I agree with Michel, what I find interests them the most/warms them up is finding out that the visitor truly loves and has even a little knowledge for their wines. In most cases, I e-mail them ahead, introduce myself, let them know I’ve had their wines before (I list the specific vintages/bottlings), share some of my notes, let them know when I’m in town and ask if it would be possible to visit them. I give one or two dates/times I am available but also make sure to let them know that I am always willing to go there at a time convenient to them.
In addition, since I occasionally write wine-related articles (when requested) for local magazines which intermittently post these articles in their websites, I send them links to my such articles.
It seems a bit crass, but, if I know they know people I know I mention that we share that/those common friend(s). That works well here in Manila, and, I notice, it also works well in France. I figure it re-assures them I’m no axe-murderer or moocher because it gives them an opportunity to check if I’m for real.
All that said, I suspect that they find me because I’m a non-ITB lawyer from a country not known for wine-consumption, who knows a little bit about French wine and bothers to travel to their country/region because of wine. I think that piques their interest. In any event, I almost always get my appointment.
I never bring gifts as that seems too forward. Burgundy doesn’t really have the strict selling system of Bordeaux, so it is easy to buy wine at wineries in the former - but, as Michel says, that is better brought up at the end of your visit. If you want to visit Anne Gros, she has available for sale even some wines of her friends - not only her own. Her own top bottlings/non-recent vintages, though, are hard to find at retail in Burgundy itself since there is so much demand for them in the US.
Best of luck, Steve. I’ll e-mail you re: those friends of mine in the area. Melissa sent me your schedule so I’ll try and set something up for you.
Best,
N