Claude Kolm/The Fine Wine Review
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Posts posted by Claude Kolm/The Fine Wine Review
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I can tell you that it is a negociant wine and that it is village-grade Morey-St-Denis. I have not had the wine.
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Who is the producer?
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carpetbagger -- First of all, I disagree with your vintage evaluations. In the words of Michel Lafarge, 1990 was a vintage for people who love wine, 1993 was a vintage for people who love Burgundy." IMO and in that of plenty of others, 1993 was the finest vintage of our generation; 1990 gives lots of pleasure, but little terroir. But there are plenty of other good vintages, and indeed, since 1984, only 1994 qualifies as poor (although 2000 and 2001 were very difficult in parts of the Cote de Beaune).
Second, one always buys the wine, not the vintage. There are plenty of outstaanding and even great wines from less fashionable vintages, just as there are plenty of poor wines from fashionable vintages. For myself, I've bought plenty 1993s, 1995s, 1996s, 1998s, 1999s, and I'll buy certain 2001s. I didn't buy across the board in those vintages, but what I bought will provide great pleasure for me and my guests.
As for expense, they've been giving Burgundy away here. Recently for friends and to have some throw-around Burgundies for myself, I picked up 1999 Philippe Rossignol Gevrey-Chambertin Les Corbeaux for $12.99/bottle, 1999 Bizot Vosne-Romanee vieilles vignes for the same price, and 1999 Simon Bize Savigny-les-Beaune Les Bourgeots for $9.99/bottle. The 2000s are extremely uneven, but they are going to be dumped this fall and next spring, and those who know what to look for will be able to score some real deals.
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baruch - -How is it any more confusing than buying a Gevrey-Chambertin from a producer located in Morey-St-Denis -- Robert Groffier, for example?
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Moreover, there is no town named Moulin-a-Vent, just as there is no town named Cote-Rotie.
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I work in a French restaurant. I have a small selection of Italian wine. I had pinot grigio on the list before. I was appalled at how quickly it sold. With 600 selections, why would one wine sell so quickly? When I asked people, the answer was "that's what we drink at home". Its a default wine for people too lazy or too (sorry) ignorant to read a winelist, ask a question or try something new.
A famous chef out here once remarked that most of her customers could be satisfied by a wine list with only two wines: Robert Mondavi Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon.
My understanding for the reason that restaurants such as French Laundry raised their corkage fee to $50/bottle is that customers were walking in with KJ and the like.
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Is there really such a thing as good cheap pinot noir?
From Burgundy there is.
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The Leroy situation is very complex.
Domaine d'Auvenay is Lalou Bize-Leroy's personal estate, and there is no confusing that label with the labels for Domaine Leroy and the Leroy negociant wines.
Mme Bize has a controlling interest in the two Leroy operations, but there are outside investors, and I believe that the ownership of the two is the same. Domaine Leroy is located in Vosne-Romanee and the Leroy negociant firm is located in Auxey-Duresses. This is the key to distinguishing the virtually identical labels of the two operations: if the small print indicates that the firm is in Auxey-Duresses (or Meursault, which is the main post office for Auxey), it is a Leroy negociant wine. If the label says that the firm is in Vosne-Romanee, then the wine is Domaine Leroy.
An example of how tortuous all this is: A subscriber called me last month about some Leroy Volnay-Santenots that she had purchased at a well-known shop in New York that claims great expertise in Burgundies. Now, Domaine Leroy in fact owns vines in the Volnay-Santenots vineyard and makes its own domaine wine. The store represented the bottles as Domaine Leroy. However, the label stated "Auxey-Duresses" on it -- meaning that the bottles she had were negociant wines that Leroy had purchased in barrel from (which is the Leroy negociant practice, unlike some negociants who purchase grapes and make the wines themselves) from another producer and an entirely separate wine from Domaine Leroy's Volnay-Santenots. This situation was so complex that the personnel at the store did not realize what had happened, i.e., that they had purchased and resold Leroy negociant wine in the belief that it was Domaine Leroy wine, and they objected when my subscriber attempted to return the wine because it was not Domaine Leroy (not the smartest customer relations practice for the store).
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fresh_a:
Have you tried Artisan Cheeses on California Street between Fillmore and Steiner in San Francisco?
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Busboy --While you're in Provence, Carpentras and Ile-sur-la-Sorgue have don't miss markets. I don't remember the day(s) for the Carpentras market, but Ile-sur-la-Sorgue is on Sundays.
