Day 5-Beaujolais-Cotes de Brouilly

Chateau Thivin (Tay vahn)

Our next stop was at Chateau Thivin and we paused here after trying the wines and had lunch. Claude Geoffray is the winemaker and Evelyne Geoffray is considered to be one of the best cooks in the region. Truly spectacular food. The best lentils I have ever had. This is not the Beaujolais that you buy in November or that plonk that Louis Jadot puts out. This is grown in Cote de Brouilly, an ancient volcano that exists on the Beaujolais valley floor. One side of the slope is pink granite and the other side is blue stone. The winery has been in existence since the 15th century and Claude is a sixth generation winemaker. All organic & 100% Gamay. Gamay is a descendent of Pinot Noir and Goais. A small parcel of Goais still exists in Switzerland. Claude is trying to plant some on the hill.

Tasting order:

2008 Brouilly - Ruby red, really light nose, good minerality and acidity. Lively fruit. Slight bit of tang that I don't like about Gamay in this wine.
2008 Cotes de Brouilly - Bright and ruby red as well, but much deeper in color. Slight hint of pepper and spice.
2008 Cuvee Zachary Cotes de Brouilly - Cuvee Zachary is aged in small barrels and made from the best grapes selected from the different parcels. This was really exceptional.
2009 Brouilly - I love being able to tell how good a wine is going to be from tasting the barrel sample. 2009 is going to be a good year.
2009 Cotes de Brouilly - Also a nice surprise
2000 Cuvee Zachary - Great legs, not much color variation for a 10 year old Gamay.
1991 Something he used to make similar to Cuvee Zachary...really well done considering I'm drinking a 20yr old Beaujolais






An old wine press


Claude Geoffray




Crystalized wine scraped from inside the barrels


An old basket press


1991 and 2000 Thivin


The spread


The spread





Pink Granite


Evelyne Geoffray



Blue Rock





Nicole Chanrion

Nicole Chanrion was our next stop and perhaps the sweetest woman I have ever met. How can we not sell her wines? Not only were they exceptional examples of Gamay, but made from such a gentle soul. Even though we had just eaten lunch at the previous stop and were stuffed with meats, cheeses and lentils, Nicole had prepared some snacks for us and we couldn't turn them down because she had made them herself and was just too sweet to refuse.

Tasting order:
N/V Cotes de Brouilly (sparkling)
2008 Cotes de Brouilly - Much deeper in color than Thivin, great structure and body...really good stuff. Minerally and pepper
2009 Cotes de Brouilly - she pulled this right out of the barrel while we were standing there....great stuff. I love '09!







Look how cute she is!!!

Day 5-The south of Burgundy

Sorry I've been lax in posting....it's been a busy week of selling French wine! Today was a little easier on the palate, mostly because we had about a three and a half hour drive to Avignon. Still a long day though, nonetheless. Our first stop was a small producer from Savigny-les-Beaune. Only two wines from this winery and then we tasted Guillemot. Very good, very inexpensive wines. I liked the Macon Farges better, but it will be easier to sell the Macon Village and it's cheaper.

Tasting order:
2008 Domaine Henri Perrusset Macon Village-easy drinkability, nice minerality, nice label, hand harvested, no pesticides, low yields, natural compost, natural yeast, a year on the lees in stainless.
2008 Domaine Henri Perrusset Macon Farges-same as above, but with a much better nose


2008 Domaine Pierre Guillemot Savigny-les-Beaune Blanc-70% Pinot Blanc, 30% Chardonnay, 10% used barrel. Lush, white flowers, tropical...fermented in 600L barrels, 3x the size of normal barrels
2008 Dom. Pierre Guillemot Bourgogne Rouge-Really light in color, high acidity, smoky wood and strawberries, bright fruit in the mouth
2008 Dom. Pierre Guillemot Savigny-les-Beaune Rouge-single vineyard, super dry and meaty
2008 Dom. Pierre Guillemot Savigny-les-Beaune 'Narbantons' 1er Cru-More depth and color than previous wines, much deeper and more complex
2008 Dom. Pierre Guillemot Savigny-les-Beaune 'Jarrons' 1er Cru-Really, really tannic
2008 Dom. Pierre Guillemot Savigny-les-Beaune 'Serpentieres' 1er Cru-Named Serpentieres either because of snakes or because of a certain kind of limestone named Serpentiere. This was super elegant and refined...incredible structure.
2008 Dom. Pierre Guillemot Corton Grand Cru-Really, really pretty nose
1974 Dom. Pierre Guillemot Savigny-les-Beaune 'Serpentieres' 1er Cru-plenty of tannins left...tea like nose.


Domaine Robert-Denogent in the Maconnaise

I tasted this domaine in San Francisco in May and hung out with Nicolas for a bit. Really like him and his wines. We tasted their wines in their home and that didn't hurt, but I really liked his wines in San Francisco as well. They make a lot of Pouilly-Fuisse in the Maconnaise and own the vineyards they make the wine from. Pouilly-Fuisse is allowed around 4 tons an acre yield. These guys crop at 2 tons an acre...however, '07 & '08 were cropped at around a ton an acre. Miniscule quantities. Barrel ageing is done for two years. Long barrel ageing helps the wine settle naturally. They have a one year cellar and a two year cellar. The cellars are at 40 degrees, which slow fermentation and help clarify the wine slowly.

