DaleW

Craig, well-written article. Thanks for the Drouhin link- one of the most dependable negociants imho. Another good source of general information is the Burgundy Wine Company's site: BWC-Burgundy Page (hope it's ok to post a retail site, I have no affiliation beyond occasional customer). They have a little overview of each village. While it's true that Burgundy is erratic, that the good ones are mostly expensive, etc., it's still very seductive. I wish I could afford good Grand Crus, but I'll make do mostly with Lafarge Bourgogne and Volnays, Roumier and Mugnier Chambolles, etc.

IS Pavie-Decesse considered a second label? I know has same owners as Pavie, but I thought they were totally separate properties.

Do you mean Ch. Simard? He does late releases (1990 is current vintage). I wasn't fond of '88 or '89, but heard good things re the 1990, but haven't tried yet. If people are buying to drink now, I'd mostly look at 1999s. Not a great vintage, but there are some nice drinking wines, plenty on shelves, and some good discounts. Ste. Colombe ($10), Cap de Faugeres ($9), du Tertre ($17), Dauzac ($19), La Fleur du Bouard ($18) all offer good value. As to the 2000s, Some tasty under $20 Bordeaux to drink now: 2000 Epicurea de Chateau Martinat (Cotes de Bourg)($20) 2000 Ch. Bonnet (Bordeaux). ($8.99) (the 2001 Bonnet white isn't bad either) Tasty now, but could use some time: 2000 Ste. Colombe (CdCastillon)$12 2000 Ch. Les Trois Croix (Fronsac)$14 2000 Ch. Lanessan (Haut-Medoc)$16 2000 Ch. Brown (Pessac-Leognan)$17 2000 Ch. Haut-Chaigneau(Lalande de Pomerol)$17 2000 de Carles (Fronsac) $10 2000 Reignac (NOT Ch. Reignac, but their premium label) (Bdx. Sup.)(kinds California-ish, but good)$20 2000 Tronquoy-Lalande (St. Estephe)$16 2000 La Dame de Montrose (St. Estephe)$18 Need much time: 2000 La Fleur de Boüard (Lalande de Pomerol)$20 2000 Chateau la Louvière rouge (Pessac-Leognan)$20 2000 Ch. de Pez (St. Estephe)$20 2000 Marquis-de-Terme(Margaux)$22 Some of these might be hard to find under$20 now, but there are lots of good Bdx out there that don't cost an arm and a leg. Some good 1998 Right Banks too, but many of those asleep. And some bargains as people get rid of 1997s, but know what you're buying-highly variable. HTH.

I don't think I can come up with anything at $3.66 - the closest I can come is last year when Rochambeau (Westchester County, NY) was down to $3.99 for the Borsao. But, a few under $10: Reds: Les Hérétiques (Andre Iché of Ch. D'Oupia) VDP de l'Hérault $6 Borsao or Viña Alarba from Spain -$4.50- $6 I'm not a huge Antinori fan, but the Santa Christina is usually quite drinkable Sangiovese for $7-8 Ditto Jaboulet's Parallele 45 - dependable (if not exciting) Côtes de Rhne. Perrin CdR is ok too. Pepperwood Grove Syrah $7 Bonny Doon Big House Red (Ca del Solo) Whites: 2002 Dr. Loosen "Dr. L" Riesling $10 Domane Wachau's basic GrüVe or Riesling $10 Good muscadet from Pepiere or Luneau-Papin ($8-10) Clos Roche Blanche Touraine Sauvignon $9

You've got good ideas (both your own and the ones posted here). A couple thoughts: The Tavel rosé is a good idea, just make sure it's a fresh one from a good producer. Another great rosé that might work is the Il Mimo, the only Nebbiolo rosé I know. If you go with red Burgundy for the pork, I'd stick to something that strives more for elegance - maybe a Lafarge or d'Angerville Volnay, or a Chambolle from Roumier or Mugnier (the Lafarge Bourgogne is a good budget choice). I'd stay away from appelations that strive more for power, and from producers like Dominique Laurent. In addition to the Burg and the other ideas posted here, another thought for the pork might be a Smaragd (or equivalent) level Grüner Veltliner. Please be sure to post your report!

