I could probably grow old drinking exactly what's in my cellar now and be perfectly happy. mean really - Burgundy, the Loire, Sherry, Champagne.what's not to love? This past month I bought two wines that are new to me and both, I must say, were excellent wines, things I would definitely buy again. So I'm trying to do this again.

If you know in advance that you will be opening a bottle of wine a few days from now, I suggest standing it up vertically in the cellar to let the sediment fall to the bottom of the bottle. It's not just an aesthetic issue—the sediment can be bitter, and its presence definitely changes the flavors of the wine. generally don't. Steak.

was in Jerez in October , and one night I had dinner at La Carbona with Peter Liem and Eduardo Ojeda, the cellar master at La Guita and Valdespino. loved this wine too, although it is definitely different from the other Lahaye wines I've had. Well, of the last few months anyway. And La Carbona is by not even a steakhouse.

Okay, I never have a problem with mature Burgundy, or mature red wine in general. This is definitely a wine that showcases ripe dark fruit, but that's only a part of the package. This is absolutely top notch wine, I bet it would improve with time in the cellar, and it sells for $20 before a mixed case discount.

waiting for our 7pm dinner and what a fabulous day we have had at the Palais Coburg, viewing multi-million dollar wine cellars and meeting the celebrities of the wine world. Of course, everyone loved the Roumieu -- the 2008 Merryvale raised eyebrows as some asked "is this new vintage 'fine wine' and what is a good definition of fine wine.'".

Comtes Lafon is one of the iconic domaines in Burgundy. Maybe you don't know this about me, but I really like Burgundy wine. If I were to buy a bottle from roughly 1996 - 2002 there is the pre-mox risk too, although supposedly Lafon did a better job of avoiding pre-mox problems that did most other white Burgundy producers.

decided to open a bottle that isn't important to me, something that I would cull from my cellar. Look at my notes from Cellar Tracker and you'll see what I mean: 2/9/2008 : up there with the very finest Bourgogne i've ever had. Seems like a solid candidate for cellar-culling, no? This is an idea that I firmly believe in.

I'm aware of storage as an issue, and I know that the wines I've drunk in the very cellars where they were made are among the best wines I've had. Truly perfect storage is next to impossible, outside of the cellar that birthed the wine. Not tasted, necessarily, and definitely not aromatically young. They felt young.

There are many answers to this question, but I decided that I would use basically the same approach that I use with Burgundy wine. In Burgundy it's this is relatively straight forward - the basic wines are regional wines, Bourgognes and the like. 2009 Fritz Haag Rie sling , $18, Rudi Wiest Selections/Imported by Cellars International.

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? This one will definitely have a place in my cellar. Neal Rosenthal Fourrier Tastings BurgundySo different from the 2009.

The wine school definition of filtration that I learned is this - 'filtration is the acceleration of the process of sedimentation.' BG: Was there anyone in Burgundy that you could talk to as you were thinking about this? We were friends, we tasted in each others' cellars, we opened bottles together, we really got to know each other.

The palate is a disaster - way too evolved, no definition, not flawed, but unpleasant. Paul Pernot Rhône Valley Eric Texier Closel Beaujolais Marcel Lapierre Savennières BurgundyThe results have not been terribly impressive so far. Kind of like reading an old journal entry. Boy, did I love this wine a few years ago. Live and learn.

It is commonly said that 2004 is the worst recent vintage for red wine in Burgundy. As Bill Nanson of Burgundy Report first wrote about , ladybugs were all over the vineyards in 2004. Some of the wines greatly improved over the course of a few days, shedding bulk, gaining definition. So, 2004 Burgundy Red Wine - How Bad is it?

1971 was a good vintage in Burgundy and also in Piedmonte, so it shouldn't be too hard to find something interesting and delicious. The daughter was there in the Lafouge cellars, inside her mommy's belly, when her mommy tasted this very wine (and spat, thank you very much). I've been thinking a little bit about birth year wines lately.

Not too many decades ago, nefarious producers and negotiants used inexpensive wine from the south of France to add volume to Pinot Noir from Burgundy. Guests at the 21 Club. Did you know that the U.S. is the second-largest export market for Champagne, behind the United Kingdom? Over 20 million bottles were shipped to the U.S. in 2004 alone.

