If you think you love Chardonnay, you need to experience the wines of the Côte de Beaune. More importantly, if you think you hate Chardonnay, you need to try a good Côte de Beaune. The greatest expression of the grape lie in the vineyards along the limestone escarpment that make up the backbone of this region. The Côte de Beaune is home to both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but there is little doubt as to who’s in charge in the Beaune. This single region, and the amazing wines it produces, is the sole reason that Chardonnay has been able to take over the wine producing world in our time.

It’s a little surprising to hear that this most sacred of wine regions did not host its signature grape, Chardonnay, until the 17^th century. Before whatever happy accident brought Chardonnay to the Côte, the grape of choice was Pinot Gris. Certainly not a bad grape, it just has never been able to pull off the high-wire acid/body structure that is a great Chardonnay. The Côte de Beaune lies on the southern half of the Côte d’Or, and is home to many fine AOCs producing wine from Chardonnay. Two of the many noteworthy of these appellations producing white wines are Mersault and Montrachet.

If you want to sound very Frenchy and cool to your wine geek friends, make sure to pronounce it “moan-ra-shay.” Montrachet is both a village and Grand Cru. To add to that confusion, some of the Grand Cru in the Village of Montrachet attach the name to the end of their Grand Cru names; so we end up with Puligny-Montrachet and Batard-Montrachet. There is however, no confusion about the best Grand Cru in the area—it is Le Montrachet. The Chardonnay produced from this escarpment in the French countryside is the archetype of white Burgundy—and thus Chardonnay produced anywhere. The wines of Le Montrachet are intense and succulent with excellent acidity and structure and a long finish. Even if you can’t find the Montrachet, anything with the name Montrachet attached will be a great bottle of wine.

Though there are no Grand Cru vineyards’ in Mersault, the region is still considered one of the greatest in the whole Côte de Beaune. The wines here are Chardonnay and they tend towards a buttery, soft and rich style. The appellation produces some decent values—if you can find Mersault-Villages bottles, look for Les Charmes or Les Perrieres.

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In the north of Italy lies a region with a sixth of all Italy’s people and a healthy portion of its vines. The region is home to the best sparkling wine produced in Italy as well as some of the funkiest cheeses around—try Tellagio sometime, it’s actually very good. Here they call the Nebbiolo grape Chiavennasca and will sometimes dry them to raisins before making a strong, off-dry red. If you haven’t googled it already, the area in question is the Lombardy region, in north-central Italy, along the Swiss border.

The wine market of Lombardy in inextricably linked to its cultural center—Milan. The wines of the region have historically gone to quench the thirst of the cities citizenry. Over time, the region and the city seem to have worked out a deal were the vineyards grow what the city wants to drink—or perhaps the city just like to drink its local vino. In any case, there’s a lot of sparkling wine coming out of Lombardy as well as some excellent red wine called Valtellina.

Franciacorta is a DOCG wine zone (the highest quality level a region in Italy can receive), which grows grapes exclusively for use in sparkling wine. The region uses the Champagne process to make their wines and even uses the Champagne grapes Chardonnay and Pinot Noir—with a little Pinot Bianco thrown in for local flavor. The wines are aged for 18 months to 30 months for non-vintage and vintage wines, respectively. Franciacorta sparkling wines can be expected to have a little more sugar than Champagne, but they won’t be sweet. Any wine that is produced in the area that isn’t sparkling is called Terre di Franciacorta. Still wines from the region include blends of red Bordeaux grapes and aged Chardonnay in the style of Burgundy.

Outside of Piedmont—the ancestral home of Nebbiolo—the only area to grow the grape is Valtellina in Lombardy. Nebbiolo is famous for making Barolo and Barbaresco in neighboring Piedmont. In Lombardy the grape makes a more delicate wine, with less acid and tannin than the world famous Nebbiolos of Piedmont. Though lighter in style, Valtellina makes excellent red wines capable of aging for up to 10 years. A very unique wine is made here from the Nebbiolo grape, it’s called Sforzato and is made from grapes semi-dried grapes and results in a strong, rich wine, similar to Amarone.

