Day 3- Burgundy Again

Wines tasted/consumed: 58

I'm really not sure how I managed to make it to breakfast that morning at 8:30am. I really felt like I was looking out at the world through coke bottle lenses. It took me a while to realize that there was another person joining our party. At first I thought he was just another guest at the hotel, but then he started to follow us out the door. Scott worked with Nate and Stuart helping them find talented wine producers and this morning we were going to a few of his picks.

Our first stop was at 9am at Domaine Pillot in Chassagne-Montrachet, located a bit south of Cote de Beaune. While still rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, a wine glass was handed to me and we were led down into the cellar. Paul's son Theirry took over a few years ago and is the 4th generation to run the domaine. It was really interesting to watch the dynamic of father and son when we first entered and when we left. Paul stayed completely out of the way and didn't even come downstairs to taste with us, but took orders from his son to get glasses.

There was no wasting time as we had our first drops of wine within 15 minutes. We started out easy with their entry level 06 Blanc Bourgogne and quickly moved into some heavy hitters. Anyone who says they don't like white wine has not had one from this producer. They were all so good, that my tasting notes just fell to the wayside. If I really liked the wine it got a star and on one, the Cailleretes made me go weak in the knees from the nose alone. Even his red wines delivered. It's rare that a producer can make such great wines both red and white. Theirry spoke English very well so we were able to ask a lot of questions and I wish I could remember what they were. I know he spoke about how they tended the vines into a cordon system, meaning that the vines are attached to the top wire of the trellis. We were then led out their vines to see for ourselves. It truly was an inspiring experience being at the Pillot's winery and I was even moved enough to want to go back in September to participate in the harvest for a week. And some pictures for your viewing pleasure:

And then some video:


Waking up and tasting Pillot's wines was a great way to start the day and it was only getting better.

Our next stop was Billard-Gonnet, an incredible Pommard 1er Cru producer who's domaine dates back to 1766. Scott was the complete leader of this introduction as he was pretty reserved and didn't speak much English. He brought us down to the cellar, where he had a nice little tasting room with a heat lamp. I was so happy to see one of those but it didn't really help the freezing damp that cut right through me. It wouldn't have been so bad in the cellars, but the wines were so cold my teeth hurt. Most of my time was spent breathing hot air into cupped hands so I could warm up my glass.

This meeting started off all business...went right into the whites which were clearly not his forte and quickly moved into the Pinots. Even the entry level Bourgogne rouge was fabulous. Rustic and strong, totally packed a punch. I was falling in love with Pommard. We went through all of the 05 and 06's and then Billard asked us what we wanted to try. Woo hoo! We asked to try the 99 1er Cru and were not disappointed. Then we tried the 98 Pommard, but the 99 was definitely the big winner. I guess Billard saw our enthusiasm for his wines and decided to quiz us and we played name that vineyard and vintage. It was a 66 Clos des Vouches and it was like drinking pure gold. This was my first time tasting what a Burgundy can do with a little time and patience. Note to self....must get a wine fridge and start putting some of these away.

After having such an intense wine I think all of us were feeling rather excited about why we were in Burgundy. Billard let us roam around his cellar and what stood out most to me was the amount of glorious mold that was covering EVERYTHING. I guess he uses indigenous yeast. And the end of each row of barrels were shelves housing bottles from the last 10 decades. While the other guys in the group were squawking about bottles from the 60's, I was staring at bottles that had been there since the late 1800's.

It was a bittersweet visit as we learned that Billard was planning on retiring soon, but didn't have any children to pass his domaine to. He might have another relative to take over, but who knows what will happen. Anyone want to buy a winery? Anyone?

It was now getting into lunchtime and we were running late to meet our next broker. I'm starting to notice a trend in running 30 minutes behind. In Miami there's Cuban time...in France, there's wine time. Luckily most people seemed to be pretty relaxed about time and Don was waiting for us patiently at the restaurant. He even took the liberty of having our food ready and wines on the table so we didn't waste much time. Still had lots more to taste. My favorite part about this restaurant was the waiter asking the chef to make me an omelet au natural, but getting an omelet with ham & cheese in it.

We had lunch here:

Auberge du vieux vigneron à Corpeau près de Beaune
by medianet

Don was a great guide through Burgundy as we went from Beaune to Alain Chavy in Puligny-Montrachet then to Pascal Pernier in Meursault. It's unbelievable how close all these appellations are to each other....literaly feet! I tried to take some video footage of Don pointing it out as we stopped along the vineyards...

