Burgundy, Burgundy, Burgundy!

Because Rebecca was off satisfying her civic obligation by reporting for jury duty, there was no regularly scheduled "Tuesday at the Tasting Station" last week. That does not mean there was no tasting, however. I made my way to the W Hotel for a trade-only tasting of the Martine's Wines Portfolio.

Before I hit the road I stopped at Victor's Deli next door to grab a slice of pizza (it's not a good idea to go to one of these events on an empty stomach!). Victor's wife, Rosa, and daughter, Nancy, were behind the counter and out of the blue they asked me, "what's your favorite wine?". The question caught me a little off guard. But before I gave it much thought, the three syllables "Bur-gun-dy" came out of my mouth. Then I mumbled something about it being expensive. Undaunted, they said they would stop by the shop sometime soon so I could show them this wonderful type of wine.

I spared them the five paragraph explanation of how Burgundy (red Burgundy specifically) was indeed my "favorite wine" when it expressed that wonderful Burgundian terroir, was perfectly mature and someone else was paying for it. There was no time to explain that the number of great Burgundy experiences I had could be measured on one hand - and that the number of times I had tried it was somewhere around a hundred. Anyone would have been perplexed by the notion that a red Burgundy from a good producer and vintage opened in what is thought to be its "window of drinkability" can still disappoint; sometimes they just don't feel like showing their stuff on a particular day!

But enough on the curse of the Burgundy lover. I was off to the tasting....

Martine's portfolio has many shinning stars such as Chateau Rayas from the southern Rhone and Niepoort Ports. But the main focus of the tasting was (you guessed it) Burgundy. I tasted 60 wines from the Burgundy region (including the Macon and Beaujolais). They ranged in suggested retail price from $14.99 (a Beaujolais-Villages) to $400 (a Chambertin Vielles Vignes). The average price was $77 per bottle.  Of these, I gave six wines a little dash on the tasting sheet, meaning they were worth remembering as a favorite. Only one, the 2007 Corton Charlemagne (white) from Chevalier Pere et Fils ($169.99), received a plus sign. It was really delicious.

The tasting represented in micro the challenge of the Burgundy buyer: the reds (all from the Pinot Noir grape, except the Beaujolais) were from the 2006 and 2007 vintage - mere babies. At this stage they show fruit concentration, hints of complexity and plenty of acid. They won't start showing their real stuff for at least 3-5 years. Only then will the tight grip of their structure begin to loosen, and the earthy and floral complexities start to show.  So, the taster has to use their imagination and experience and "see" the wine further along in it's evolution based on the sum of it's basic components.

I essentially tasted two categories of red Burgundy:  the wines of "breed" from the famous villages (Gevrey-Chambertin, Chambolle-Musigny, etc.) that would need significant aging to be enjoyed and commanded a small fortune; or wines from lesser known villages (Ladoix, Marsannay, etc.) that were more accessible and somewhat more affordable, but lacked the depth and magical balance of "real" Burgundy.

This is where the frustration comes in. You wish you could expose Pinot Noir lovers to the greatest Pinots of them all and say "this is better than Oregon or California." But the wines in comparable price ranges to these more known/popular categories aren't as good - not in their youth anyway. You have to pay more and be patient with Burgundy. Not an easy sell. Because of these challenges, only one or two of the wines I tasted could be seriously considered for additions to the shop's portfolio.

Burgundy's hefty price tag is a result of a combination of factors. These include the fragile nature of the Pinot Noir grape, the tiny production of the most famous vineyards, and worldwide demand, especially from "emerging  markets" like China and India. Those financial realities are here to stay.

I will continue to pursue the great Burgundy in the sky (I still haven't been able to replicate my first and most wonderful Burg experience - a 1985 Pommard-Pezerolles from Ballot-Millot) and when people ask what my favorite wine is you know what the answer will be! I'll just try to keep it to one word.

Have you ever had a great red Burgundy experience?

Total wines tasted: 114
Wines that made “the short list”: 8
One new addition you can look for: 07 Chamarre Pinot Noir (France)