That's real money, but it's pretty cheap as far as Burgundy goes. wanted to drink several examples of the best bottles to see if they are undervalued within the pantheon of Burgundy terroir, or if they are simply more of that overpriced but merely decent wine from Burgundy. Why Savigny-lès-Beaune? These can be rich, dense wines.

began by reading and talking to friends, and this definitely served me well. Unless you often buy at auction, or have been buying and cellaring wine for a very long time, you're probably like me - you drink scores of younger wines for every truly mature bottle you drink. hope I have the patience to cellar wines for decades like this.

love Burgundy and Beaujolais, and Poulsard is definitely of the same phenotype. Beautiful now, and seems like a good candidate for the cellar. I've recently emerged from a bit of a "red wine stand-still." I've wanted to branch out some more. Why did it take me so long to find Poulsard? Is that so wrong? Utterly delicious wine.

enjoy pairing this and other dishes like it, with red Burgundy wines. Gouges wines, in general, require a lot of time in the cellar before revealing their charms. Adam and I both thought that the wine was excellent, although we both thought it would continue to improve with a few more years of cellaring. Georges. Georges.

It's like beginning to learn about Burgundy by drinking a few bottles of DRC and old Leflaive. La Bota de Manzanilla #8 is pungent on the nose with brisk salt air and a rich nuttiness, all framed by a subtle character that I just don't know how to describe, other than to say that it smells like a beautiful old wine cellar. Excitement!

If this wine were from someplace famous like Burgundy it would cost $50. This is the "entry level" wine, which is a joke because it is a complete wine, ripe, complex, cellar-worthy. Call me crazy, but I don't see us climbing out of this recession any time soon. think we have another two years of hard times ahead, maybe more.

Jeremy has access to an incredible cellar loaded with wonderful wines from all over France - he can pull out whatever he likes for dinner. Denis and unquestionably one of the greatest in all of Burgundy? think I basically maintained my dignity, but I definitely was emitting the "I covet" vibe. Jeremy Seysses in the cellar.

We visited some of the very top producers in Burgundy - Mugnier, Roumier, Pierre Morey, Pacalet, L'Arlot, Le Moine, Rousseau, and Dujac. One of my favorites was our visit to the cellars of Philippe Pacalet in Beaune. Philippe Pacalet, definitely a bit of a rascal. Generally, this is a guy is completely hands-off.

Think about it for a moment - the wine has been in barrels large enough to hold about 300 bottles worth, resting in a cold humid cellar for a year. There are definite clues, but it's tough to be exact. Anyway, I heard on more than one occasion while in Burgundy that wine is in "a beautiful state" when in barrel right before bottling.

Lunch was definitely in order, and so we went to La Toute Petite Auberge in Vosne-Romanée where I ate a wonderful entrecôte of Charolais beef. I've had Charolais maybe four times now, only in Burgundy, and I love how deeply beefy it is without feeling heavy. Burgundy Dilittantes - nothing to snub your nose at over here.

2005 was the vintage of the century in Bordeaux, the vintage of the millennium in Burgundy, the finest post-World War II vintage in the Rhône, and the greatest vintage in recent memory in the Loire. I'm not sure that there is much point in long-term cellaring this one. The top vineyard in the estate and always a wine worth cellaring.

Burgundy, Jura, and Muscadet.nope. In honor of their 20th anniversary, the Dressner folk dug into the cellar and set out a load of wines from their inaugural vintage. These are piercing wines of great definition, and they can seem like turtles, just their head visible underneath all of that shell. How thoughtful is that?

There was everything from Grand Cru Burgundy to Barolo to Sancerre ros é. This is the one that I must buy for my own cellar. should pull the few bottles I have out of the cellar and drink them over the next year or two. The Burgundies were not so impressive, on the whole. Same is true with wine, I would say. Who knew.

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. wine I will definitely keep an eye out for in the future. Denis section of Burgundy. don't know. great wine. Onto the reds.

And now, I can recommend them to you: The first of two were recommended back in November as part of Wine Blogging Wednesday's Silver Burgundy theme. I'm always interested in finding excellent Burgundy at good prices so when I saw this at Moore Brothers in Manhattan, trying it one was a no-brainer. Very pure and fresh. So sue me

Loire-lovers have been touting 2005 as a great vintage, as good as 05 in Burgundy or Bordeaux. And if you're into cellaring wine, these will improve for at least a decade, probably longer. This wine is like a prizefighter in training - no sweet or fatty foods, lots of sleep, and definitely no sex, but this is just training.

