River Barge through wine country GO BARGING Gourmet dining while savoring a glass of wine on a luxury hotel barge, visiting local vineyards in the Burgundy region of France or the Po River Valley of Italy. As mentioned many times on this blog, one of my most memorable vacations was a cycling trip through Tuscany. Wine is a magnificent portal.

And at my Burgundy Wine Club dinner , I decided to put the flight of Comte Armand Clos des Epeneaux (1989, 1991, and 1993) before the de Montille Pommard Rugiens flight (1998, 1999). Tastings Noël Verset Technical Stuff Burgundy MarcariniThree wines each from the 60's, 70's, 80's, two wines from the 90's, and the 2007.

And the 1999 Eric Texier Cô te-Rôtie , a wine that fooled all of us. Italy Chablis El Maestro Sierra Dagueneau Eric Texier Closel Robert Ampeau Loire Valley Burgundy Vincent Dauvissat Jean Vesselle Sherry Paul Bara Savennières Slope Farms Emidio Pepecannot tell you how excited I am about this. This neighbor raises pigs. Some wine too.

Seven friends and I pool our money every year to buy about 8 bottles of Burgundy wine, wine that we wouldn't buy individually because of the high cost and the risk of bad bottles. Pommard is not the most glorious of Burgundy appellations, not by a long shot. First, the good news: we had a great night and I love Burgundy Wine Club.

We tend to value the idea of vinifying individual plots separately, as in Burgundy, and increasingly now in Champagne. thought that the 1999 was the most perfect of the wines, objectively speaking, although it was clearly not mature enough to be at its peak. The company was great, and so were the food and the wines. Delicious.

Wells Guthrie had his conversion on the road home from Burgundy. The lanky, California maker of pinot noir, chardonnay, and syrah told me at his Sonoma winery that he had his conversion in 2005, after returning from a trip to Burgundy and the Rhone. Saul had his conversion on the road to Damascus. Thus he decided to change his style.

This wine can also do well with extended aging in bottle as the 1999 I recently tasted was fresh and delicious.) As the name of the grape (Melon de Bourgonge) suggests, it originally hailed from Burgundy. Muscadet gives pleasure when it is freshly squeezed. But aging the best examples can be worth the wait. French wine

Will the 2009's be as detailed and expressive of specific terroir as Burgundy lovers want them to be? Will the 2008's be delicious wines that offer the pleasure that Burgundy lovers want? He said that 09 is similar to 1999, and that it is his second favorite vintage behind 1999. Neal Rosenthal Fourrier Tastings Burgundy

This is just the second release of this wine (Benoit Tarlant began making it in 1999) and already it is one of my favorite Champagnes. Awesome wine, and it's the same price as a newly released 1er cru red Burgundy from a good terroir. White Burgundy is tough to buy, I think. December tends to be a good month for wine drinking.

And one day you spend $75 on a great producer's villages Burgundy from 2004, and you realize that it might be true that good producers make good wine in all vintages, but there are better ways to spend $75. beginning with the first ever vintage of 1997, and including 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2004. still have it, actually.

That is, unless one is in Burgundy where the chic restaurant Ma Cuisine is built on the grounds of a former royal stable, and the very warm and welcoming home of negociant Becky Wasserman -- in a charming village outside the city -- was originally built to shelter animals hundreds of years ago. Burgundy is a complex region to understand.

Deetrane very generously opened some big-shot bottles of red Burgundy too, including 1997 Simon Bize Latricières-Chambertin , 1996 Dominique Laurent Nuits St. George 1er Cru Les Chaignots , 1999 Michel Lafarge Volnay , and a Corton whose identity I have forgotten. It was my friend Deetrane's birthday the other night.

If I'm buying an age worthy wine, a good red Burgundy, for example, I'm a believer in buying three bottles and drinking one when young in order to know the wine in that phase of its life. remember asking my friend Peter about this as we drove from one cellar tasting to another in Burgundy a little over a year ago. And that's fine.

When I asked winemaker Roli Velich of the Moric winery which grape was the most apt comparison for Blaufränkisch, he suggested no fewer than three: pinot noir from Burgundy, Syrah from the Northern Rhone and Nebbiolo from Piedmont. Winemaker Uwe Schiefer brought an “old&# Blaufränkisch along–old being 1999. euro) a bottle.

There are the Bordeaux lovers, the Burgundy afficiandos, the Champagne specialists, and the members of the Cult. 1999 Ch. Tags: 1986 1996 2001 1976 1993 1998 1984 1995 1989 1990 1999 1983 1982 We had them all at our table. You all get thrown together and drink a bunch of great stuff and -- generally -- everyone gets along.

