and charming.” Having tasted dozens of them during our spring tasting trip we can entirely agree.
Wine writer Lettie Teauge once described Sancerre as a wine that delivers “pleasure not profundity.” We think this is an excellent description – sometimes a moment calls for a grand, majestic wine, but other times all you need is something crisp, refreshing, and reliable.
Master of Wine Jasper Morris writes that “Cyril Gautheron is a superb producer making wines in a crisp cool classically Chablis style, which is now really quite hard to achieve in these warmer seasons.” The average Chablis may be riper and rounder than a decade ago, but for traditional Chablisien punch and zip, we always reach for Gautheron.
You know what they say about what comes to those who wait. We discovered Pierre Vessigaud over two years ago, and quickly fell in love with his lush, vibrant organic wines from Pouilly-Fuissé. Our miniscule allocation of 2020s was followed by a nonexistent one from the catastrophic 2021 vintage. So we’re even more delighted than usual to announce the arrival of Vessigaud’s wines in the warehouse, at last.
The 2022 red Burgundies have just begun to arrive in the states, and they’re simply delightful. From the warmest, driest year in recent memory, they are nonetheless vibrant and beautifully balanced, sporting low alcohol and classic Burgundian finesse. It’s a magnificent vintage, and one we expect to enjoy for many years to come.
At long last, our Sancerres are back in stock in the warehouse today. We’ve been sold out for months, and are delighted to have these crisp, vibrant Sauvignon blancs available once more. All four cuvées from Domaine de la Garenne are terrific this year, but the most popular is Bouffants, a laser-focused cuvée from limestone-heavy terroir.
The South of France has always been hot, but like everywhere else, it’s getting hotter. Even with grape varietals adapted to warm climates, winemakers often struggle to achieve freshness in their wines. We taste plenty of high-alcohol flat wines these days, but few grab our attention.
Our first three vintages with the Forces Telluriques have been wildly popular. The magnificent, unoaked, biodynamic white Burgundy has quickly become a reader favorite. It shouldn’t surprise anyone, really – you won’t find the Forces Telluriques label on any CellarTracker accounts (except Ansonia customers), but the wine in the bottle is from an iconic Mâconnais source with an exclusive importer for the primary label.