I read this thread last week before going to Portland (wife was playing chamber festival). Thanks Steve for the Hugo's rec. Enjoyed Fore Street last year, but this time we opted for Hugo's. Very nice place (apparently new owner/chef over last year or so), far quieter than Fore Street. Nice prix-fixe where you get 2 starters and one main dish. Started with a complimentary Vichyssoise with porcini oil and crème fraîche. Then I ordered the "Brûlées" of foie gras - foie gras stacked on brioche with glazed peached and Sabayon made w/100 yr old Sherry Vinegar, followed by Fluke 2 ways (Tartar w/Avocado, plus Sashimi with a kind of ponzu/spicy sesame oil combo, with fresh figs). Betsy got the Duck sampler (breast, pâté, and some papaya) and Lobster Ravioli with peeky-toe crab in a citrusy sauce, with goat cheese and green apple (the apple and cheese in the warm sauce was almost like a savory version of apple pie with ice cream). All very good. Nice list. I got 375s of the 1999 Trimbach Cuvée Frédéric Emile Riesling and the 1996 Meyney. For main courses I had the Poached Beef Tenderloin with a demi-glace, stuffed cherry peppers; Betsy the Panko-crusted Skate with celery hearts salad. Everything was well-prepared, though I'm not sure this preparation shows off skate as well as say a more traditional black butter. For dessert she ordered Berries with Champagne Saboyon, I got a nice cheese plate -Shelbourne Farms cloth aged Cheddar (with apple chutney),. Vt. Shepherds Timson (tomato chutney), Vermont's Shepherds (champagne grapes), and Westfield Farms Blue Bonnet with fig. Enjoyed with last sips of CFE and Meyney, along with a glass of 1986 Niepoort Colheita Lots of good values on wine list (considering limitations of Maine- apparently 6 distributors for entire state). Nice service, very good food, nice atmosphere.

I think this is a great example of a Qba level Riesling. But it (like the 2002 Leitz Dragonstone, ny other current under $10 German fave) does have distinct sweetness. Maybe you were thinking of the '01 Lingenfelder Bird Label? Those are kind of the big 3 of widely available Qbas, it's the driest by far.

1) As to White Star, it's not been a favorite of mine - I prefer Brut Champagne, and I didn't think it's especially well made. But when we recently moved, the previous owners generously left us a bottle to celebrate. I admit I winced when I saw it was White Star. But it was a generous gesture, and I thought I'd give it a fair chance. After a hard day painting, sanding, etc. we had the White Star sitting on the floor with some takeout Szechuan. The spice made me appreciate the RS more, I liked that White Star better than ever before. So one solution to a style you don't like is trying to be creative with matching. A similar situation happened when some vineyard-owning friends left 2 bottles of some "blush" behind after a visit- sweet rosé they had made from some grapes deemed sub-standard for reds. A request for help online led to a suggestion from a resident of France for a scallops in sweet rosé recipe they used with Anjou. Used up most of a bottle cooking, the other bottle went well with the dish. 2) My usual solution to unwanted bottles is just to try them. I've been pleasantly surprised at times; most of the time I either just dump or use in tomato sauce. 3) If it's one I've tried recently, then I open them at big parties. I put out the accumulated gifts I don't want (last time it included Kendall-Jackson Chards, Tardieu-Laurent CdR, Abadia Ret. Rivola, and Banfi Chianti). Then I put out some cheapies that I DO like (Ch. d'Oupia "Les Heretiques", Borsao, a Touraine Sauvignon). If there's some geeks there I might open a better bottle for them to try, but after first glass it's fair game for everyone. I like the decoy bottle, as long as they're equally available (I don't want to be a Richard Nixon).

Craig, are you sure about that? Cheval Blanc is predominantly Cab Franc I think, and Figeac usually has lots of Cabernet Sauvignon as well as Cab Franc. Ausone I think is about 50/50. But I think the majority of St. Emilions (especially when you get below the Premier Grand Cru Classe) tend to have at least as much Merlot as Cab Franc. I'll try to look up %s tonight.

Let's don't forget that there are some very good non-QmP wines out there- great Qbas include the 2002 Leitz Dragonstone (Rudesheimer Drachenstein), 2001 Loosen Dr. L, and 2001 Von Schubert Maximin Grunhauser. Also good (if a step behind in my opinion) are the 2001 Dr. Thanisch (Erben Thanisch), 2001 Weingut Max. Ferd. Richter Estate Riesling, and the Lingenfelder Bird Label. All of these are a far cry from the Black Cats, and all offer good value ($8-12, except the von Schubert might be couple dollars more).

For a few vintages Zind-Humbrecht bottled a Chardonnay. I had the 1994 (OK, almost Chablis-like, but not worth a $25 price tag). While not a great wine, it was a fun one to bring to offlines. I asked Olivier Humbrecht about it at a store tasting. He said the authorities had come down on him and he couldn't sell it anymore. I think he said he had quite a few cases of the 1996 and an earlier vintage, his family was drinking them up (his dad's favorite). It's a comparatively small plot, and they've gone back to putting it into the Pinot d'Alsace.