Hospices de Beaune wine auction: The program is now available
On 31 October, the Hospices de Beaune presented the two charities that will benefit from the sale of the “Pièce des Présidents”:
- The Institute of the Brain and Spinal Cord (ICM), represented by famous basketball player Tony Parker,
- Autour des Williams, a charity to help those with Williams-Beuren syndrome, supported by the TV presenter Ophélie Meunier and french actor François-Xavier Demaison, also co-presidents of the auction.
This year, the 228-liter barrel sold in aid of the two charities is from the appellation Corton Grand Cru Les Bressandes, taken from the traditional Charlotte Dumay cuvée.
Besides raising money for medical charities, the Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction aims to collect funds for the Beaune hospital complex and the Hôtel-Dieu museum. This year, 589 pièces, or barrels, will go under the hammer (down from 828 in 2018), including 118 pièces of white wine and 471 of red. The 2018 auction allowed the first stage of the reconstruction hospital complex to begin. The money raised in 2019 should allow modernization work to continue, and help fund a state-of-the-art operating theater.
Like every year, numerous events are scheduled for the press, and you can find full details in our online diary.
Invitations to the 2020 edition of the Grands Jours de Bourgogne will be dispatched to industry professionals and journalists in December or January, so a little more patience is required.
Every two years since 1992, the Grands Jours de Bourgogne event has brought together wine professionals, market influencers, and journalists to explore Bourgogne vineyards. From Chablis to the Côte Chalonnaise, and not forgetting the Côtes de Beaune and the Côte de Nuits, with Mâconnais wine being tasted in Beaune, the multiple locations of this trade show make it very popular with participants.
But this event is no vacation! Over the space of five days, 12 tastings will be hosted in nine different sites. Some 10,000 wineswill be presented by a thousand winegrowers and cooperatives, not to mention a wealth of other additional events, mainly to run in the evenings.
The 2020 event will mainly showcase the 2018 and 2017 vintages, but the program has changed little since the previous edition. Chablis and the Grand Auxerrois will feature on Monday; Tuesday will be given over to the Côte de Nuits; the Mâconnais, Crémant de Bourgogne, and Régionale AOCs on Wednesday; the Côte Chalonnaise and young professionals on Thursday; and the Côte de Beaune on Friday.
A teaser is already available for the 2020 edition of the Grands Jours de Bourgogne:
For the first time, the Bourgogne Wine Board (BIVB) is heading down under for a campaign dedicated to Chablis wines. And yet, this country has been a key destination for these wines for several years now.
Australians are major wine consumers, the second biggest in the Asia-Pacific region after China. They are particularly fond of white Bourgogne wines, and Chablis wines are very popular – almost half of all white Bourgogne wines enjoyed by Australians come from Chablis.
Australian wine professionals and journalists are invited to Sydney on 29 October for a day of discovery of the four Chablis appellations. The program includes a tasting and two masterclasses. A press dinner will bring the visit to an end on 30 October.
The wines of Chablis will also be back in Hong Kong on 7 November for their traditional White Party.
Harvests in Bourgogne: the magic of years ending in a nine
Yields may be disparate but the quality of the crop has delighted winegrowers from Chablis to Mâcon.
The 2019 harvests are now finished in Bourgogne winegrowing region. The grapes were excellent in terms of their quality, and picking began at the end of August in the earliest areas after clement weather allowed for good ripening. Another feature of this year was localized weather events that resulted in disparate yields.
It is still a little early to talk about volumes and we will be announcing our initial estimates on 17 November during the press conference at the Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction, but the general opinion is that yields were down on averages.
Bourgogne wines are partnering with the Asia Best Sommelier in French Wines competition
Bourgogne wines will be partnering the competition and will have a representative on the jury of the final of the Asia Best Sommelier in French Wines competition.
From 10-12 December, the Bourgogne Wine Board (BIVB) will be partnering the final of the Asia Best Sommelier in French Wines competition. A representative of the BIVB will also be on the jury.