People mostly thought this was a Burgundy, that's how delicate and translucent it was, and how fresh and spicy. could tell without even tasting that it was a Burgundy, a big and ripe example, with a heady fruity perfume. It was another Châteauneuf du Pape, the 1999 Vieux Télégraphe la Crau. But my friends didn't.

And by the way, put this up against a lot of white Burgundy from the same year and this will come out ahead, as there is not even a hint of oxidation. 1999 Trimbach Gewurtztraminer Cuvée des Seigneurs de Ribeaupierre - an Alsace Gewurtztraminer with some bottle age.yum. Top notch wine. Really intriguing wine. Great Beaujolais.

1999 Pewsey Vale The Contours Riesling, Eden Valley. 1999 Torbreck Run Rig Shiraz Viognier, Barossa Valley. 1999 Brokenwood ILR Semillon, Hunter. 2002 Domaine de la Romanée Conti Romanée St Vivant Pinot Noir, Vosne Romanée, Burgundy. 1999 Mount Mary Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley. Day One. Australia’s Fine Wine. Day Two.

And my my pal Bruce had a bunch of people over for dinner and selected Burgundy as his wine theme, and he was quite generous with the bottles he opened. Overachievers: 1999 Domaine Leroy Meursault - Tough to get a handle on, but with time to re-taste and to think about the wine, it kind of blew me away. But you get my point.

But try surveying a line up of mostly Loire reds and low rent Burgundies and try to choose something to bring to the pricey La Paulee BYOB dinner being held tonight, which I am lucky enough to attend as a guest. had my eye on the 1999 Heresztyn Gevrey Chambertin Les Champonnets, 1er Cru for $56. This ain't easy.

While prices for 1998 Latour remain high compared to 2004 levels ($200 versus $115) the opening price for 1999 has declined significantly in recent months. Grand cru Burgundy has also showed significant drops. Post-1982 vintage Mouton Rothschild at auction at www.WineBid.com has dropped 10% in just the past five weeks.

He told Mary that I would be in Burgundy and boom - we had an invite to Domaine des Croix for dinner. She served an excellent 2007 Albert Mann Riesling Schlossberg Grand Cru with a lively green salad, and a dark and stormy, and still probably too young, but layered and delicious 1999 Alain Graillot Hermitage with the boudin noir pie.

So when the Aussies regain their senses and start using corks again- warts and all, and I am no great fan of TCA-tainted wines- not to mention all of the premature oxidation issues with recent vintages of my beloved white Burgundies, which in my opinion may well be cork-related- then I will start tasting Australian rieslings again in-depth.

had one and only one glass of Champagne while in Burgundy. was not as skeptical about this wine as I might have been, simply because I had the opportunity to drink the 1999 Pol Roger Brut a few weeks ago and I was impressed with the easy going way that it carried its depth and richness. There, I said it. Food-like in its presence.

There was everything from Grand Cru Burgundy to Barolo to Sancerre ros é. 1999 Chateau Musar. The Burgundies were not so impressive, on the whole. The only one that seemed promising to me was a 1999 Geantet-Pansiot Chambolle Musigny 1er Cru , but even that did not have the same captivating factor as some of the other reds.

began in a French table area and tried some Sancerres (made from Sauvignon Blanc), some white Burgundys (made from Chardonnay) and some white blends. Hubery Lamy of Burgundy presented 3 wines. Denis section of Burgundy. Given the time I only managed to taste their 1999 Paje Barbaresco. don't know. great wine.

It was a 1999 Paternoster Aglianico Del Vulture Don Anselmo. and bring a bottle of 1996 Grand Cru Burgundy. The following is an interview with Keith Beavers, co-owner of In Vino Wine Bar & Restaurant and Alphabet City Wine Co. Keith also writes a blog called East Village Wine Geek. And here I am a servant of wine, spreading the love.I

stuck with Burgundy and grower Champagne. Back in January I lamented my past wine splurge results. Many of you commented with excellent suggestions, some of which I wound up using for Splurge 2007. Yeah, just like the NY State legislature, my budget comes out later than it's supposed to. More like $550. C'mon folks, I didn't buy that wine.

Wine 2 - Burgundy shaped bottle, deep impression on the bottom, small rectangle shaped label.It It was a 1999 Beaucastel CdP Blanc. Wine 3 - Burgundy shaped bottle, seemed kind of wider than most, felt like a white wine, and a minerally wine, something edgy. must say, I've never seen this, but I believe that it's true.