At Chavy, we got to try three of his wines from the top down...in other words we went from the highest point of the vineyard to the mid-point on the slope and then to the flatlands. Even though it only spanned 100's of feet, the tastes were much different. The Champ Gain had more acidity, leanness and punch while the Folatieres which was midway down the slope was much more expressive (i even gave it two stars). The Clavoillons was at the bottom and was good, but just didn't have the same impact as the Champ Gain. Terroir is almost everything. It keeps getting driven into my brain with each wine I get to taste. After trying those wines it was off to Pascal Pernier who's well known for his Auxey Duresses. His style was very well structured. I noticed that both Chavy and Pernier have immaculate cellars. Well organized and clean. It definitly carries through in their wines as well.
It was at this point of the day where I started to collapse with exhaustion. My palate was fine, but the rest of me wanted to sleep badly. I was sitting on the bench in Pernier's tasting room, holding a glass, my pad and paper and trying to write notes...and falling asleep. My eyes kept closing. I looked down at my page and saw the ink sort of scribbled across the lines. Game over. I was so happy to finish up that visit and get to take a disco nap in the car as we went to Don's office where apparently we would be trying more wines. Can we please taste some water! I was parched.

I woke up a bit at Don's office when he poured us some Pouilly-Fume...after days of nothing but chardonnay, that sauvignon blanc tasted like gold. I'm not complaining about the chards I had been drinking, because they were increadible, but it was nice to have a change of pace. Eleven more wines at Don's and then we were off to Le Montrachet, an inn that was built in 1824, for dinner. After all that wine...I was certainly ready for some food.

I think this was one of my favorite meals because I was over it with just the cheese and bread meal. I got the nerve to ask the waiter if the chef could just make me something vegetarian and wound up getting the most amazing pumpkin soup. Then I was served roasted vegetables which included endives, something I really hadn't eaten before. My wine buddies were eating pigeons and was fascinated by the strange meat eater food. Had to take a picture. Then I was so moved by my cheese plate, I took another picture.


I think we managed to get back to the hotel by 1:30am, full and ready to hit the hay...

Day 4 begins in just a few hours.

Day 2- Burgundy Go Time!

Drink Count:22 Wines Tasted
5 Wines Drunk
1 Calvados
1 William Pear Brandy

It doesn't get light out in the northern part of France till rather late in the morning. When my alarm went off at 8am, it was completely dark outside my window and I wasn't sure where I was. In all honesty, I didn't know if it was the jet lag or the amount of champagne consumed the night before which made me rather confused. Realizing that there wasn't much time to shower and get downstairs, I tried to take one of the most awkward showers with no shower curtain- a skill I mastered by the end of the trip. I'll give a play by play on how to take a shower and not flood the place in the near future.

After a very quick breakfast of bread and jam, we started loading up the cars to take off to Saint-Bris. But before I sat in a car for another two hours, I had to run around and snap some shots of the area.

Our first stop of the day was with Jacky Renard in Saint-Bris-le-Vineux, an oddity in Burgundy due to the fact the white wines are made from Sauvignon blanc and Sauvignon gris. Having only tasted one Saint Bris before, I was completely psyched to try another one. But first, some scenery:



Pulling up Jacky's driveway, you just knew this was going to be a real hands on producer. We were greeted by a big black dog, a cat, his wife and himself. The couple led us downstairs to where their tanks were and the tasting table was set up. Jacky quickly started opening bottles and I was fortunate enough to get a sound bite of the echo. You know us crazy Americans. We started with his Aligote and went through the line of Petit Chablis, Chablis, Saint Bris, Bourgogne Rouge and Irancy. Then the couple were eager for us to try the 06 reds in the barrel. We were more than happy to taste. The 05's were good, but the 06's were incredible. Trying the wine was almost as much fun as watching it get siphoned out of the barrel.


Following the barrel samples, we went back to the tasting table and re-tried wines at our leisure. The whites that I originally thought were sharp had opened up and became much more expressive. There were snacks out for us as well which neither Jacky nor his wife would let us forget about. I ate as much cheese and nuts as I could and then quickly tried to look up how to say "I'm full" in French. Eventually, we made our way back upstairs to say our goodbyes and being my usual self, I couldn't sit still so wandered off to play with the dogs and take pictures of cherry fruit trees. Jacky was just an absolute sweetheart and I couldn't help but give him the double cheek kiss when I bid my farewell.

Then it's off to Domaine St. Martin in in Marsannay, but first a quick stop outside Dijon to hit up the Wal-Mart of France. This place was just huge and had everything from auto parts to food. What the French consider their regular groceries, we consider them to be gourmet. I think Stuart and Nate loaded up the most with salt, duck confite and mustard while I was just so overwhelmed that I wound up stocking up on chocolates. Our pit stop lasted all of 20 minutes and then we were off again.

Martin Bart was the first eccentric wine maker I got to meet on this adventure and I loved every minute he went on a tangent about the lunar cycle. I felt bad for Stuart since he had to try and keep up with his French and then translate it for us. What the most thrilling thing about meeting Martin was that even though we didn't speak the same language, somehow how or other we just clicked. I got completely wrapped up in his passion for the vines that he tended to and the wine making process. Here are some of the tidbits we learned:

* When the vines are flowering is when the wines in the cellar start to show well.
* They try to rack the wines when it's a low moon, cold weather and no rain.
* Wood that was cut during the right time during the lunar cycle would hold up better to weather and insects. This explains why there are wooden buildings and furnishings which are in great condition after hundreds of years. Since wood is no longer cut in tune with the lunar cycle, things aren't made to last as long. I feel this way about most products made today.
* Hair grows in conjunction with the lunar cycle and he has a friend who gets his hair cut depending on where the moon is.