Another region producing wine in Lombardy is the Oltrepò Pavese—literally “across the Po river.” Oltrepò Pavese is responsible for half the wine coming out of Lombardy, but most of it is simple wines that won’t get outside of Italy. The quality wines are made from Pinot Noir, both in sparkling white and still red wines.

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It’s easy to overlook the areas of Burgundy that aren’t the Côte d’Or. Really, there is so much going on in the Côte d’Or, who has the time to focus on wines from down south? Much like the younger siblings of an all-star older brother may get left behind in the family discussions, the Côte Chalonnaise and the Maconnais don’t garner much attention for their output. And why would they? It’s not breathtakingly expensive, the area isn’t riddled with overlapping AOCs and communes with 14 vines inside of monastic stone walls. They just make good wine at a fair price, which seems like an excellent reason to give them some attention.

The Côte Chalonnaise lies just south of the Côte d’Or, in long north to south strip of land surrounding a central plain. The soils and the overall climatic conditions in the area are quite similar to the Côte d’Or, with the exception being that there is slightly less rain in the Côte Chalonnaise. The major geographic difference is that vineyards in the Côte d’Or lie on long, single hillside; where in the Côte Chalonnaise there aren’t significant slopes for the vines to grow. The area is more undulating and pastoral than it’s northern neighbor and consequently has many microclimates that affect the quality of the wine from the various subregions: Bouzeron, Rully, Mercury, Givry and Montagny.

Bouzeron is closest to the Côte d’Or, lying just south of Montrachet. The area grows both Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and these wines are generally bottled under the generic Bourgogne labels. The unique part of Bouzeron is that it is the only AOC in France for the grape Aligoté. The wines made from Aligoté tend to be a bit denser, more in the style of Pinot Gris than the Chardonnay which is the norm for the region.

Rully is located south of Bouzeron and is the most important area for production of sparkling wine in Burgundy—labeled Cremant de Bourgogne. Rully does produce a light and mostly simple Pinot Noir as well.

The most important name in the Côte Chalonnaise is Mercury. It not only produces the most wine in the area, but it also produces some of the best. Pinot Noir is the grape of choice here and can reach very good quality levels, helped in part by the mandated restriction on yields of grapes per acre. The wines of Mercury have a deep color, spicy notes of cherry and can at their best be on par with some respectable Côte de Beaune wines.

Givry grows almost exclusively red wines from the Pinot Noir grape. Though the area is quite small, it has seen a positive increase in quality in the last decade. The reds display a respectable tannic structure as well as currant and earth on the nose. Some can age well, but most are ready to drink within 5-7 years after bottling.

The last region in the Côte Chalonnaise is Montagny, an appellation that produces only white wines from the Chardonnay grape. The wines are noted for displaying full structure and crisp acidity. Styles can range from very full-bodied and oaky to quite lean and firm, all in all a very good representation of old world Chardonnay.

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Carneros exists in its own little world. It’s the first American Viticultural Area (AVA) to be defined by climate—instead of political lines in the sand. It straddles the two most famous AVAs in the United States—Napa and Sonoma—with a portion of the appellation lying in each, and the ability to name it’s wines as Carneros or Napa/Sonoma, depending where the grapes are from. It’s the only area in the U.S. that is recognized internationally as a powerhouse of sparkling wine production. Carneros, or Los Carneros if you want, is a very special corner of the wine world, and it lies just across the bay from San Francisco.

