A thought on serving temperatures for wine.  Yesterday I opened a 2005 Domaine Belleville Rully 1er Cru "Les Cloux" straight out of the fridge.  It was too cold and the true pleasure of this wine was hidden by the low temperature.  

Wine flavors are made up of volatile compounds and these chemical compound can be kept in check at low temperatures.  As the temperature of the wine rises more and more of these volatile compounds are released thus broadening the olfactory and gustatory experience of the wine.  When this wine was cold, it was green apple, with a touch of clove and the finish was short.  After an hour sitting at room temperature it turned into pure pleasure;  butter, Moroccan spices and rhubarb in the nose, with a viscous palate presence that expanded in the mouth finishing with crisp cleansing acidity (the green apple).  

What a difference and what a lesson.  So the next time you take out a bottle from the fridge and taste it directly, don't be surprised if you are underwhelmed.  Dry white wine, and high quality white wine like this Burgundy, should always be enjoyed at temperatures above fridge (or egad, ice bucket) temps.

Sante!

In my photo essays of Domaines Belleville and Chopin I mentioned that they also run gites and chabre d’hotes; the very quaint and traditional farm houses that private owbers rent out for that extra “local” feel tourists want when on vacation. It seems to be a rather recent trend (last 10 years) as I don’t remember this during earlier visits to Burgundy.

The other day, however, while reading the latest Bougogne Aujourd’hui, I was surprised to come across an advertisement for a gite run by the famous Domaine Anne Gros. Maison d’hotes la Colombiere

Unlike your simple rough-style farm house, this is sleek and modern inside a completely refurbished town house. What’s more is that she offers a complete oenotourism experience: multiple packages allow you to experience harvet time, learning about the vineyards, private tastings, and short courses with the new ecole de vins de bourgogne. Anne Gros has transcended the cloistered independant-thinking Burgundian domaine to become an international destination. Talk about add-on selling! Bravo Domaine Gros, I know where my next Burgundian vacation will be!

I was driving in my (diesel) powered car yesterday when I heard on the radio the result of an amazing experiment. The Isle of Eigg, in the North Sea, and part of northern Scotland, became one of the first islands in the world to derive all of its energy from renewable sources. Read here Not to mention as well that the residents will now have 24 hour electricity. Pretty cool, I say, and a model for other small population, remote places around the world... I can think of a few islands off the coast of Maine (USA) that could get ALL of their energy from wind power.

..as you have seen, the blog will at times stray away from the subject of wine...but here’s an event that calls for some champagne! Sante!

Isle of Eigg, Kildonnan, Highland, UK

Domaine N. Ragot 

Givry, France

A walk through the vineyards and winery at Domaine Ragot. Hosted by Jean-Paul Ragot, produced by Monks Cellar.  (In the state of MA, this wine is imported by Vineyard research Imports)

Pascal Clement, the vineyard manager and winemaker at Domaine Belleville shared with me this recipe. Not only does it go great with his white Burgundies, but ALSO with his reds.

A little history.....Gaston Gerard was a famous chef in Burgundy during the 1920’s and 30’s. In 1931, he helped organize the first food and wine festival of Dijon (Foire Gastronomique). For this inaugural exposition, he created this chicken recipe, which became hugely popular with the great restaurants of France. I hope you enjoy this classic.

Bon Appetite!

Poulet façon Gaston Gérard

1 free-range chicken
1-2 Tablespoons Olive oil
1 medium onion (minced)
1 tsp dried thyme
1 small Bay leaf
1/2 tsp Paprika
3.5 oz of freshly grated gruyère or comte cheese
7 oz of crème fraiche
1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
1 bottle dry white wine

Cut the chicken into 8 peices. Heat the oil on medium-high heat in a large dutch oven, until shimmering but not smoking. Brown the chicken pieces each side, until golden.

Add minced onion, paprika, thyme and salt and pepper to taste.

Add enough wine, until the chicken is covered, and the Bay leaf. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 30 min.

Remove the chicken pieces, cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Pass the liquid through a chinois. Return liquid to pan over low heat.

Add the cheese. Remove from heat and mix until smooth

Add mustard and creme fraiche, heat over low while mixing. Once smooth, pour over chicken pieces and serve.

Serve with a rice pilaf.


Bon Appetite!

Over Christmas I had the opportunity to open some older bottles (not the ones above!) from my cellar in Maine (we live in Belgium but 99% of my wine is stored in Maine). With glee and anticipation I uncorked several 95 and 96 red burgs and a couple 2000 white burgs. Unfortunately all but one (out of 7) met expectations, the rest were duds...Ug!

The best bottle was a 2000 Chassagne-Montrachet, 1er Cru "Les Ruchottes" from Dom. Ramonet. It was stellar, bursting with tension and complexity and not quite mature. (A second bottle was horribly corked) But the rest were just not good.

A 96 Savigny-Les-Beaune, 1er Cru, Les Serpentieres (Dom Ecard) was maderized and a second bottle was a bit better but tasting much older than its 11 years. A ‘95 Morey-St-Denis, (Dom F Magnien) was also flat and older than it should have been. The biggest loss was a 96 Nuits-St Georges 1er Cru "Les Cailles" (Dom Chevillon). It too tasted 30 years old.

Was it the cellar, I thought? Very doubtful as the temp ranges from 45 - 65F, but gently over the course of the year. All wines were bought upon release. The Savignys were from the same store and importer, so I'll watch out for that combination in the future, but the Nuits should have been better.

One surprisingly good red bug was a 96 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru (Dom Bertagna). It was brimming with life and fruit. Very pure and delicious. A pleasant surprise from a bottle I had had in the cellar for 8+ years but without much prejudice.

Lessons learned? Drink up or buy better domaines...hard to say, but it's probably "drink up". Stay tuned I may change my mind......