Living, as I do, in the world’s foremost winegrowing region, you may wonder what motivates me to regularly visit another region, indeed, one that has the temerity to consider itself a rival… The simple fact is that viewing Bordeaux and Burgundy as mutually exclusive is exceedingly silly. For complicated reasons (essentially a superiority-cum-inferiority complex), I daresay the Burgundians are more chauvinistic than the Bordelais, who freely acknowledge that the white wines of the Côte d’Or are better than those of the Gironde, and admit to having only a limited acquaintance with red Burgundy. That is due in no small part to the fact that it is not easy to buy fine Burgundy. French supermarkets – i.e. where most people buy wine – often stock classified growth Bordeaux, but rarely premier and grand cru Burgundy.
My personal opinion is that the type of wine one chooses depends to a certain extent on the food that accompanies it. For instance, I would prefer a good Médoc with a grilled steak, but a Burgundy with meat in a sauce, or a stew.
The Bordelais were roundly and bitterly criticized when the prices of their great growths rose dramatically in the mid-2000s. A “fox and the grapes” situation set in and many consumers turned away from Bordeaux, finding reasons other than just expense and, somewhat unfairly, equating the name “Bordeaux” with just the tiny tip of the pyramid (the famous grands crus classés).
In the past 5 years, Burgundy has come more into the limelight on the global market, including China, but at a time when the region had several small or even painfully small vintages in a row. This inexorably led to price rises as staggering as those in Bordeaux the previous decade. Bordeaux now figures nowhere near as prominently as Burgundy on the list of the world’s most expensive wines.
The difference is, of course, that even the finest châteaux in Bordeaux can be quite large. Compare Lafite Rothschild’s 112 hectares with La Romanée’s 0.85 hectares… And the latter is not only a grand cru, but an entire appellation unto itself.
In short, we are talking about two very different realities.
In any event, I have made an annual pilgrimage to Burgundy for the past decade and love the region. This year, I was able to spend two full weeks and visited 27domaines. I am deeply indebted to my friend Ian Westcott, an importer in Melbourne, for making the appointments.
My report on these visits is if found here:
Domaines are listed in alphabetical order.
I list a few general observations at the end, as well as my take on the restaurants I went to.
Best regards,
Alex R.