Burgundy

The ancient wine region of Burgundy is neither the largest nor the most financially important in the world. However, it is one of the greatest. For more than two thousand years, Burgundians have been producing, drinking and shipping magnificent wines around the world. The great wine-growing regions of the ancient world, Falernum, Askalon, Shiraz have all disappeared.  But Burgundy has held its place for over twenty centuries. Over this time, this tiny region has become synonymous with great wine.

In the history of European wine, no one knows for sure how the vine arrived in Burgundy or if it was in fact native to the area. Some speculate that around the 5th century BC, Gaulish invaders surprise attacked Rome but were thwarted by Rome’s sacred geese acting as sentries. Some of the captured invaders settled for a few centuries in different regions of Italy before succumbing, perhaps to home sickness and returned home to Gaul taking with them vine cuttings and the secret to growing them.

There is no written history of when or if this happened. What we do know is that vineyards were in existence around the first half of the first century AD.  Columella, a Roman writer on agriculture and Strabo, the Greek geographer who died around 24 AD, mention them. 

Grape and wine production greatly flourished under Roman rule and the Romans had a profound influence on the organization of the Burgundy vineyards. After their departure in the 4thC, the barbarians, specifically the Franks may have destroyed much of the vineyards and it was not until the end of the 4thC that the Celts and the Burgundians were able to start replanting and rebuilding the vineyards. In the 5thC AD, Pliny the Elder writes of Gauls drinking wine at Auxerre.

The expansion of Christianity greatly encouraged the addition of vineyards and in the late 5th C, the vineyards of Dijon were given to the Abbey of Saint-Bénigne by Gontran, the King Of Burgundy. This was welcomed by the monks as it gave them a source of wine for mass but it also was a wise move in that, during those troubled war-like times, monasteries were to some extent protected. So it was possible to preserve vineyards and pass on knowledge derived from experience down through the generations.  In the centuries that followed, various nobles followed suit and gave vineyards to different religious orders.

This period saw the emergence of the "Clos" as name for vineyard property, of the notion of "terroir" and "cru", and the selection of grape varieties.  Most existing appellations were already recognized and defined (as to area) in the Middle Ages and the "climat"(named and delimited plots of vine growing land) nailed down to the nearest metre and its boundaries respected.

Around 630 AD, Algamaire, the Duke of Southern Burgundy, gave the Abbey of Bèze some land in Gevrey, which the Cistercian nuns of Notre Dame de Tart cultivated into a vineyard. Now one of the most spectacular vineyards in Burgundy, Clos de Bèze had only two owners between its founding in 640 and the French Revolution in 1790.  Clos de Vougeot, founded in 1115 by the Cistercian monks had only one owner between then and 1790. A sister order founded the Clos des Dames de Tart, later shortened to Clos de Tart, has had only three owners from 1140 to the present day.  All three vineyards are recognized as some of the finest vineyards in the world.

Six centuries later, the field next to the Abbey of Bèze was bought by a peasant named Bertin and was called Champs de Bertin, or "Bertin’s field". Bertin also planted vines on his field, and the name was soon shortened to Chambertin. In 1702, grower Claude Jobert acquired both vineyards uniting both Chambertin and Clos de Bèze to one name, Chambertin Clos des Bèze. One of the greatest of the Burgundian vineyards, when well made and from a good year, is unsurpassed.

Next Week: Vineyards and classification of wines.

In Vino Veritas

Weekend Wine Picks:

The 2006 Perrot-Minot Chambertin-Clos de Bèze ($385 PWS) boasts layers of flavour, a saturated deep ruby/purple colour, a huge assault on the palate of red and black fruit, a great grip of tannin and a sweetness on the mid palate. This wine has it all ripe fruit, richness, structure, purity, and complexity. Cellar it for 3-4 years and drink it over the following 10-15.

A classically styled Appellation Bourgogne, the 2007 Faiveley Bourgogne Pinot Noir ($27 PWS) is loaded with rich black cherry, raspberry and strawberry jam, licorice, toast and smoke with hints of barnyard, saddle leather, vanilla and tea leaf. The finish is full and concentrated with crisp acidity and firm tannins. Excellent value.

It may have an odd name but the wine is anything but. The Bodegas Olitense No Time Garancha ($17 PWS) is produce from old vine, 60+ year old Garnacha (Grenache) vines. The colour is a deep, dark black cherry/purple with huge rich, ripe blackberry and blueberry aromas followed by ripe black olive, sweet tobacco leaf, creamy milk chocolate/vanilla, licorice and a touch of Asian and black pepper spice. Full bodied with lots of ripe fruit on the palate, the texture is silky smooth, long and flavourful on the finish. Tastes more like a $30 bottle of wine than $17. Great concentration and complexity at this price!

A blend of Grenache, Carignan, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Mourvèdre, the 2006 Clos Figueras Font de la Figueras Priorat ($33 PWS) exhibits an attractive aroma of blackberry puree, black cherry jam and blueberry, smoke, crushed stone, lavender and leather. Elegantly-styled on the palate, it has multiple layers of rich savoury fruit, good depth and concentration and a long finish. Luscious, seductive and amazing, this spectacular wine will continue to evolve for another 2-3 years and can be cellared until 2020. A value-priced Priorat, it is a great introduction to the region.

A blend of 80% Shiraz from 85 year old vines and 20% Cabernet from 60 year old vines, the 2005 Glaetzer Godolphin ($73 PWS) is one of the finest examples of Australian Shiraz. An opaque black purple coloured wine with a stunning aroma of vanilla, licorice, blackberry, cassis and peppery spice, the palate is concentrated and intense with a strong white pepper flavour followed by vanilla, blackberry, cassis, and Asian spice. Soft, lush acidity and ultra firm tannins with a long concentrated aftertaste. 95/100 Wine Advocate

The 2006 Nichol Syrah ($37 PWS) is reminiscent of the great Syrahs from the northern Rhone. This is a blockbuster wine displaying copious amounts of rich black fruit, spicy licorice, roasted red peppers, smoked pastrami, vanilla, dark chocolate and Asian spice. Totally hedonistic to enjoy right now with a BBQ’d leg of lamb, this wine will continue to evolve over the next 3-5 years.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.