Tasting order:
2007 Macon-Solutre 'Clos des Bertillonnes' - Reminiscent of Neyers Carneros Chardonnay which Nicolas helped out with. Really good minerality. There was more minerality in '07 all around.
2007 St. Veran 'Les Pommards' - 45yr old vines-clay soil-20mos. in full oak barrel-much rounder and fuller than previous...honey butter
2007 Macon-Fuisse 'Les Taches'-15yr old vines-soil is strong-apricot nectar, caramel and butter. Round and lush in mouth.
2007 Pouilly-Fuisse 'La Croix'-Blue Schiste, very unusual in soil-finally moved away from the butter-much more crispness and acidity. Lighter in body han the last few. Does have caramel qualities.
2007 Pouilly-Fuisse 'Les Reisses'-a ton and a half/acre yield...75 yr old vines-limestone, clay soil...beautiful nose. Just drank the 2004 yesterday and it was beautiful...ages very well
2007 Pouilly-Fuisse 'Cuvee Claude Denogent'-80-85yr old vines-really juicy fruit on this wine...love it
2007 Pouilly-Fuisse 'Les Carrons'-more than 90yr old vines-very small parcel...very, very honeyed wines with butterscotch
2008 Macon-Village 'Les Taches'-definitely a fruitier vintage-lots of ripe orchard fruits
2008 Pouilly-Fuisse-no sulfur added...apples and pears
2008 Pouilly-Fuisse 'Cuvee Claude Denogent'-more pineapple than previous




Nicolas Denogent


Robert Denogent



Upstairs

Cool Bookcase

Day 4-Burgundy-Overview

We tried a staggering 82 wines before dinner and if you include dinner, a whopping total of 94 different wines for the day. Wow. I mean, wow. Not as bad a day as yesterday. Jet lag was mostly gone and I got to try some incredible wines today. Chevillon was one of my favorite producers, simply because his wines were powerful and dark and I felt, really outdid some of my favorite Oregon producers. Berthau was one of my favorites because of the incredible grace and elegance his wines put forth. Just like with Jobard the previous day, I have never smelled anything like that in a wine in my life. Such perfume and elegance and balance. Truly amazing stuff. Finally, I was really impressed with Gachot-Minot, because not only is he making affordable Pinot's, but they're really well done and I want to sell his wine.

Day 4-Burgundy-Dinner at Bistro d' Hotel

Right before dinner we tasted one of Kermit's Champagne producers at the hotel. J. Lassale. Joules Lassale is the founder and his widow took over and she asked her daughter to help with the winemaking. Her granddaughter helps run the business today, so it is a female run Champagne house.

Tasting order:
Brut Reserve N/V Cachet D'or-only made for US-means gold-blend of '05 & '04
N/V Imperial Preference-blend of '04 & '03
Brut Rose-really good-85% Pinot Noir
2002 J. Lassale Blanc de Blanc-also good
2002 Special Club Late Disgorged-comes in an old school bottle-60% Chardonnay/40% Pinot Noir
N/V Blanc de Blanc-aged in wood and undergoes malolactic fermentation
N/V Blanc de Blanc Xtra Brut
N/V Grand Reserve Brut-80% Chardonnay/20% Pinot Noir-base of '06 w/ 20-30% '05 & '04
1985 Brut Rose
N/V Cuvee R
2002 Blanc de Blanc-Pure chalk soil
2002 Cuvee 'Angeline'-60% Pinot Noir/40% Chardonnay

Dinner tonight was at a quaint restaurant in Burgundy that the group always goes to. They allow us to bring our own wine and we each winemaker we have visited thus far has donated some older vintage stuff to drink. Before dinner, we had some free time, so I wandered around Beaune, (almost getting lost). Beaune is a great shopping city and has a lot of interesting shops. I picked up a couple Cuban cigars today and smoked one after dinner in the courtyard of the hotel. It started snowing heavily while I was smoking, so I moved to an inner courtyard with a roof to finish smoking, which must be really nice in the summer. I had an Escargot Pot Pie, essentially, and some grilled scallops for dinner.

Wines at the table:
2006 Domaine la Cadette La Chateleine
2003 Domaine Savary Chablis
1997 Domaine Lavantureux
2000 Bernard Raveneau Montee de Tonnerre, 1er Cru
2003 Gomaine Gachot-Minot Cotes de Nuits Village
2002 Lucien Boillot Gevrey-Chambertin Les Evocelles
2002 Meo-Camuzet Vosne-Romanee 'Les Chaumes' 1er Cru
2001 Maume Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru
2000 Domaine Francois Berthau Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru
2000 Domaine Robert Chevillon Nuits-St-George 'Les Perrieres'
1989 Pierre Guillemot Savigny-Les-Beaune 'Les Serpentiere'
2005 Bizot Vosne-Romanee Vielles Vignes

Day 4-Burgundy-The Characters

Have you ever heard someone say that you can see the winemaker's personality in their wine? Well, the next three winemaker's we visited (all at their homes and cellars) were examples of just that. Each one had a very unique personality that carried through to their wines.

