I buy very little French wine, and most of what I do buy is Sauternes or Champagne.
Apart from some sparklers I don’t think I’ve ever bought anything from Burgundy.
However people keep referring to CA pinots as being “Burgundian”. Since I have no term of reference I think it’s time I bought a Burgundy so that I can see the difference.
Which one should I buy? Preferably readily available and under $50.
That’s kinda like saying, “so, what’s a good novel?”
If you post the store you’re shopping at though we can check their site and narrow it down.
How about K&L? Or any wine shop in the San Francisco - San Jose area.
The hue and cry of legions of sycophants to the contrary notwithstanding, you simply cannot get good red Burgundy for under $100.
Ain’t. Gonna. Happen.
[Cue legions of sycophants and their hues & cries…]
De Villaine, Lafarge, Bize, Pavelot, Guillemot, Camus-Bruchon, Jacqueson, Digioia-Royer – all have more than one wine under $50 and they’re all good. Barthod probably only has the Bourgogne at less than $50, but it’s worth the price. I could name plenty of others, but those are the ones that come first to mind. If you’re really pressed for money, the Drouhin Bourgogne-La Forêt is amazingly reliable.
Ignore ignoramuses like the immediately preceding post (I’m tempted to use much stronger, more vulgar language, but I’ll resist).
And, I’d add, increasingly, you can’t get good white Burgundy for under $100, either.
Folks who try to argue to the contrary simply aren’t living in the real world.
These are some of the wines/producers that I would look for.
2001 Bouchard Beaune Greves enfant jesus
Jacques/Benoit Germain (Chateau de Chorey)
Jean-Marc Pavelot
Mugnetet-Gibourg/Georges Mugneret
Chevillon
Gee, Nathan, how much Burgundy do you taste or drink? Have you ever visited there? Care to give criticisms of the wines of the producers I mentioned above?
As for whites, I’m drinking a lovely Lafarge Bourgogne-Aligoté right now. It’s a 2002, so I don’t recall exactly what I paid, but I think it was around $20.
I think the place to start is with plain Bourgogne from a good producer. You can certainly get the idea of what Burgundy is about from a good one. I went through a case of the Leroy Bourgogne a few years ago and really enjoyed it.
For a notch up, look for the less expensive appelations like Santenay…
Or a Savigny from Écard.
Or put some Arcadian Pinot Noir in a brown bag and pretend it’s from France.
Almost none at all - I can’t afford to spend $100 on a bottle of wine.
Q.E.D.
Agreed here…but I would suggest something slightly different…I would get Bourgogne level wines from multiple producers out of the same vintage. This should allow for multiple sytles to be shown and for Dave to get a feel on what burgundy has to offer in a range of styles.
Exactly.
I spent years and years and years tasting through Village and Premier Cru reds, searching for the mythical “value” red Burgundy, and I can tell you with 100% certainty that it doesn’t exist - BELOW $100, IT’S ALL CRAP.
Perhaps Burgundy just isn’t for you…no reason to pan a whole region. There are hundreds of village and 1er level wines (and some regional) that are well under $100 that drink great…both new releases and aged options.
Along these lines, I’ve noticed K&L has quite a few 2006s marked down. Is there anything there in the sub-$40 range worth trying? I don’t need an epiphany, just a reliable producer that shows typicity. Approachable younger is better, too. I don’t want to wait a decade for a wall of tannins and acid to mellow, but structure requiring a few years to resolve is fine.
Everyone I know that prefers Burgundy as their favorite region loves many Burgundies under $100.
Pretty thin assortment at K&L, mostly Lignier-Michelot with some Groffier interspresed.
I was sure they would have a Pavelot in stock, but they dont’.
I’d be curious about the Tollot Beaut Beaune Greves, but I haven’t had any of their 06s.
For the opposite of what Greg Dyer is asking for – go peek at
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(it was Domaine Af Gros Pommard Les Pezerolles '05, $53.88)
I can’t believe Gary is trying to sell a hard as nails 20 year wine to a bunch of newbies.
At any rate Nathan has a point, of sorts. I cut back on Burgundy buying when it hit me that a lot of my best Burgs won’t be ready to drink until I am pushing 100 years old. And several of the less good ones aren’t really all that much worth drinking. Throwing $50 at a bottle of Burgundy can be a very dangerous thing to do, without a lot of research. That’s one reason I think it’s a good idea to keep the risk low by experimenting with the lower priced wines.
Michael made a lot of the same suggestions I would make in the $50-$100 range. But even a wine like Enfant Jesus can be a real dog in the wrong vintage. You have to know a lot to collect Burgundy.
Ignore Nathan.
You can’t simply try one wine and get a bead on the style. There is no one ‘Burgundian’ style. Volnay is very different from Chambolle or Vosne or… well you get the idea. I’d start with the Savigny producers above - they’re affordable, very good trying some Bize, Ecard and Pavelot will get you some idea of what Burgundy can be.
Gee, I recently had a 2007 Chevillon Bourgogne that was fabulous. And burgundian! And it set me back all of $27.00, and that’s in Hawaii! Hoo, brah!