I'm not sure if it was the moon, Martin himself or the wines, but everything was tasting wonderful. I just can't wait to get some of my favorites in the store and for Martin to visit the US very soon. As of now, I have wine crushes on everyone.

By the time we left Domaine Bart it was pitch black out and we went to check into the hotel Le Home in Beaune. The hotel was absolutely adorable and was completely happy to be staying in the same place for a few nights. I got the room over the barn and it was wall to wall carpeting. Really quaint and am upset with myself for not taking pictures, but here's a link to their website http://www.lehome.fr/.

Once checked in we re-convened for dinner at Caveau des Arches which was in walking distance from the hotel. Figuring we would eat and drink a great deal, thought it would be best to walk some of it off. The restaurant is a two fork Micheline rated restaurant located in the vaults of a fortified bridge from the 16th century. They're best known for their simple Burgundian cuisine and vast wine list. Too bad for me they were not well versed in the art of Tofu, but as I will learn there isn't even a word for it in the French language. This was my first true dinning experience in France and I think I was a bit giddy. The wine list was past around the table, bottles and food were ordered and the true French meal began.

I never knew there were so many courses! I fell short on a few, but definitely made up for it in salads, cheese and desserts. The wine was the most intimidating part of the meal, but when the fromage was wheeled around the table, it was overwhelming. There were so many to choose from and all looked good. It took me no time to choose dessert though...how can you pass up on creme brulee? There was also the after dinner drink, then the after dinner coffee or tea. Everyone ordered coffee and I ordered calvados, but then our waitress came over and offered us a round of drinks on them, and I have a hard time saying no to a free drink so then joined the group in having some pear brandy. We all had a great time getting to know each other over the course of the 4 hour meal. Not to mention there was a group of Burgundy wine lovers on the other side of the restaurant making quite a racket and singing the song of the Burgundian Wine Fan Club (I can't remember the real name of the international group) which involved a lot of "la la's" and hand waving. I really wanted to run over there and join in the fun, but was still trying to be on good behavior.



By the time we left it was well after midnight and although I was completely exhausted, I really was thankful for the walk home. Gave me some time to work off all that was eaten and drunk. Too bad it wasn't enough, cause the next morning...total discombobulation.

My Journey through France- Champagne

Drink count: 1 glass of knob creek @ the airport
8 different Champagnes

The journey began at JFK late Monday night on January 21st. I won't bore you with the boring details of waiting till midnight in the airport before taking off...so let's just jump into it.

Stuart, Michael and I arrived late on Tuesday and immediately got into our rental and headed off to Champagne. I wish I could say navigating the French roads was easy, but I haven't seen so many roundabouts, signs and absolute confusion on the highway. Here's a link to our route.

View Larger Map

And just so you can see some of the view on the way to Champagne...

We arrived at Duval-Leroy only slightly late and met up with the other half of our party; Nate, Bob & Mike. Michel, Duval-Leroy's sales manager, greet us and introduced us to his co-worker who gave us a tour of the facilities. This was my first time EVER at a winery and I was trying my best not to go nuts like I usually do at an amusement park. I tried to contain myself and keep my energy focused on taking pictures and listening to their story.

When the tour was over, Michel lead us to their off-site cellar that was originally a Roman limestone quarry. It reminded me of the Byzantine cisterns but with 10 million champagne bottles. Everywhere you turned were stacks of champagne bottles. The vintage were down there for at least 3 years while the non vintage ones are held for 2 years. During WWII, the cellar was used to store bombs and lock up prisoners. On a lighter note, we were treated to a freshly disgorged bottle of 1996 non dosage. Finally, something to drink!

Michel took Michael and I with him in his car going to the Roman cellars and then to the hotel. In the short amount of driving time, I soon realized that Michel was a Champagne spy. He knew every place that Duval-Leroy was served and all the places he needed to get his champagne into. He didn't let any moment pass where he couldn't slip in a sales pitch about his brand. His charm was just increadible and I couldn't wait to go back to the winery and have dinner with everyone.

Michel went all out for dinner, setting up a Magnum of the 99 Blanc du Blanc to go with our snacks of salted meats, comte and bread. By the time I sat down, I think I had already downed enough champagne for the night, but of course the evening was just beginning. Here's what followed: Paris N/V, 96 La Femme, 99 Trepail 1er Cru (organic), Cuvee Leroy Neiman N/V, 99 Cumieres 1er Cru (organic) and then the Lady Rose with dessert.

I have no idea what time we made it back to the hotel, but it had felt like I had been awake for 3 days and already been in France for 3 months. I can't believe how quickly sleep went and we were eating breakfast and back in the car to try some more wine.