I'm talking about a few bottles of 1999 Clivi Tocai Friulano, and probably a few bottles of banal Pinot Grigio along the way. The flavor profile of these wines is so new to me, and to be honest, I'm not sure if it is a flavor profile that I like as much as that of Loire or Burgundy whites. The 1999 cost about $25.

mean, this stuff is more expensive at the entry level than Burgundy, so to be able to taste the whole lineup like this, to learn this much at one time about Grower Champagne, to determine which are the wines that I want for my own cellar.fughedabadit. Brooklynguy is in love with Champagne. What an opportunity! Too rich for you? Me too.

decided to focus on Champagne and Burgundy, and to taste whatever Loire wine I came across, but there are not many of those in the portfolio. 1999 J Schram Brut (8+) This is Schramsberg's top label. Next installment is Burgundy, and let me tell you - some fascinating and wonderful wines. cannot enjoy myself that way.

The wine was DELICIOUS, and it resembled good Burgundy Chardonnay far more than any California Chard I've had. It's July 4th folks, and as an American, a Brooklynite, I feel compelled to write a little sumpthin about an American wine. recently discovered a Napa Valley Chardonnay that I really like. know, sounds odd, right? Why, yes it is.

wanted to open a 2005 Burgundy with the mushroom lasagna, made with béchamel, somehow rich and light at the same time. And by the way, the Wine Doctor recently reviewed this same wine the other day, but the 1999 vintage, and enjoyed it very much. The other night I was drowning and who came to the rescue? Deetrane, that's who. Anyway.

Here are some from the past few weeks that did not get their own post: Burgundy NV Domaine des Terres Dorees (Jean-Paul Brun) Beaujolais FRV 100 , $19 (SIP Fine Wines, Brooklyn). 1999 Domaine Roger Belland Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot Clos Pitois , $ unknown. rare pleasure to taste a well aged white Burgundy. Holy cow!

Since I never seem to be able to write here about all of the tasting that interests me (and that potentially would interest you), here is a roundup of interesting wines from the past month: Burgundy (yes - I still drink Burgundy wines, and still love them the most!) 1999 Simi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley , $45.

Okay, you can stop feeling sorry for me now, and check out this neat bit of cooking we did the other night, paired well with a regional wine from Burgundy. In Burgundy, I was so glad to see chestnuts pop up so often on menus and in grocery stores. actually read the print version of the NY Times Dining and Wine section this Wednesday!

I'll begin with the red Burgundies, because the white table was jammed when I walked in so these were the first wines I tasted. Here are the wines, with the few notes I wrote during the tasting: 1999 Bouchard Pere et Fils Clos Vougeot Grand Cru - Bright red color, oaky, tangy sour cherries. No one was rushing to taste wines.

I am starting to feel more comfortable as a consumer of Burgundy wine. tried a 1999 Meo-Camuzet Bourgogne at dinner one night at Ma Cuisine, a restaurant in Beaune, and it was insipid and uninspiring stuff. There are so many producers though, some with famous names, others unknown to me. How do we decide which new wine to try?

It was, in fact, closed down, but even so, this clear dark purple wine exhibited the finesse, depth, mix of clean fruit, forest, and animal flavors and the balance of a fine Burgundy from the Cote de Nuits. Burgundy 2001 Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chateau des Ducs Monopole , $85 (but I got it on the secondary market for $27).

This dish appeared on almost every menu in Burgundy. Escargots in Burgundy are like pastrami sandwiches in New York: they are a part of what makes the local cuisine famous, but it is a dish that locals very rarely actually eat. 1999 is supposed to be a great vintage for red Burgundy. long finish, I guess you would say.

am not usually drawn to large negociant houses, but I read through Nikolai Vogel & Kilian Fitzpatrick's lovingly written descriptions of their Burgundy tasting trips. Pretty nose of flowers and earth - including a smell that I don't know how to name, but that I have experienced only with better reds from Burgundy.

The Hospices de Beaune ( pictured below ) has served the poor and sick in Burgundy for over 500 years now. There are amazing wine shops in Beaune, any of which carries loads of great Burgundy bottles, not to mention the Champagne and Cremant. am turning out to be a big fan of the 2001 vintage for red Burgundy. can't spend $58?

But both Oregon and Burgundy wines that are called "masculine" can be lovingly reviewed - there must be something good doing on here. You can read about Mark Vlossak the winemaker on the site, but I will add that he was the winemaker at Panther Creek through the 1999 vintage, another Willamette Valley winery with a solid reputation.

Last night I had the distinct pleasure of tasting three Burgundies, one white and two red. had to rely on my "tasting memory" to try to understand the white wine, but comparing the reds offered me some clear insights about red wine in Burgundy. I always enjoy tasting wines side by side, learning by comparing them.