The dominant climatic force in Carneros is the San Pablo Bay, an offshoot of the larger San Francisco Bay. This oceanic influence brings down temperatures and brings in strong winds, which consistently hit the vineyards of Carneros. The area was chosen by the great Louis M. Martini in the 1940’s because of the relative coolness of the climate—this is California after all, not Wisconsin, so the coolness is relative. Still the area showed promise for growing grapes that fare well in cool weather, namely Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

After some success in the 70’s with varietal, still versions of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the world began to form an idea. The idea went like this: cool climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay make some pretty good sparkling wine in Champagne…so, let’s make a sparkling wine in the style of Champagne in Carneros! And so began the veritable gold rush of the 80’s for good land in Carneros by the big Champagne (and Cava) producers.

The wines of Carneros are marked by a certain touch of old-world charm, mixed in with the fruit forward flavor profiles—they’re California wines after all. The Chardonnays tend to have significantly more acid and less of the creamy, roundness of most California Chardonnay. This style can be excellent on its own, but often finds its way into a blend of Chardonnays from either Napa or Sonoma. The clean acidity and brightness help to balance the fattier style of Chardonnay from warmer parts of the appellations. Carneros Pinot is noted for having a lighter body with more earthy aromas than most California examples of the grape.

The sparkling wine from Carneros is considered some of the best of the new world. The wines display excellent structure and acidity, with intense aroma and bright, clear flavors. Some of the best sparkling producers in the area are: Domaine Chandon, Domaine Carneros, Gloria Ferrer and Codorníu Napa. Sparkling wine from Carneros has the potential to age well, though most bottles follow the Champagne example and are blends of several years, so there won’t be a vintage year on the label.

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The great wine making history of the Russian River Valley all started with immigrants in the 19^th century planting “home gardens” to produce wine for personal consumption. The valley has certainly come a long way since then. Today the region accounts for about 15% of all Sonoma Country acreage. Russian River Valley is a subregion of the Sonoma Valley AVA (American Viticultural Area). It sits on the current and former valley floor of the Russian River (the river changed course at some point, for unknown reasons) close to the Napa Valley. Russian River was granted it’s own AVA in 1983

The Russian River as it lies today spills into the Pacific Ocean after taking a hard dogleg west at around the area of the Russian River AVA. The rivers direct access to the sea brings in a daily deluge of cool night air and morning fog that blanket the vineyards of the Russian River Valley. This cool air acts as a conditioning to the warm daytime temperatures to ensure that the grapes don’t get too hot—which can result in “baked” flavors in the wines. The cool ocean air also means there exists a large diurnal temperature fluctuation in the vineyards. This large fluctuation of temperatures from day to night is thought to give grapes and wines made from them more acid and structure.

Russian River is known for two grapes: Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. It shouldn’t be too surprising that these grapes were chosen for the area—the cool climate is much like the grapes homeland of Burgundy. Chardonnay accounts for almost half of the acreage in Russian River and Pinot Noir more than a quarter of the acreage. Chardonnay made in the region tends to be lean, high in acid and more balanced than the oaky, buttery style of Chardonnay from other areas of California. The Pinot Noir from Russian River is also noted for its bright acidity, also for its strong berry and cherry flavors. Some producers emphasize a restrained structure in an old world style while others favor bigger sugar and alcohol levels and more significant oak aging.

Russian River appellation has two sub areas within its boundaries, the Chalk Hill AVA and the Green Valley of Russian River AVA. The Chalk Hill region is located in the northeast of Russian River and gets its name from the chalky soils of the area. Chalk Hill is relatively warmer than the rest of Russian River and has success with warmer-climate grapes Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Green Valley AVA is in the southwest corner of Russian River and is even cooler than the rest of Russian River. This decidedly cool climate AVA grows Chardonnay and Pinot Noir as well as some Gewürztraminer.

There are many excellent wineries in the Russian River producing exceptional bottles. In the Russian River AVA look for Williams Selyem, Rochioli, Foppiano, and Gary Farrell. In the Green Valley Kistler and Dutton Ranch make excellent Chardonnay. Mega producer Kendall Jackson has a stake in Russian River with its La Crema label as does E&J Gallo with their Laguna Ranch vineyard.