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Baruch -- I'm not sure how you mean to compare the wines. If you are looking at ageability, Fleurie is so pretty when young, I would never think of aging it -- drink within the first four years of the vintage. Regnié and Juliénas can take some aging. But the producer is going to be more important than the village the wine came from.
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All over France, one sees people drinking alcohol in bars at 8, 9 am in the morning. Alcoholism is the country's dirtly little secret.
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It should be pointed out that some producers that are negociants also have significant holdings of their own, e.g., Faiveley, Drouhin, Jadot, and Bouchard P. & F. In fact, the Volnay-Caillerets from Bouchard P&F mentioned above is from property that Bouchard owns. These producers mark on the label the wines that are from properties that they own or control.
It is true that once one gets beyond the top tier of negociants, the individual character of the terroir is often blurred. However for top negociants, such as those mentioned above, Nicolas Potel, and the newly-created Dujac F. & P., the terroir is quite precisely defined.
The confusion over negociant and estate is a serious issue. For example, Leroy uses virtually identical labels for its estate wines and its negociant wines. I can't tell you how many people I've run into who have bought Leroy negociant wines (not even made by Leroy, but bought in the barrel) thinking that they were buying Domaine Leroy wines. Other producers such as Meo-Camuzet have started making negociant wines that are sold as part of the whole lineup, and unless you are really very knowledgeable, you won't even know to suspect that this is being done. (Meo is making the wine from bought-in grapes, though.)
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Yes, but alcohol level does not determine a wine's aging capacity.
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It's not the size of the body, but rather the soils on which the wine comes from (as well as the vigneron's treatment in the vineyard and cellar) that determines the ageability.
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From a good producer (an important qualification), some Beaujolais, most particualrly Morgon and Moulin-a-Vent, take on Pinot Noir characterisitics with bottle aging. The French use the verb pinoter to describe this (the verb is also used for Cote-Roties that resemble Burgundies). I don't think I've ever heard the term used with Chenas, but it is possible, as that is one of the better-aging crus, and I would think it might be possible with Regnie and Julienas, as well.
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Acquerello, plain and simple. Beats Danko and Fleur de Lys by miles, does a different thing from FF.
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Jim -- Digioia-Royer is a small, young, passionate producer who makes wines very much in the style of Dujac. He has Chambolle, Chambolle vieilles vignes, Chambolle-Groseilles (the only example of this vineyard I have ever come across) and Chambolle-Gruenchers. For now, the entire production goes to the UK. Check out my reviews of the 2000 and 2001 vintages.
Prieur has been improving for the last 5 years or so, since Antonin Rodet bought into the estate and put Nadine Gubelin in charge of the cellar. Not at the level of Roumier, of course, but most of the wines are not bad, albeit not in my favorite style. My gut feeling is that the next level of improvement will have to come from changes in the vineyards.
Prieur's Musigny is no better than the eighth best produced, but it is still recognizably Musigny, and given that that is one of the three greatest vineyards in Burgundy, if not the world, that is saying something. (However, Prieur's portion of Musigny is not the best.) There is also a tiny amount of Chambolle-Combe d'Orveaux that adjoins Prieur's patch of Musigny and that is very close to the Musigny in quality.
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Just to fill it out, other producers of wines from Chambolle-Musigny that I can recommend (not particular order): Digioia-Royer, Potel, Fourrier, Michel Magnien, Domaine de la Vougeraie, H. Lignier, Prieur.
If I count correctly, that gives 26 producers of wines from a particular village that I believe do at least a very good job. But once you leave that list, you are at your own peril as the drop in quality can be breathtaking, and there are many more producers out there.
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Open and decant about 6 hours before serving into a wide bottom decanter and stopper. You might want to smell the wine every hour or
ok I know this is going to open Pandora's box here but in my experience you never never never decant burgundy. It is too delicate a flower, a butterfly with fragile wings. Your temp advice and everything else seemed spot on to me. They have those special (quack quack) "duck" shaped decanters for older burgundies where the wine kinda slips in at a 45 degree angle. Pinot Noir is a fickle, spoiled brat of a grape- it is demanding about where it is grown, climate etc. You know those kind of kids that "aren't good at transition"??? That's burgundy in a nutshell. I do not decant. I open, I pour into glasses, I let stand. Then you can check and let evolve- away from the lillies etc.
