Burgundy Wines

What is a good starting point in taste testing these wines? Also, when ever I see them reviewed there scores are always mid to low 90’s unlike Bordeaux wines, is their a reason for this?

Because they’re just not as good as BDX, and never deserving of the points. people needs to just dump the trash! :wink:

I think Burgundy receives the most scrutiny of all regions…

Do you have a burgundy wine recommendation that is a good starting point in tasting?

Start w some 15 bourgogne.

Imo, all depends on how much you can spend and are willing to. If neither budget nor shipping are concerns, you can find Burgundy from any number of great producers online. As for identifying producers, read the board (hint: search feature is your friend).

Personally, what I would do (and basically did) is save up until you have a decent budget – say $500 - $1000 (yeah…even cheap Burgundy ain’t “cheap”) – and start buying a variety of wines from larger houses which have decent availability and cover a wide range of appellations (think Jadot, Bouchard etc.). 2014 & 2015 are widely available and are both quality vintages, 2014 more “classic” & 2015 more “modern.” I’m really enjoying the 2016s I’ve tasted as well, which might be in between 2014 & 2015 in terms of style. Go for everything from Bourgogne to Appellation to Village and maybe even splurge on a 1er or two if budgeting allows.

Although you may ultimately not prefer the “house style” from widely available producers like Jadot, Bouchard, etc. you can still identify which appellations might be most preferable for your palate. This is how I learned that I’m generally more a fan of CdN reds vs. Beaune reds, from there I can break it down into specific appellations and vineyard terroir. Once you have a broad idea of what might be your preferred appellations, you can start buying from different producers to hone in on your faves. Also, go to Burgundy tastings. Even the most basic retail tasting will provide you with invaluable experience.

Last, I should add, this process might take years…like more than a decade for me, both due to budget restrictions and the fact Burgundy is so amazingly diverse in terms of producer, vintage, terroir. And although producer almost always trumps vintage, Burgundy is one region where I place near-equal emphasis on vintage and prefer to buy wines my fave producers made in the vintages which best reflect my palate preferences.

Good luck!

As for the part on reviews/scores, I’m not even gonna touch that one lol.

Burgundy takes work. There are many threads answering your question. Start working!

Your right m. I’m on it

My advice would be to start in the south. It’s made from a different grape and grows in different soils, but Beaujolais is technically part of Burgundy, and the wines can offer some of the aromatic range and aesthetic of Burgundy, typically in a more immediate format that can be viscerally drinkable on release. With good cru Beaujolais, you will find the same variables of soil, exposition, mesoclimate and winemaking that lie behind the differences that define the Côte d’Or’s wines. You might look for producers such as Foillard, Diochon and Daniel Bouland in the 2017 vintage.

If those wines appeal to you, head north. Try some Mercurey reds from François Raquillet, the Château de Chamirey and Faiveley. 2016 and 2015 are both strong vintages. They will offer more character and interest than most Bourgogne Rouge for a more modest tariff. Again, with different vineyards and producers, the optic is the same as you will find in the Côte d’Or.

Then look at the Côte d’Or. But wines from there often need some time, so it will take more work to find a mature or maturing example. You might as well start with something good that’s showing its hand. A 2007 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Cras from Domaine Roumier would be a good jumping off point.

As for books, a second hand copy of the out-of-print Making Sense of Burgundy by Matt Kramer could be a good investment in understanding the region’s guiding philosophy (albeit in an extreme and somewhat idealized form), and Jasper Morris’ Inside Burgundy is a great reference book, with a new edition coming soon.

Start out with the affordable bottlings from the ripest vintages to start -

Savigny les Beaune
Givry
Mercurey
Santenay
Cotes de Nuits Villages
Haute Cotes de Nuits
Bourgogne Rouge

I’ll bite on the scores. Keeping in mind that critics score wines against the exemplar of their type it would seem that they believe that there is a wider gap between excellent and ideal Burgundy than between excellent and ideal Bordeaux. What it patently does not mean is that the slew of 100 point Bords are better wines than a 90 point Burg.

There is a thread on this board called something like consolidated off the beaten path Burgundy tasting notes. It is linked as part of hall of fame threads. The best place to start is wines recommended in that thread.

Remember that Burgundy comes in both red and white.

I’ll add that if you have the option of attending tastings that would be the best way to find out what producers, vintages, etc. you prefer (or whether you even like the stuff at all).

There are a wide variety of styles in Burgundy. Not everyone likes the same producers.

Agreed

If I were starting fresh, I would taste every producer who makes a wine from the Cote de Nuits labelled simply Bourgogne . I would avoid reds from the Cote de Beaune until I acquired a deep appreciation for the Cote de Nuits reds for context. My next step would be to try older Bourgognes. I would then treat this as a trunk of a massive old tree with many branches. Stay near the trunk. I would venture out a single step on to many of the branches and if I didn’t like the mild upgrade for a producer or negociant or vineyard I’d abandon it for a while while trying other low-end branches. I’d follow the branches I love while constantly experimenting with both air and age. I’d ruthlessly dismiss the ones that didn’t appeal to me regardless of reputation. The intellectual fascination comes from examining air and age. The romantic attachments come from source and style rather than points or price.

If you have a California palate:

Gevrey: masculine like a Cabernet. I like exploring Gevrey because it’s apples to apples. Bottom level Fourrier Gevrey is pricey at $80 but gives you Gevrey fruit as pure liqueur.

Morey: earthy and fun. All of them. Very recently I’ve found that chasing the top Morey vineyards Clos de Roche and St. Denis are half the time tremendous disappointments. Morey Monopoles/Clos like Lambrays and Tart doubled in price overnight. Go low end single vineyard like Chaffots. Earth fruit funk and not hard structure. Satisfying. But not ethereal. That’s fine by me.

Nuits St Georges: tannic and lean, old ones and Laurent are both satisfying structurally like a great Cabernet. But young they’re no fun. Avoid until experience, and they will never be life changing. You could avoid NSG completely and miss nothing .

Chambolle: on the low end very pretty, but overrated and simple. Higher end transcendent but too costly. Eg I adore Amoureuses, so pretty, so gentle, cool name, but every bottle I’ve had has been way overpriced.

Vosne Romanee: Hmm. my #1 rec for great wines at a bearable price is: buy Suchots vineyard, one bottle each from many producers. Lower end vineyards than that is disappointing, and higher than that is for people who are both prosperous and very experienced. A lot of average tasting $300 wines in the Vosne. A lot. Go Suchots. It will spoil you to look for similar sensual excitement at that price. Good luck. You’ll never find it in a Beaune red.

How to keep exploring without going broke: learn about air and age. Buy well stored high ullage low end 1983 1990 1993 1996 1999 2002 to drink and learn, 2005 to hold for years.

Man he’s gonna be $400 deep before he even tries something from Cote de Nuits. :smiley:

double agreed!

Yeah, just for the books.

But that is also representative of what one can expect for the hobby these days.

Because Meadows rates them and he never saw a Burgundy that rated below 90. [snort.gif]

While I know you are joking (a bit) that is demonstrably not true. There are plenty of Burgundies rated in the 80s by Meadows, and of course he is selecting domaines based on the expectation of good wines, so it culls the herd prior to rating.