Burgundy Wines
The Burgundy wine region is a fifth the size of Bordeaux, and produces correspondingly more expensive wines, with fewer bargains and more disappointments. The best way to buy Burgundy is to follow the best producers and depend on our Burgundy wine reviews. Our Burgundy wine guide contains hundreds of Burgundy wine ratings. If you take our advice, the most seductive wines (red from Pinot Noir, white from Chardonnay, always 100%) will be in your glass. It’s not just chance that the Burgundy bottle has rounded sides, the Bordeaux bottle has straight: Burgundy appeals to the senses, Bordeaux to the intellect.
The main appellation of the region is plain and simple: red and white, Bourgogne Rouge or Bourgogne Blanc. Climbing up the hierarchy are district appellations such as Chablis, for white wines, Mâcon for white and red wines, Côte de Beaune for reds, and so on.
Rising again in quality while the area of the appellation gets smaller are village appellations, including Vougeot, Auxey-Duresses, Pommard and Nuits-St-Georges, among others. In these villages, certain superior vineyards are designated premier cru — and you will find the name of the vineyard on the label. At the top of the quality heap are the single-vineyard appellations, the grand crus. Corton, Chambertin and Bonnes Mares are all examples, with Clos de Vougeot being perhaps the most famous.
Bailly-Lapierre NV Rosé Brut Red (Crémant de Bourgogne)
- $25
A blend of Pinot Noir and Gamay, this is a rich wine, its fresh fruits layered with acidity, tight tannins and red currants. It is structured, with the flavors going right through the wine, leaving a full-bodied, ripe aftertaste.
— R.V.
(12/15/2008)
Bouchard Pere & Fils 1998 La Vignee Pinot Noir (Bourgogne)
- Best Buy
- $10
Like its Chardonnay sister, this low-priced bottling offers true Burgundian character in a light, soft, forward style. The fruit is soft and the acids balance it without turning the wine into a sourball; perfect for summer salmon grilling. Best Buy.
— P.G.
(7/1/2000)
Albert Bichot 1996 Château Montpatey Pinot Noir (Bourgogne)
- Best Buy
- $11
Big, spicy nose, showing very concentrated black fruits with an animal note. Concentrated black fruits and full. Surprisingly rich for such a modest appellation. Lacks complexity but offers surprising character.
— W.E.
(11/15/1999)
Ropiteau 2000 Pinot Noir (Meursault)
- $20
Plummy, cherry fruit shows on the nose after a few minutes in the glass; black cherry and dry earth flavors whisper from the palate. Finishes dry, with some bitter chocolate and herbal notes.
— W.E.
(10/1/2002)
Château Génot-Boulanger 2000 Pinot Noir (Chambolle-Musigny)
Earthy aromas, with ripe plums and bitter cherries give way on the palate to a rather lean wine, dominated by tannins that cover dry fruit. This could develop, but it seems to lack intensity of flavor.
— R.V.
(11/1/2002)
Mommessin 2000 Premier Cru - Les Grèves Pinot Noir (Beaune)
- $34
Despite its youth, the color of this wine is already beginning to verge on onion skin at the rim. Soft scents of plum, allspice, mace and cocoa make for a pleasant beginning. But there is little follow-through on the palate, and it finishes quite quickly, with fairly severe tannins.
— P.G.
(11/1/2002)
Mommessin 2000 Premier Cru - Les Charmes Pinot Noir (Chambolle-Musigny)
- $57
Both color and scent suggest a wine with some stuffing; it is vertically structured, and still quite compact. The color and tannins and impression of alcohol in the finish reflect the power of the vintage, but at this point in time the fruit is not up to the challenge of the other components.
— P.G.
(11/1/2002)
Bouchard Aîné & Fils 1999 Pinot Noir (Pommard)
There is a light hint of volatility in the nose, along with scents of cracker and cocoa. The fruit tastes of strawberries and cherries, and it is a delicate, rather frail wine, but nonetheless pleasant and nuanced.
— P.G.
(11/1/2002)
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