Day 3-Burgundy-First 2 stops

Day 3 was when jet lag set in. We were out the door at 8:30AM. Our first stop was the winery of Christophe Buisson. Christopher makes biodynamic wines and is in the process of organic conversion. He showed us the lunar calendar telling us when to bottle. Very small quantities made, low yields, very few cases sent to the United States. Great news is, the reds were fantastic for the money and we got some of them.

Tasting order:
2008 Saint-Romain Bourgogne Blanc-very balanced acidity, a little oaky for my taste
2008 Bourgogne Pinot Noir-50% come from Cotes de Nuits, 50% from Saint-Romain-only 100 cases of this are coming to US, we got 10.
2008 Saint-Romain Rouge-I did not like this as much as the Bourgogne
2008 Auxey-Duresses-This was a new Burgundy appellation I had not had before and everytime I tried this appellation, I loved it. Only 60 cases are coming into the US and we got 10. 50 year old Pinot vines, this was simply unbelievable for the money.
2005 Auxey-Duresses-really rich and deep, intense wine.


Nice, modern labels


Christophe


The tanks


Some nice snow covered Burgundy vineyards

Domaine Vincent

Jean-Marc Vincent makes artisinal, personalized, organic wine. He has three Premier Cru Santenay vineyards. He utilizes two seperate cellars, one for Chardonnay and one for Pinot Noir because they need different temperatures to ferment. Natural yeast, hand-picked grapes and he ensures their is no noble rot in the Chardonnay which can lead to early oxidization in the wine. He utilizes grass covered rows to keep excess nitrogen out of the soil, which can cause exploding grapes after a heavy rain.

Tasting Order:
2008 Bourgogne Blanc-aged on the lees with really balanced oak, vanilla, little butterscotch and caramel.
2008 Santenay Blanc-2 plots of 10 year old vines-more fruit, white peach, citrus and stone fruits
2008 Auxey-Duresses Blanc-3 tons/acre yield, rich in iron...really good chard
2008 Puligny-Montrachet Corvee des Vignes-I didn't think this was good for the money
2008 Santenay 1er Cru le Beaurepaire Blanc-very stony, minerally, very balanced, very aromatic...really good for the money, limestone soil
2008 Santenay 1er Cru Les Gravieres Rouge-light like a Santenay, good wine, but not worth the money
2008 Santenay 1er Cru le Beaurepaire Rouge-spicy black raspberry, good color, this one was worth the money
2008 Santenay 1er Cru Les Passetemps Rouge-this was very closed off, very elegant, with an earthy, berry taste.
2008 Auxey-Duresses Les Bretterins-I am sold on Auxey-Duresses, love the soil, great extraction, nice structure, spicy

Completely different style than Buisson, but both remarkably well made!



2008 Puligny-Montrachet we tasted out of barrel


2008 Les Gravieres we tasted out of barrel


Jean-Marc Vincent in his home