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Perhaps no other wine in the world has been able to cultivate an image quite as well as Champagne. The houses of Champagne spent the 19^th and 20^th centuries making their wine as synonymous with upward mobility, the affordable luxury product. They affectively tied their sparkling wines with moments of celebration in the minds of the world’s consumers. In a stroke of genius, they specifically advertised to women. In an age when this was uncommon, it reaped rewards in brand loyalty that last to this day.

It should come then, as no surprise that the Champagne producers of France feel a great need to protect this valuable brand. There are literally international treaties that the French have negotiated to stop anyone, anywhere outside of the bounds of the Champagne AOC from calling their sparkling wine product “Champagne.”

True Champagne comes from the Champagne region, located in north-central France. The vineyards lie near to the city of Paris and are one of the most northerly outposts of grapes in the world. The grapes used to produce Champagne are actually quite familiar to most wine consumers: Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with a little of the obscure Pinot Meunier thrown in.

Champagne is usually a white wine, but Pinot Noir is a red grape…no? Well, yes, it is, but in Champagne production the Pinot Noir grapes are crushed very lightly and removed from the skins quickly so that no color leaches into the juice. Most Champagne is a blend of the three grapes, however a bottle labeled Blanc de Noirs will be made exclusively from Pinot Noir and Meunier and a bottle labeled Blanc de Blancs is made from only Chardonnay.

Champagne today is always a sparkling wine, though it was a still red at one point in time. The geography and climate of the area sparkling wine production the best choice for growers in the area. The cooler climate gives the grapes a high dose of acid and lower sugar content. The high acid is beneficial to balance the texture of the bubbles in the wine. Champagne is made by the process invented in the Champagne area called méthode champenoise. While the process is repeated throughout the world to produce sparkling wines, the name is protected and cannot be used on labels of wines that are not Champagne.

Champagne is produced in several levels of sweetness, from driest to sweetest: Brut zero, Extra Brut, Brut, Extra Sec, Sec, Demi-Sec and Doux. Most Champagne is a non-vintage wine. This is different than most still wines, and is why there is generally not a vintage on the label of Champagne. The Champagne houses blend their wines, using wines from several years to arrive at a “house style.” This process is designed to ensure that you’re favorite bottle of Champagne will taste the same, year-to-year.

Imagine if Coca-Cola or Budweiser tasted different every year…that consistency is what the Champagne houses are aiming for. Every few years though, there is an excellent vintage and the Champagne will be made from only that year’s wine. These special wines are called vintage Champagne and are aged for longer, then released with a vintage date on the label.

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There’s been an unfortunate history in the wine industry of labeling generic white wine “Chablis.” It’s unfortunate because the lake of inferior white wine carrying the Chablis name does no justice to real McCoy.

You see, Chablis is a real place. A real, cold, small place in northern France. The region lies on the 48^th parallel—roughly the same latitude as the U.S. border with Canada in the Great Lakes area—and is the northernmost limit of wine production. The Burgundy region claims Chablis—though it’s actually closer to Champagne—but it’s wine production is significantly different. Chablis produces good wines under the AOC designations with only the Chardonnay grape. Burgundy, of course, grows the grape as well, but the styles in which the wines in Chablis are made are distinctive.

Chablis is recognized for the uniqueness of its soils, the most famous of which is the Kimmeridgean. This soil is ancient, from the Jurassic period, and is composed of clay and ancient oyster shells. The soil is said to give the wines a distinct nose of flint, mineral and steel. Some say the reason that oysters and Chablis are such a classic pairing is that the Chablis vines grow from soil composed of fossilized oyster shells.

It’s important to remember that the Chablis region is very far north, which means the grapes often times do not ripen in the same way that more southerly Chardonnay will. The cooler climate and shorter growing season give the wines of Chablis a characteristic acidity, which is described as racy and green-apple-like. Another characteristic of Chablis wines is a faint tinge of green on the edges of the wine in a glass. The wines of Chablis are usually not made or aged in oak. This gives theses Chardonnay wines a particular purity of flavor not often found in Chardonnay from other parts of the world that use significant oak.

