VIVACIOUS GOURMAND

This is a guest wine blog from my friend Antonia De Meo, who just returned from vacation in Burgundy, France.  I first met Antonia when we were toiling as young associates and since then she has gone on to do amazing international work.  Currently she is posted in Khartoum, Sudan with UNICEF.  Until I read Antonia’s story, I was not familiar with Bruno Desaunay-Bissey, who is a grand cru producer.  Thank you for teaching me something new Antonia.  I miss your sublime baking skills dear friend, especially that creamy pumpkin and spiced apple pie you made for Thanksgiving so very long ago.  Sublime.  I hid that extra pie you made and ate it for breakfast the next day.  Here is Antonia’s story:

The King and the Queen in Burgundy

It was my first night in Geneva, and my friends served a wonderful dinner of roast pork and celery root-mashed potatoes, paired with the 2007 Gevrey-Chambertin, Vieilles Vignes, by the winemaker Bruno Desaunay-Bissey.  It was the best wine I’d tasted in years:  light, smooth, complex yet approachable, with a touch of sweetness and something that made me think of ripe red Bing cherries.  But I had just spent five months working in Sudan, where alcohol is strictly prohibited, and I didn’t trust my taste buds. When my friends explained that this was their favorite pinot noir wine from the famous Burgundy region of France, opened on the occasion of my first visit to their home, I was touched, and a bit intimidated.  What did I know about Burgundy wines?  Normally I don’t even like red wine.

A few days later, on a perfect early spring day, we packed the car and drove into the heart of Burgundy, France, just a few hours from Geneva.  It was obvious when we arrived in wine country, because we passed mile upon mile of perfectly manicured vineyards gracing soft rolling hills.  The winemakers were out in the fields, tending to their vines, and burning the clippings, resulting in small smoke clouds rising above the vines.  New vines were protected with colored casings.  The entire region exuded a sense of tranquility, order, and confidence.  It was as if the vines themselves proclaimed their excellence, promising the quality of life that accompanies such excellence.  One would never know that a global economic crisis exists outside of Burgundy, as the vineyards appear to have protected this region from harsh realities.

We arrived on time for our 6 pm wine tasting appointment with Monsieur Bruno.  His wine cellar, located in the small town of Flagey-Echezeaux in the Cote de Nuits district of Burgundy, is modest.  There is only one small sign outside denoting that he has won the prestigious “Tastevinage”, the award granted by the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin (Brotherhood of Knights of Wine-Tasting Cups), an exclusive club of Burgundy wine enthusiasts since 1934.  Near the entrance is a large recycling bin specifically for empty bottles of wine, which I suspect requires frequent pick-ups.  Monsieur Bruno maintains his cave simply, which my friends told me is uncharacteristic yet welcome in Burgundy.  There was only one wooden table lined with two benches.  Lining the far wall were designated areas where he stored the wines, but his stocks were obviously running low.  On the table was a caddy containing a dozen different pinot noir wines and a basket of fresh sourdough bread.

Monsieur Bruno introduced us to his son and nephew.  They are also part of the family business, which has been in his wife’s family for generations, and all three men had just returned from a day in the vineyards.  I think they were curious to meet the two foreign women who had made a special appointment for wine tasting.  Monsieur Bruno shared that he comes from a neighboring wine village, and he married into this winery.  He invited us to sit, and we commenced wine tasting, with all five of us ceremoniously and deliberately tasting all the 2009 wines together, in order.  I was struck by how seriously and conscientiously Monsieur Bruno tasted each wine, as if he relished each moment of each sip.  He set the pace, and we all tasted more slowly, taking time to warm the glass, swirl the wine, and appreciate its aroma.

The wine tasting began slowly, with a lower quality, cheaper wine, although in Burgundy there is hardly such a thing.  When we arrived at the 2009 Gevrey-Chambertin, I was a bit disappointed.  It was not what I remembered from the 2007 we had had with dinner.  I inquired with Monsieur Bruno and he agreed.  2007 had been a much better year.  The 2009 was heavier and less complex, with a slight syrupy sensation in my opinion.  But it was also a different grape, I learned, as only the 2007 had been made from the “vieilles vignes” (old vines).  Alas, he had sold out of the 2007, and we continued with our tasting.

We tasted the famous Nuits-Saint-George.  This is a wonderful wine: like a close cousin to the 2007 Gevrey-Chambertin.  I was not about to pour out the rest of my glass, and I savored each smooth sip.  I could have stopped here and been very satisfied with my Burgundy wine tasting experience.  But next came the equally famous, not-to-be-missed Vosne-Romanee wines.  Monsieur Bruno presented three to taste from 2009:  Vosne-Romanee, 1^er Cru “Les Rouges”, and 1^er Cru “Les Beaux-Monts”.  The two Premiere Cru (First Growth) wines were impressive wines:  subtle and smooth, deriving from plots of land a mere 20 meters apart from each other.  We debated the merits of each at length, expressing amazement at the difference given the close geographic proximity of the vines.  I decided I preferred “Les Rouges”.  It was like the Queen to the “Les Beaux-Monts” King.  Les Rouge is softer and fruitier, while Les Beaux-Monts is more complex with a hint of something masculine that I couldn’t identify.  Someone mentioned tobacco.  Even Monsieur Bruno liked my characterization of the King and Queen wines, and I felt a shift in my confidence.  I was starting to relate to the wines like fine art:  if it speaks to you, it is art, and there is no need to question from where this voice comes, just to trust it.

As a finale, we tasted two Echezeaux wines with Monsieur Bruno:  first the Echezeaux Grand Cru and second the Grands Echezeaux Grand Cru.  Quick research has informed me that these two wines derive from different neighborhoods in Flagey-Echezeaux, which is a small, often over-looked commune.  Due to a 1.25 mile distance between the village and its vineyards, its plots of land are often confused with Vosne-Romanee, which leaves the wines produced from these plots sadly neglected in most studies of Burgundy wines.  But regardless of studies, Wow.  I am not nearly sophisticated enough to describe what makes these two wines special, but I knew I preferred the first Grand Cru.  Technically the second Grand Cru is the finer and more expensive wine, but I preferred the first as what I perceived to be the smoother, subtler wine of the two.  Once again, ripe Bing cherries came to mind.  Only afterwards did Monsieur Bruno share with us that he had won the Tastevinage for his 2009 Echezeaux Grand Cru.

In the end, I couldn’t resist buying a case of wine:  6 bottles of Nuits-Saint-Georges (20 Euros per bottle), 4 bottles of Vosne-Romanee 1^er Cru “Les Rouges” (26 Euros per bottle), and 2 bottles of Echezeaux Grand Cru (50 Euros per bottle).  Monsieur Bruno generously gave us two bottles of Gevrey-Chambertin as an unexpected gift; we think he sincerely enjoyed his time with us.  Since I was returning to Sudan, I had to leave my wine with my friends in Geneva, for safe keeping, but Monsieur Bruno promised me they will easily last 20 years.  Upon returning to Geneva, we opened my friends’ last bottle of the 2007 Gevrey-Chambertin to taste-test along side the 2009 gift.   As we remembered, very different wines, telling very different stories, and a perfect way to end my French-Swiss holiday, until I return again to Burgundy.

Antonia De Meo

6 March 2012

Khartoum, Sudan