And yes, I am definitely capable of being that cheesy. read somewhere that the wines of Calon-S é gur require about 86 years of cellaring before they drink well, so I decanted almost four hours in advance and kept my fingers crossed. I know it's a touchy time to talk about Bordeaux , but I'm going for it anyway. Do you do that?

decided about 6 months ago that I wanted to out-do these people, the folks who taste blind and confidently declare "this is definitely an Opus One, and the slightly lower concentration makes me think it's an 02. Wine 2 - Burgundy shaped bottle, deep impression on the bottom, small rectangle shaped label.It No Doubt about it - Opus One."

So this is an investment, not just in the Burgundy type of cash, but also in cellar space. If you spend $55 on a Burgundy, are you definitely getting the finest example? Had I used this kind of thinking a few years ago I would have purchased and cellared some of the 2002 Le Bourg. This goes for about $55. Bordeaux?

As I keep hearing (and learning for myself) about Burgundy - it's all about the producer. David of McDuff's Food and Wine Trail reaches into his cellar for a couple of 2002's by one of his favorite producers, André Bonhomme. He says the 05 VV was opened too early, but he calls it a definite rebuy that should be great down the line.

What do you think of when you hear "Burgundy?" There are a few in my cellar, and I agonize over opening them because they are so special and so dear in price. And this is the theme for Wine Blogging Wednesday #39 - taste a bottle(s) of Silver Burgundy, wine from either the Côte Chalonnaise or the Mâconnais.

wanted to open a 2005 Burgundy with the mushroom lasagna, made with béchamel, somehow rich and light at the same time. La Rioja Alta is an old school producer, cellaring their wine for many years until they feel it's ready for release. But based on this bottle, I will definitely be back. Deetrane, that's who. So far so good.

Over the hill, flat with no discernable acidity, not unpleasant but definitely past its prime. Next visit I plan on helping the Father in-law translate his writing pad full of scratches and notes to Cellar Tracker I'm lucky because my father in-law likes wine and keeps some good bottles in the house. 500 bottles of wine in the bins!

Why are there no "pedestrian" blogs writing about Burgundy? Not everyone is A Burghound, nor does everyone have the cellar depth to hang with Bill Nanson at Burgundy Report. Joe at Joe's Wine Journal tagged me, and now I'm it. wasn't going to play because Joe has cooties, but then I decided that cooties aren't so bad. You're i

LOVED it, and will definitely investigate Zind Humbrecht further. Father-in-law stunned us by bringing to this dinner a bottle of mature Burgundy wine, a 1993 Volnay 1er Cru by Robert Ampeau, a producer I had never encountered. And how lovely was that gesture, bringing that lovely old Burgundy? Deep golden color, very inviting.

must say, I wish I had more of this wine in the cellar. This is definitely a good luck album people, and worth the investment. We opened a special bottle of wine with our dinner last night, not because it was so expensive or rare, but because it was one of three bottles we brought back from our trip to Burgundy in November.

We went there for lunch on our last day in Burgundy and although we had a very nice time, on this occasion Gourmet got it wrong. There were most definitely no vignerons - this is tourist group dining all the way. Tasting all of the wines was interesting though, and I gained some insight into recent Burgundy. asked Msr. I asked.

The Domaine Paul Pernot was the largest producer we visited, although Pernot is middle sized by Burgundy standards. Who knows.maybe I just needed more experience with Burgundy, or maybe 2003 Bourgogne is just not going to be that impressive in general. We ran up to the cellar door and knocked, holding our coats over our heads.

Okay, so I've been going gaga for Burgundy lately. And as in Burgundy, different producers can make vastly different wines using grapes from the same source. want to taste premier and grand cru level wines to learn more about Burgundy before our trip. The same beautiful clear garnet as the Burgundy wines.

Many wines made in Savennieres can improve for decades with cellaring. These are impressive and serious wines, and represent an amazing value when considered with wines of equal quality from Burgundy, for example. Definitely off-dry, with clean and acidic stone fruit, and rich figs, wrapped in light honey. Did you notice that?