To coincide with the event, the BIVB is organizing a masterclass for sommeliers participating in the competition on 12 Decemberin Shanghai. It will be hosted by Yang Lu, Master Sommelier and Official Trainer for Bourgogne wines.
Southeast Asia has been a key market for Bourgogne wines for several years now. The China/Hong Kong/Taiwan bloc represents almost 12% of exports in terms of value, for 5% of volumes.
Free and available in four languages (French, English, Chinese, and Japanese), this e-learning program is for anyone seeking to learn about or improve their knowledge of Bourgogne wines.
This fun educational tool allows you to learn and test your knowledge through games, texts, videos, and quizzes.
Four themes are offered:
- Discovering Bourgogne wines: To refresh your knowledge about the history, terroir, and appellations
- 365 days in the Bourgogne winegrowing region: To find out more about the world of Bourgogne wines, from vine to wine
- Tasting Bourgogne wines: To discover more about the organoleptic qualities of Bourgogne wines
- Advising and helping your customers: An essential tool for market influencers
Downloadable files provide key information to help you turn your knowledge into expertise.
Available online and downloadable via Apple’s App Store and Google Play.
From 13-17 January 2020, London will be welcoming Bourgogne Week, a key rendezvous for British and international wine industry professionals.
British importers will be taking this opportunity to present their selection of Bourgogne wines from the 2018 vintage, in the company of many industry professionals from Bourgogne.
The Bourgogne Wine Board (BIVB) will be supporting events organized through a dedicated communication platform. Strategic partnerships will also be created.
Some of the action will take place on social media via the #BourgogneWeek hashtag.
A market under scrutiny on the eve of Brexit, the United Kingdom remains the second biggest export market for Bourgogne wines. After a few sluggish years, it is back on track this year, up 1.5% in terms of volume and 2.8% in terms of value over the first seven months of 2019, compared to the same period in the previous year.
More information will be available in the next edition of the En Direct newsletter.
As one approaches from Dijon, this is where the Champs-Elysées of Bourgogne begins, as some like to refer to it. At the foot of the Combe de Lavaux, the old chateau of the monks of Cluny stands like a fortified cellar. The canons of Langres also watched over these vines for a lengthy period. And the AOC, awarded in September 1936, is like a guard of honor for some fabulous Grand Crus, nine of them in total!
Exceptional terroir
At between 280-380 meters above sea level, the Premier Cru Climats sit on the upper part of the slope, on shallow, brown limestone soil, while the Village classifications grow on brown calciferous and brown limestone soils. The vines thrive on marl covered with scree and red alluvium from the plateau. These ensure elegant and sophisticated wines, while the marl rich in clay and shellfish fossils bring body and rigor. The Pinot Noir grape is king on these east and southeast-facing slopes.
In this video, Jean-Pierre Renard, expert at the École des Vins de Bourgogne talks more about the geology and geography of this appellation:
Sommelier’s tips
In their youth, these wines are dazzling, with a lively ruby red color. With age, they take on a dark carmine or black cherry color. Spontaneous aromas include strawberry, blackberry, violet, mignonette, and rose. When mature, these wines offer a bouquet of licorice, leather, and fur, with touches of game and undergrowth.
Solid yet velvety, their tannins give these wines a solid and powerful framework. They also ensure great keeping potential.
Gevrey-Chambertin wines are ideal with meat but are not limited to their historic association with game. They can be enjoyed with a rib of beef or braised lamb. More original still would be to serve them with a filet of pike perch or tuna with a red wine sauce.
They are at ease with all cow’s milk cheese and those strong in character. They make a particularly good match with local Époisses and l’Ami du Chambertin, and of course, Cîteaux.
The exceptional 2018 harvest broke new sales records and allowed for stocks to be built back up.
The export market is looking good for Bourgogne wines, as is the French one.