The AOC Chablis regulations divide the region into four levels, in ascending or of quality: Petite Chablis, AOC Chablis, Premier Cru and Grand Cru. All of the Grand Cru vineyards are located on a single southwest-facing hill; there are only seven but they’re all wonderful. All seven produce wines and label the bottles with the names of the vineyard; they are: Bougros, Les Preuses, Vaudésir, Grenouilles, Valmur, Les Clos and Blanchot. There are good wines produced from the Premier Cru vineyards as well, though they may or may not put the names of the vineyards on the labels.

The wines of Chablis are unique, with strong floral, flinty, earthy aromas and bracing acidity. In good vintages they can be excellent, and, due to the relative lack of demand for them, they can be reasonably priced. Look for wines from ’02, ’05 or ’07 and look for a label with a vineyard name on it—it will at least be a Premier Cru. Expect to pay anywhere from $15-$50 for a bottle.

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Perhaps no other wine region in the world is as obsessed with terrior as Burgundy is. And just what is terrior you ask? Terrior is and idea the French came up with to describe a piece of land given the variables of: microclimate, soil composition and local geography. The differences in those variables and the way that they come together can have a profound impact on the resulting wine. Burgundy has been classifying tiny parcels of land according to soil, climate and geography for centuries. Most believe they were the first to start this practice.

Burgundy is located in the east of France, just north of the Rhone district. The area has been under cultivation for thousands of years and today remains one of the premier wine regions in the world. Climatically, the Burgundy region is described as continental, which means it has distinct seasons, cold winters, hot summers and potentially severe weather.

The Burgundy district contains several regions: in the north there is Chablis, in the south there is Beaujolais, and in the center is the Chalonnaise, Maconnais and Côte d’Or. All the regions produce quality wine, but only the Côte d’Or is home to the astronomically priced wines that are often associated with Burgundy. The Côte d’Or itself is split roughly into two areas, north and south. The North is the the Côte de Nuits and the south is the the Côte de Beaune.

The region of Burgundy covers a significant geographic area and contains more separate AOC areas than any other in France, but it uses only a small number of grapes. The dominant white grape in Burgundy is Chardonnay. Grown from the north to the south, Chardonnay makes most of the white wines in Burgundy, though some is made from Aligote as well. There are only two significant red grapes in Burgundy: Pinot Noir and Gamay. Gamay is only grown in significant amounts in Beaujolais, other than that, Pinot Noir is the dominant grape, especially in the Côte d’Or.

The Catholic Church has played a significant role in the history of Burgundy. Historically the Church has owned many vineyards and monks were vintners of Burgundy. The Cistercians were the first to really put together the idea that different vineyards made different quality levels of wines. This was the beginning of the concept of terrior that is so crucial today in Burgundy. The other key player in Burgundy is the negociant, a person or company that buys grapes or grape juice from many vineyard owners and then makes and bottles wine from this collection of sources. The negociant plays a critical role in Burgundy because so many of the important vineyards have had their ownership split into tiny parcels as they have been passed down generationally. In some vineyards an owner may only own one or two rows of vines. It’s not feasible for this owner to make wine commercially, so they sell their grapes to the negociant.

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If you think you love Chardonnay, you need to experience the wines of the Côte de Beaune. More importantly, if you think you hate Chardonnay, you need to try a good Côte de Beaune. The greatest expression of the grape lie in the vineyards along the limestone escarpment that make up the backbone of this region. The Côte de Beaune is home to both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but there is little doubt as to who’s in charge in the Beaune. This single region, and the amazing wines it produces, is the sole reason that Chardonnay has been able to take over the wine producing world in our time.

