beaujolais visits week 07 of 2020

By billn on February 14, 2020 #reports #travels in burgundy 2020

Lucky with the weather this week. While home in Switzerland was buffeted by the wind and rain – occasionally the thunder, lightning and hail too – the Beaujolais Alps were a much nicer place to be; sometimes sunny, hardly rainy or windy – I was lucky with the weather. My thanks, of-course, to the winemakers that hosted me. That’s two weeks down, one more to go – so you can guess where I’ll be next week again 😉

Plus a few pics from out-and-about during the week:

Well, it’s Feb.14…

It must be warm out…

Fleurie

Lucky(?) black cat

Disappearing off into the horizon…

Let me in!

Graphic overload!

mmm…

Job done…

Chiroubles

St.Amour – once more

TROUBLE – watch out cat!

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beaujolais visits week 06 of 2020

By billn on February 07, 2020 #reports #travels in burgundy 2020

#beaujolais

A mix of cold and warm, sun and rain – a great start to my campaign. My thanks to the proprietors/winemakers for my first 20+ visits to taste 2018s – for the February Report.
Now a short weekend of recovery back home!

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just a few beaujolais views…

By billn on February 06, 2020 #travels in burgundy 2020

From the last two days:

Moulin à Vent

The boss – Thivin

Bel Air

Poncié

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it’s beaujolais week 1

By billn on February 03, 2020 #degustation #travels in burgundy 2020

Moulin à Vent …of three!

It was 13°C when I left Switzerland for Beaujolais at 5 am this morning – it was 13°C again when I got back to my hotel at 19h45 this evening – but in the middle, it had peaked at 18°C. Now I do remember 23°C last February, but that was the second half of February – when people were pruning vines in t-shirts – but this is so much closer to January!

So, I’d expected rain, but the day got steadily brighter and sunnier – they suggest gales in the night and maybe even snow in the next couple of days – welcome to our weather!

There were also some weekend wines, of course! Now it might look a bit odd, taking 2 bottles of Castagier’s 1997 Clos de la Roche, but as you may have surmised, there was a problem with the first bottle’s cork! On the positive side – yes there was one! – I tend to eat well when there’s a corked bottle, usually, the unspeakable wine ends up as the base for our house variation on Beef Bourguignone – and the Clos de la Roche did make a really great sauce! The second bottle was very good on its own, in a glass! It would be a rebuy at the old price of 60 Swiss francs! The 2010 Pommard Epenots from Rebourgeon-Mure was also lovely but a stricter 2010 that didn’t appreciate following the sweetness of the Clos de la Roche – so mainly was drunk on day two – very complex, lots of depth to the earthy flavour and lovely balance and energy. Give it another 2-3 years for being fully ready – excellent wine that I’d also buy again at the old price. Then were the two Chablis 1ers from 2018; both good – the Seguinot-Bordet the more flighty and higher-toned, the Vorcoret the more concentrated and more overtly Chablis at this early stage in their life. Both delicious and rebuys at today’s prices (shock!)

This weekend’s Baccus

Moulin à Vent

Jogged to the top of Côte du Py

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chablis visits week 4 of 2020

By billn on January 24, 2020 #reports #travels in burgundy 2020

Or looked at another way, week 3 of 3 in Chablis!

of-course, and once more, my thanks to all the vigneron(ne)s of Chablis for their time – 64 domaines in the bag plus one blind tasting for January’s report. But first the small matter of publishing next week my December Report – ‘Les Grands Maisons‘ – plenty of highs and a major low in that one.

As for this week – lovely – also for the vineyard owners; blue sky, sunshine and about -4°C every morning. It’s a shame that I have only portrait pictures! Anyway, I’m now looking forward to something a little redder to open this weekend!

A few views from this week:

Shimmering

Côte de Bouguerots

Côte de Bouguerots (B&W)

Béru

‘Guarding’ Monsieur Poulpe

Les Clos sunset

Blind….

Half blind (yum)

Almost goodbye – Au Fil du Zinc

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chablis trophies and weekend wandering…

By billn on January 20, 2020 #travels in burgundy 2020

Chablis ‘centre’

Saturday saw the Concours des Vins de Chablis – a big taste-off of 2018 Petit Chablis, Chablis and 1er Crus, plus the 2017 grand crus!

I didn’t do the tasting. Given that I’m in Chablis for 3 weeks in January, I otherwise wouldn’t see my better-half for the whole of the month if I was there too – instead, the pair of us still took the Autoroute to Chablis, but rather to lunch at Au Fil du Zinc – there’s not much time left, it closes for good before the end of March.

Lunch was actually fabulous – one of my best ever there. If I ask myself, irrespective of price – i.e. if someone else was paying – whether I would rather dine here or at Lameloise, it would be here! Jean-Claude Bessin’s 2016 Valmur was one of my wines of that vintage, so we availed ourself of a bottle of that too – super…

But back to the Concours des Vins de Chablis: a few names that I haven’t previously visited in the list of ‘medals‘ – left – you can find all of the announcements and the list of the winners – enjoy!

And after – just a few photos from the last days / this weekend – picture from and around Chablis mainly, but also a couple from or Sunday morning in Dijon – we had to take advantage of the blue sky 😉

Sant-Bris

Vincent Dauvissat’s mould!

Lignorelles

Préhy

2002 Les Clos

Near Beines

Sunbathing…

Au Fils du Zinc

Dijon

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chablis visits week 3 of 2020

By billn on January 17, 2020 #reports #travels in burgundy 2020

My thanks to all the vigneron(ne)s in Chablis – my second week, and another 22 domaines in the bag for January’s report.

A week with either cloud or rain – just a few hours of blue sky, but usually during visits – so not a productive week for the camera – outside of producer portraits of course!

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back to the grind ;-)

By billn on January 10, 2020 #reports #travels in burgundy 2020

My thanks to all the vigneron(ne)s in Chablis that had the time to see me this week.

21 domaines visited, 45 more to go – the January report is already shaping up to be a great one! Wishing you all a great weekend!

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Travels in Burgundy 2020

beaujolais visits week 07 of 2020

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beaujolais visits week 06 of 2020

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just a few beaujolais views…

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it’s beaujolais week 1

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chablis visits week 4 of 2020

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chablis trophies and weekend wandering…

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chablis visits week 3 of 2020

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back to the grind ;-)

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