In terms of exports, the powerful dynamic continues: Up 7.2% in terms of volume for the first seven months of 2019 over the same period in the previous year. This was mainly driven by North America and Asia. In terms of revenue, Bourgogne wines set a new record, reaching 587 million euros.
The announcement on Wednesday 2 October of a new American ad valorem tax of 25% on still wines below 14° was a shock for the region. Bourgogne producers, who export some 10% of their production to this market, fear that this unjustified levy – a consequence of the dispute between aeronautics manufacturers Boeing and Airbus – will harm exports in this extremely competitive market. They hope that it will not come into effect and that the situation will calm down.
The UK, with the prospect of Brexit and its uncertain consequences looming, is also a major concern for the industry.
In France, Bourgogne wine sales are continuing to grow, despite an uncertain economic context. Indeed, as overall wine consumption falls, Bourgogne wines are alone in their success, mainly thanks to the supermarket sector, up 3.7% by volume and 4.8% in terms of revenue.
The Gevrey-Chambertin appellation will be offering its 2018 vintage for tasting to open the festivities during the Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction weekend.
Charles Magnien, President, and the producers of Gevrey-Chambertin wines are truly rolling out the barrel with an exceptional Roi Chambertin tasting of Village, Village Premier Cru and Grand Cru wines from Gevrey-Chambertin. This is a unique opportunity to discover the estates producing this prestigious appellation and to sample the 2018 vintage.
From Friday 18 to Sunday 20 October, visiting wine lovers are invited to take part in the 20th anniversary celebrations of the Côte Chalonnaise Paulée.
To celebrate the event in a fitting manner, the wine brotherhoods, winegrowers, restaurateurs, and tradespeople of Chalon are ready to welcome you over three days of paying homage to the work in the vines.
This is also a great opportunity to discover the local gastronomic heritage and the appellations of the Côte Chalonnaise. On Saturday 19 October, the Maison des Vins de la Côte Chalonnaiseis hosting a tasting of its fall selection. This is a unique opportunity to discover the diversity of the region’s wines, from 10am to 3pm.
The highpoint of the weekend is the 20th anniversary aperitif on Sunday 20 October from 11am to 1pm.
During the weekend of the Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction, the Bouchard Aîné & Fils wine house invites you to a voyage through the senses through some exceptional food and wine combinations.
The weekend of the Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction on 16 & 17 November will provide a fresh opportunity for the Bouchard Aîné & Fils wine house, which every year organizes a unique tasting of exciting food and wine combinations.
This year, the eyes are the focus, representing our first contact with wine. Clarity, brilliance, intensity, and variation in color all provide visual signs as a precursor to tasting…
This will be a uniquely colorful tasting experience!
Cyrano de Bergerac’s tirade on his nose, Proust’s madeleines, and Harpagon’s cashbox so ridiculed by Molière, are all subjects favored by Michel Moreau when he’s not working on his four hectares in the Givry appellation.
To stand out from the crowd and present his wines in a different way, he adapts and rewrites famous texts, singing the praises of his wines whilst causing his audience to double up with laughter. His comedy can be enjoyed at dinner-shows in the Haute-Savoie region, which is his preferred market, and at events in libraries.
To improve his performance skills, he is currently taking drama classes, and is certainly a key actor on the wine stage who is simply crying out to be discovered!
Determined to ensure a more sustainable future, the Château has just been awarded its first organic certification.
The Château de Pommard has just obtained organic certification for the Clos Marey-Monge. The qualification was awarded by a certification body accredited by the Institut National de l’Origine et de la Qualité (INAO).
Organic certification requires producers to follow very strict specifications and the estate has called a halt to the use of all chemical products and synthetic pesticides, opting instead for an organic approach.
Bourgogne vs. Burgundy: to re-affirm their identity, the region and the producers are reverting back to the original French iteration of the name, Bourgogne.
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