It’s a little surprising to hear that this most sacred of wine regions did not host its signature grape, Chardonnay, until the 17^th century. Before whatever happy accident brought Chardonnay to the Côte, the grape of choice was Pinot Gris. Certainly not a bad grape, it just has never been able to pull off the high-wire acid/body structure that is a great Chardonnay. The Côte de Beaune lies on the southern half of the Côte d’Or, and is home to many fine AOCs producing wine from Chardonnay. Two of the many noteworthy of these appellations producing white wines are Mersault and Montrachet.

If you want to sound very Frenchy and cool to your wine geek friends, make sure to pronounce it “moan-ra-shay.” Montrachet is both a village and Grand Cru. To add to that confusion, some of the Grand Cru in the Village of Montrachet attach the name to the end of their Grand Cru names; so we end up with Puligny-Montrachet and Batard-Montrachet. There is however, no confusion about the best Grand Cru in the area—it is Le Montrachet. The Chardonnay produced from this escarpment in the French countryside is the archetype of white Burgundy—and thus Chardonnay produced anywhere. The wines of Le Montrachet are intense and succulent with excellent acidity and structure and a long finish. Even if you can’t find the Montrachet, anything with the name Montrachet attached will be a great bottle of wine.

Though there are no Grand Cru vineyards’ in Mersault, the region is still considered one of the greatest in the whole Côte de Beaune. The wines here are Chardonnay and they tend towards a buttery, soft and rich style. The appellation produces some decent values—if you can find Mersault-Villages bottles, look for Les Charmes or Les Perrieres.

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Wine Club Insider back with you!

I missed my Monday post due to some surprise ‘puter problems… don’t try to upgrade/install software when you have any kind of a deadline, as it can really take some time to sort out, especially when your computer has as much stuff on it as mine does! Anyway, better late than never, so here I am!

Ever tried any fruit wine? Yes? How about any fruit wine that was any good? ah ha… not so much?

Well, let me share a secret with you; Pasek Cellars – www.pasekcellars.com – from Washington has mastered the art of the “non-traditional” wines.

I first found-and fell in love with-Pasek on a Thanksgiving trip to Leavenworth, Wa, a really cute Bavarian village high in the Sierras just east of Seattle. The entire town is done up for the holidays in traditional German fashion, including a central park with shops, fire drums, a giant tree, Sinter Klaus, kid’s parades, the whole shebang. They also have numerous wine tasting rooms, which brightened my shopping experience significantly!

Pasek has a beautiful wine bar right on Main Street, and they make a number of quite good “traditional” wines, such as a Chard, a Cab-Merlot and a Muscat Canelli, but their true magic lies in the great list of “strange” wines!

They make 12 different fruit wines of varying sweetness, including Guava, Pineapple, Passion Fruit, Raspberry, Cranberry, Blackberry and Loganberry. And of each of these, they have more than one style, usually including a sweeter, dessert style, and a drier (if you can call them dry) style.

Now, I know what you’re thinking, but these are great wines! Yes, I’m a dessert wine guy (well, dessert of any kind) but seriously, these are terrific spirits! Character, taste, depth, essence of the fruit… you name it, they’ve got it.

My favorites (and I’ve seriously tried (and bought!) them all!) are the Blackberry wine, and the Loganberry Dessert wine. The Logan is a huge, port-style wine that will knock your socks off.

The Cranberry is one of the best I’ve tasted of that varietal, as is the raspberry. Trust me… you won’t be disappointed!

Even though they don’t have a wine club per se, they have an active mailing list, and they do ship, so give them a try… you’ll be pleasantly surprised, or I’ll come and drink the rest for you!

Cheers,

Wine Club Insider out!

Chardonnay, Dessert Wine, Fine Wine, Sweet Wine, Uncategorized, USA Wine, Wine Club, Wine Education, Wine Making, Wine Reviews Dessert wines, Fruit wine, Leavenworth, Loganberry, Pasek Cellars, Washington