© EcoView / stockadobe.com
ur Or Drouhin could hardly have g care of marketing duties
warren of cellars, some dating from the 11th century, that spread for an entire hectare under the streets of Beaune. It is, Paola Tich observes, “like a living museum”, and Christophe removes one of the exhibits – a magnum of 1989 Les Baudes Chambolle-Musigny – to enjoy with dinner. Back above ground, the canapes come round and we sample Drouhin-Vaudon Mont de Milieu Premier Cru Chablis 2017 and a soft, rich Puligny-Montrachet Folatières 2017. Also on the menu are Corton-Bressandes Grand Cru 2013, Beaune Clos des Mouches Premier Cru 2016, Beaune Champimonts Premier Cru 2015 and Beaune Cras Premier Cru 2016. It’s an opportunity too to sample some of the excellent Oregon wines that Drouhin produces with the same Pinot Noir clones, and the same oak, that it uses in France. The wines are superb, but the general consensus around the table is that this has been a clear home win for the Burgundies.
D
ay two is all about driving through the Côte d’Or, often in a quiet mesmeric state as those famous names keep flashing by on road signs: Gevrey-Chambertin, Morey-Saint-Denis, Chambolle-Musigny, Vougeot, VosneRomanée … It’s almost certainly the most expensive farmland on the planet, and today it’s mostly deserted, apart from a few stray pickers, and occasional carloads of Chinese tourists. To Sara Bangert’s horror, some perfectly healthy bunches have been left on the vines at Musigny, so a couple are liberated in the name of education (she has a
The Drouhin cellars cover a hectare under the streets of Beaune
masterclass to host back in England the following day). The harvest is effectively over and it’s down to the winemakers to make sense of another unpredictable year in Burgundy. For us, the silent vineyards serve as a sort of place of worship, or maybe simply meditation. It’s grey overhead; the vines are not yet wearing their autumn yellows and golds, but there’s a sense that nature has finished its job and the vineyards are in the gradual process of shutting down until spring. You can read as many textbooks as you like, but sometimes you just have to stand in places like this, breathing the damp air and getting some terroir under your fingernails and on the soles of your shoes. Burgundy is special, perhaps the most special wine region of them all. It’s a privilege to spend some time here, on a quiet morning, doing nothing very much at all. Merchants’ feedback: page 54
THE WINE MERCHANT november 2019 53
OUR GUESTS Paola Tich, Vindinista, Acton Sara Bangert, The General Wine Company, Hampshire Coralie Menel, The Grocery Wine Vault & Bar, Shoreditch Louise Peverall, La Cave de Bruno, East Dulwich Matt Wicksteed, Streatham Wine House, London Andrew Taylor, Taylor’s Fine Wines, Richmond upon Thames