Traditionally, Burgundy was not decanted. However, times have been changing. In fact, Dujac wines have a notice on the label recommending decanting because the wines may throw sediment.
In restaurants in Burgundy, one sees wines sometimes decanted, sometimes not. On occasion, I have had a producer showing a wine to me decant it in the cellar (e.g., Francois Millet did that with one vintage of de Vogue's wines).
Personally, I frequently decant red Burgundies, primarily for visual esthetic reasons, if I am hosting others for dinner. I almost always decant older white Burgundies because they demand the aeration.
I must admit that I've never tried to decant a wine for six hours, and frankly, I would guess that Ghislaine Barthod's 1998 Chambolle is showing quite well straight from the bottle right now.
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cdh -- If you don't want to take the time to go by individual producers, the next best thing to do is to go by importers. In no particular order, Kermit Lynch, Martine's, Rosenthal/Select Vineyards, Chateau and Estates, Chambers & Chambers, Wilson & Daniels, Beaune Imports, Frederick Wildman, and Vineyard Brands are all importers who have generally consistent and strong lineups of Burgundy producers (which definitely is not to say that I endorse every wine or every producer that they carry, though).
Also, be sure that you buy from a source that handles the wines well, not exposing it to excessive heat or light.
Finally, with respect to red Burgundy, it should be served slightly chilled -- 55-60 degrees Farenheit when poured. This is crucial -- too hot and the acid balance is lost. If you are in a restaurant that brings you a bottle that is above this temperature, do not hesitate to ask that it be put in an ice bucket.
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I regularly recommend plenty of good Burgundy at below $40 and even below $20, and some below $15, depending on the local market. Moreover, given current market conditions, there is a lot of excellent Burgundy being closed out at $10-20 prices.
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I would echo Florida Jim above that producer is primary -- if you have a top producer, you will rarely experience the disappointments that so many people claim for Burgundy.
I couldn't disagree more. Drinking wines from one or even a small number of producers in Burgundy may provide consistency, but you won't really appreciate what Burgundy is. My approach is to drink whatever Chambolles, Volnays or Pommards I can get my hands on, with a degree of price sensititivty. For producers I've heard of, but haven't sampled, I'm willing to pay just about as much as for wines I know. For unknown producers (and, to be fair, there are some real duds out there), I rarely pay more than $30 in a store or $60 on a wine list for those village wines (a bit lower retail in the UK, but a bit higher in a restaurant). I'll also ask a lot of questions before buying (naming other producers I like in the vineyard or village). Of course, if I get a puzzled look in response, I walk out or turn the page -- nothing like a sommelier/retailer who is clueless about Burgundy (the wines are generally poor).
Another strategy is to first sample the village wines of a producer, and then move up (although I've let a few trusted sommeliers/merchants steer me to special bottles).
If you are in NYC and really want to get into Burgundy, go to Rosenthal Wine Merchants, who directly import from some of the best small producers. They will put together a tasting program for you (tailored to your budget and level of interest). By far and away the most satisfying wine buying experience NYC has.
Well, from what I consider quality producers, one can go quite a ways without having to dip into the junk producers by just choosing whatever is available. For example, for Chambolle alone, I consider the following producers, taken off the top of my head so a few may be left out, top notch (no particular order): G. Roumier, de Vogue, Mugnier, Barthod, Faiveley, Clavelier, Ponsot, Dujac, JJ Confuron, Drouhin, Jadot, Leroy, Groffier, D. Mortet, Arnoux, Grivot, Mugneret-Gibourg, Drouhin-Laroze, Perrot-Minot.
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I don't know, Burgundy seems to do very well out here in the San Francisco Bay Area. I do admit that it is a difficult wine to understand because there are so many variables and subtleties. I would echo Florida Jim above that producer is primary -- if you have a top producer, you will rarely experience the disappointments that so many people claim for Burgundy. If you are ordering blind, better a Bourgogne from a top producer such as Aubert de Villaine than a grand cru from a mediocre producer -- and that's not even considering the difference in price!
Who is drinking Burgundy?
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Posted · Edited by Claude Kolm/The Fine Wine Review (log)
I may be wrong, but I though Michel was the estate wines and Frederic the negociant wines. I've visited the former, not the latter. I'm not enamored with his west coast importer so I probably haven't paid the attention that I should have.