This area is dedicated to wine professionals including sommeliers, restaurateurs, wine store owners importers and trainers. Welcome to your very own BIVB website where you can find all the tips and tools you need. You will find documentation, photography, training tools and all kinds of other useful information here to facilitate your search. You can also browse our events and training calendar and you are welcome to attend any that appeal. If you require any further information then don’t hesitate to contact us!
Fewer than three weeks to go before the Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction
Every year, the Hospices de Beaune organizes its celebrated and historic wine sale on the third Sunday in November.
The vines of the Hôtel-Dieu estate come from multiple donations and allow the estate to raise money for the Hospices de Beaune charity for projects such as improving medical equipment, modernizing infrastructure, and preserving historical monuments, including the Hôtel-Dieu in Beaune. Furthermore, since 1945, every year, the Hospices have supported one or more charitable organizations donating the profits of the sale of a barrel of wine called the Pièce des Présidents. Auctioning this lot is often the high point of the sale.
Négociants in Bourgogne play the role of mediators for this special sale. They buy the wines on behalf of their clients and age them until they are bottled, usually around 18 months after the event.
In parallel to the Hospices festivities, the 147th Fête des Grands Vins de Bourgogne allows visitors to sample numerous appellations in the presence of their producers at the Palais des Congrès in Beaune. On the Friday, tastings are reserved for industry professionals such as wine-store owners and sommeliers. On Saturday and Sunday, tastings are open to the general public.
Many other events are also open to visitors over the three days. This is a wonderful opportunity to discover or rediscover our legendary Bourgogne hospitality!
The Vézelay Village appellation is reserved for still white wines produced from the Chardonnay varietal from the four villages of Vézelay, Asquins, Saint-Père, and Tharoiseau, in the Grand Auxerrois winegrowing region. This appellation was officially recognized in a decree from 30 October 2017.
• An historic wine-growing area
The vines of Vézelay are located on either side of the river Cure, a tributary of the Yonne. The presence of vines in Vézelay goes back to Roman times. At the height of winemaking in Vézelay, the vineyards covered 500 hectares, but the outbreak of phylloxera in 1884 almost destroyed them completely. At the end of the 1960s, only a couple of hectares of vine remained. Then in 1973, thanks to a dozen or so willing winegrowers, Vézelay underwent a renaissance and since then, has enjoyed a new standing.
• The terroir
They valley of the Cure is bordered to the west by a hillside cut through by many parallel valleys, characterized by a succession of large rocky spurs dominated by that of Vézelay. The vines face south-southeast and grow at between 190-330m above sea level. The subsoil comprises marls and limestone that were deposited some 150 million years ago, during the Jurassic period.
• Food and wine combinations
The smoothness and lemony freshness of Vézelay wines makes them perfect for a convivial tasting experience. As an aperitif or as an appetizer, they will breathe new life into raw fish dishes, gravlax, smoked fish and shellfish. In terms of more land-based fare, they are great with sophisticated deli meats such as rabbit terrine, jambon persillé, and salami. In terms of fine dining, the elegant minerality of the Vézelay appellation should be appreciated with roast cod, pan-fried scallops or a simple sea bream en papillote. Some cuvées aged in oak would also make a nice pairing with chicken in a cream sauce, pan-fried mushrooms or fish in spicy sauces.
Vézelay wines also make a great match with goat cheeses, hard cheeses, and also with creamier options such as Brillat-Savarin or Chaource.
Matthieu Woillez, winemaker in Tharoiseau, talks more about the appellation in this video:
The exceptional 2018 harvest broke new sales records and allowed for stocks to be built back up.
The French market is looking good for Bourgogne wines, as are exports.
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. In the hotel/bar/restaurant sector, the region remains in a good place, in fourth position in terms of presence in establishments surveyed.
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, the Bourgogne region 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.
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. It is currently the 10th biggest export market in terms of both volume and value.
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. All four levels of appellation will be represented, in order to illustrate the diversity of expression of the Chardonnay grape in this area to the north of the Bourgogne winegrowing region.
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.
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, and to illustrate the diversity of Bourgogne wines. They will be accompanied by many industry professionals from the Bourgogne region.
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.
For more information, see the next edition of this newsletter.
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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 the Bourgogne winegrowing region. The grapes were excellent in terms of their quality, and picking began at the end of August in the most early 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.
This trio of masterclasses will tackle three distinct themes. Each one will include eight wines for tasting and will be hosted by an official Bourgogne Wine Ambassador.
To start the day, a masterclass entitled “The First Step Towards the Notion of Terroir” will be hosted by Tanya Morning Star Darling. She will guide participants in an exploration of an astonishing category of appellations due to its diversity and accessibility.
The second masterclass, hosted by Annette Hanami, is entitled “Bourgogne Aligoté, the Off-Beat Wine of Bourgogne”. This is a wonderful chance to discover or rediscover this appellation, which is enjoying a renaissance thanks to a few producers and négociants who are confident of the potential of this appellation.
And lastly, Christian Oggenfuss will be hosting a masterclass called “Village Appellations; the Heart of the Range”, during which participants will discover a selection of Village appellations that have, for a long time, been overshadowed by their more illustrious neighbors.
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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