Domaine Maume

Bertrand Maume was a very eccentric fellow. Our translater and driver told us he like Maume's wines better than other Burgundies because they were so unique. Other people from our group, however, did not feel the same way, and chose to stay in the car. I will not regale you with the stories they told me (which were pretty shocking), but instead tell you my impression. I am on the one hand being told this guy is a genius and on the other being told he's a creton. I think both apply. As we walked into his house, which was very unkept compared to the other houses we had visited, I could smell wet dog everywhere. In the room we tasted, there was a large fire lit to keep us warm. Maume, himself, was a very quiet, meek man, but obviously very passionate about his wine. He is one of Kermit's longest relationships and has been buying his wine for over thirty years. I'm going to give my tasting notes first and talk more about them in the end, because I left this tasting confused.

Tasting order:
2008 Cote de Nuits-Big fruit, powerful, very unusual nose
2008 Bourgogne Rouge-pinecones on the nose-single parcel from Gevrey-Chambertin
2008 Gevrey-Chambertin-15 parcels, 7 above the village and 8 at village level-30-70yr old vines-the oak really comes through the nose-gamey, leather, but in a sweet kind of way
2008 Gevrey-Chambertin 'Aux Etelois'-sits up against a Grand Cru and a 1er Cru-35yr old vines-still getting an underlying char smell or evergreen spice...red fruit in mouth
2008 Gevrey-Chambertin 'En Pallud'-70yr old vines-not my favorite, but still had lots of spritz from being pulled out of barrel
2008 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru-cuvee of Perrieres, Champeaux, and Cherbaudes-only 100 cases made-bright, spicy red fruits
2008 Gevrey-Chambertin 'Lavaux St. Jacques' 1er Cru
2008 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru-only 2 barrels made
2008 Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru
2009 Gevrey 'Noveau' barrel sample cuvee to get an idea of vintage
2007 Gevrey-Chambertin 'Lavaux St. Jacques 1er Cru-tart cherries-bottled six months ago-a little closed off right now
2007 Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru-Earthy, mushroomey nose
2005 Pommard 'Argiliere' 1er Cru-Cranberries

The next day we were talking about these wines and finally figured out that the char and oak and pine cones I kept getting on the nose came from the fire...His fire was interfering with my sniffer. Go figure.






Bertrand Maume


Domaine Francois Bertheau

This guy, as you can see from the picture, brought to mind all sorts of comparisons...let's see, Mr. Burns, the Heatmiser from Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, or the next Dark Arts teacher on Harry Potter-regardless of how much we made fun of his crazy hair and high-heeled boots, this dapper looking gentleman made some of the most powerful, elegant Pinot Noir's I have ever had the pleasure of tasting. Chambolle-Musigny is often known as the Velvet Fist and I understand why with this particular winemaker. Such beauty and grace from a wine, I have never experienced.

Tasting order:
2008 Chambolle-Musigny-beautiful color-perfumey, cedar cherry aromas
2008 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru-cuvee of four vineyards...simply unbelievable
2008 Chambolle-Musigny 'Les Charmes' 1er Cru
2008 Chambolle-Musigny 'Les Amoureuses' 1er Cru-top 1er Cru in Chambolle, this one was simply phenomenal. The second time in two days I've been left speechless by the grandeur of the wines I'm drinking-Grace, elegance, poise (just like the winemaker) with plenty of structure to carry the fruit through
2008 Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru-Grape Koolaid on the nose for just a second-these wines are ethereal, heavenly, complex floral aromas intermixed with candied fruit and an elegant structure
2007 Chambolle-Musigny
2007 Chambolle-Musigny 'Les Amoureuses' 1er Cru-crystal clear, translucent with juicy, juicy fruit






Francois Berthau


Or Mr. Burns...you decide







Domaine Gachot-Minot

Our last stop of the day was at Damien Gachot's winery. A very amiable gentleman, he always had a smile and his wines were very amiable as well. Hand-harvested, this fifth generation wine-maker is eccentric about quality. Mostly Nuits-St-George, these wines were great for the money and very approachable.

Tasting order:
2008 Cote de Nuits Village-good, rich color, round and smooth on the palate, a good drinking wine
2008 Bourgogne Rouge-Tasted this right out of the tank and I thought it was excellent for the money
2008 Nuits-St-George-It's good, but it's not wow me good
2008 Nuits-St-George 'Aux Crots'-50yr old vines-much better than the last wine, very much worth the money
2008 Nuits-St-George 'Les Poulettes'-50yr old vines-This was the best of the bunch.

Then Damien pulled out a really moldy bottle:

1989 Cote de Nuits Village-there is no reason for this wine to still be viable-color is still great, structure is stll great and the nose is absolutely incredible...completely floored by this wine.




Damien's attempt at a pose for the camera and my feeble attempt to capture it.


Damien Gachot



The 1989 full of mold