Paul Haskell of Maison Louis Latour's "Tale of Two Chardonnay's" & "How to Read A Burgundy Wine Label"
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			I recently had dinner with a good friend who owns and operates a boutique winery in the Carneros District of Sonoma County.  It is our custom, when our families get together for a meal, to taste new, and different wines.  My friend always brings something that he has made, which is fine with me because he is an excellent wine maker.   I however prefer French wine, and bring wines from various regions of France.  On this particular evening, I supplied a white Burgundy, Maison Louis Latour, Pouilly-Vinzelles 2001 En Paradis.   The Pouilly-Vinzelles, a chardonnay, was our first wine of the evening.  I had the wine chilled, but not so chilled as to mask the aroma and flavor.  This is a key point.  Many people drink white wine too cold.  You can’t access the subtle aromas and complexity of a well-made white wine when it is near freezing.  It is a good idea to take white wine out of the refrigerator about 20 minutes before serving.  After twenty minutes at room temperature, the wine will be at the correct temperature for service.     My friend is very familiar with growing and making California style chardonnay.  He has made and marketed excellent Sonoma Valley chardonnay.  Sadly, he no longer makes chardonnay as he has changed the focus of his winery to concentrate on Rhone varietals.   In the glass the Pouilly-Vinzelles had a beautiful pale golden hue with vibrant green highlights.   Texturally, the wine appeared rich and viscous.  Aromas of Golden Delicious apple, Bartlett pear, lemon zest, creamy yeast, and brown spice leapt from glass.  On the palate, the wine was delicious.  It had impressive depth, with lots of ripe apple and pear flavors, silky mouth feel, excellent grip, and palate cleansing acidity.   The wine had a long, clean, and refreshing finish of fruit and toasty yeast flavors.   My friend looked up from his glass and exclaimed, “Hey, this is really beautiful…where in Burgundy is Pouilly-Vinzelles?”   Pouilly-Vinzelles is a village, located in Maconnais, in southern Burgundy.  Pouilly-Vinzelles has a long association with viticulture, going back to the time of the Caesars.  In ancient times Pouilly- Vinzelles was a Roman town that took its name from the Latin vincella, which means small vine.   Chardonnay has been grown in the area’s chalky rolling hills since the 17th century.  The chalky soil and warm climate produce chardonnay fruit that ripens fully while retaining excellent natural acidity.  Pouilly-Vinzelles’ 122 acres of vineyards lie between two of the Maconnais best know appellations, Pouilly-Fuisse and St-Veran.  The wine of Pouilly-Vinzelles is remarkably similar in quality and taste to its better knows neighbors Pouilly Fuisse and St. Veran; however, Pouilly- Vinzelles is more reasonably priced, making it an excellent value.     The next question my friend asked was, “I love this style of Chardonnay, how do they make it”? The answer is simple.  Take ripe (not over ripe) chardonnay fruit, gently press and pump the must into temperature controlled stainless steel tanks.  The must is fermented on indigenous (wild) yeast.  After the wine has finished its initial fermentation, the wine is then goes through malolactic fermentation on its own…malolactic fermentation is not induced, as is the usual practice in California.  The wine is left in tank, resting on its lees for six months.  The wine is then gently filtered, fined, and bottled.  Voila, the wine makes itself! My friend wanted to know how much the wine costs.  I told him to guess the price.  His guess was $25.  Wrong!  Maison Louis Latour, Pouilly-Vinzelles 2001 En Paradis retails for about $12.99.   He couldn’t believe that a wine of such quality, style, and finesse could be so reasonably priced.   My friend commented, that no matter how hard he tried, that he had been unable to make this style of wine from grapes grown in California.  While Chardonnay grown in California and Burgundy are the same varietal, they are as different as night and day due to one key factor: terroir.  The terroir of the grapes is different.  The soils and climate of California and Burgundy are simply not the same.  In Burgundy the Chardonnay fruit must struggle to ripen, while in California, the fruit ripens consistently to the point of being overly ripe. California makes excellent “California” style Chardonnay, Louis Latour makes excellent white Burgundy.  We are talking about the same varietal, but two different wines so any comparison is unfair.   The Maison Louis Latour, Pouilly-Vinzelles 2001 En Paradis, was a hit with my friend, the California wine maker.  He asked if he could trade his wine for mine.  My response was, “I’ll think about it”. All the best, Paul@Burgundyandbeyond.com
		It is difficult for many consumers to select and purchase red and white Burgundy.  The difficulty in purchasing Burgundy is in reading, and understanding the information printed on the label.  To help you better understand what type of Burgundy you are buying, you need to understand the following about Burgundy:    ·        Red or White.  Red Burgundy is made from 100% Pinot Noir, while White Burgundy is made of 100% Chardonnay. ·        Appellation Controlée.   Appellation Controlée (AC) is the governing board for grape and wine production for the departments, villages, communes, and vineyards of Burgundy. The AC makes rules that govern grape selection, density of planting, maximum yields, minimum alcohol levels, village and commune boundaries, and vineyard classification. ·        Bourgogne.  Bourgogne is Burgundy.   Burgundy is the region in Eastern France where the wine is produced.  Think of Burgundy as one of our states. ·        Departments.  Burgundy is divided into departments, which are similar to our counties.  The departments are named after rivers or other geographic features.  The departments of Burgundy are the Yonne  (Chablis), Cotes du Or (Cote du Nuit, Cote du Beaune), Saône et Loire (Cote du Challonnaise, and Macconnais), and the Rhone (Beaujolais).   ·        Villages or Communes.  Departments are divided into villages or communes where the grapes are grown.  The AC determines the boundaries of the villages and communes. ·        Appellation.  The AC grants villages/communes an official name or title  which is called an appellation.  .     ·        Vineyards.  Villages or communes are divided into vineyards.  One person or family, or many individuals and many families can share ownership of the same vineyard.  The 124-acre vineyard Clos De Vougeot has 77 different owners! ·        Vineyard Classification.  The AC classifies vineyards by quality.  The finest vineyards are classified Grand Crus, excellent vineyards are classified Premier Crus, the rest are called Village Crus.   ·        Regional Classification.  The AC also grants appellation status to wines from a particular region.  Therefore, if a producer makes a Chardonnay of wines blended from all over Burgundy, he would label the wine Bourgogne Blanc.    A producer may make wine from the various villages within the Cotes du Beaune.  In that case the wine would be called Cotes du Beaune Villages.   So think of it this way.  The humble Bourgogne Blanc you are drinking may have within its blend   some Corton Charlemagne Grand Crus, or some Meursault Premier Crus!