I love wine and I think about it a lot. But there is one type of wine that seems to have a peculiar hold over me that I still don’t quite understand. Red Burgundy is a curious and enigmatic wine made from pinot noir grapes. At the top end of Burdundy - the Cote D’Or, the combination of this delicate grape and the near perfect terroir results in the most expensive wines on earth (they are more reasonably priced if you go a bit south).
But more so than most wines it is very variable – largely because of the weather in Eastern France, so most vintages fail to deliver to their full potential. In the occasional years when the weather is just right the prices sky-rocket and makers sell out in no time. Not a great buyers wine then, especially when there is so much choice out there.
But those who like it never give up on red Burgundy and I have to count myself in that number. The problem starts when you have a good one. Even very good red Burgundy does not reveal its charms easily. It has a light texture – slightly translucent in the glass, and can often open with pungent aromas of forest floor and wet hay. It needs lots of time to breathe and soften after opening – up to 2 hours in a decanter. But when it’s ready it releases the purest expression of the grapes from which it is made, and has an intense, luxurious bouquet that reminds me of drinking expensive perfume.
Once you know how good it can be it’s hard to forget. And no other wine can deliver the same experience. I have a strong liking for many types of wine, but red Burgundy is the only one that haunts my mind.
Buying it is often a gamble because quality and style vary massively from maker to maker, and from one sub-region to the next. Another curious feature of Burgundy is the predominance of cooperatives, who buy grapes from vineyard owners and blend and bottle the wines under their own label. There is nothing wrong with cooperative wine, but I’ve always preferred my wine to come from grower producers – there is something more satisfying about its provenance. So to satisfy my cravings I have sought out a maker I like and I now only buy in good vintages.
Buying it is often a gamble because quality and style vary massively from maker to maker, and from one sub-region to the next. Another curious feature of Burgundy is the predominance of cooperatives, who buy grapes from vineyard owners and blend and bottle the wines under their own label. There is nothing wrong with cooperative wine, but I’ve always preferred my wine to come from grower producers – there is something more satisfying about its provenance. So to satisfy my cravings I have sought out a maker I like and I now only buy in good vintages.
Enough from me. I think Miles from the film Sideways explains it better:
“Only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot's potential can then coax it into its fullest expression. Then, I mean, oh its flavors, they're just the most haunting and brilliant and thrilling and subtle and - ancient on the planet.”
