Getting to grips with Burgundy and its wines is a life’s work. But what greater quest or hobby could there be? Trainspotting? Quilting? Collecting postman’s hats? I think not.
As you know — well-versed wine-loving Spectator reader that you are — there are just two grape varieties to bother with in Burgundy: Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. This should make things simple. But it’s how and where said grapes are grown, vinified and aged that makes things complicated, with each village, vineyard, viticulturalist and vigneron of the Côte d’Or, Côte Chalonnaise and the Mâconnais adding their own unique little soupçon to the mix.
I can’t think of a better way of getting to grips with the region than by finding a top-class artisanal producer and tasting as many of their wines as possible and seeing how they differ. Ask some mates over, polish your drinking boots and get cracking. Oh come on, it beats standing in the drizzle on platform 2 noting locomotive numbers.
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