Festive Burgundy

Hi,

On enjoying the one and only Burgundy we'e thusfar had to drink my partner commented that it had a noticeable flavour of sweet festive spice and that it would be better with food than as an after-dinner drink.

Which obviously made me think it might be an excellent wine to serve to guests at Christmas.

So what I'd like to know is firstly whether or not that sweet spice flavour is fairly common in Burgundy (if it's not I shall get the same bottle again, which would be a bit of a shame) and whether or not it's likely to pair well with the sorts of things vegetarians eat at Yuletide - our common choices being chestnut nut roast and cheese (usually Brie) en croute?

Matt,

"Sweet festive spice" isn't a term I would have thought of to describe red Burgundy, but I think this may be more an issue of semantics than substance. I often detect some cinnamon and clove nuances in red Burgs that I suspect is just a different way of making the same basic point.

Regardless, I think red Burgs are ideally matched with holiday foods -- turkey, cranberry sauce and stuffing (for carnivores), and the vegetarian foods you mention. Hell, I think red Burgs go great with a greater variety of foods than just about any other kind of wine out there. They are made for food; I always prefer them with meals than on their own. And the good ones surely are festive.

...enjoying the one and only Burgundy we'e thusfar had to drink ... I'd like to know ... whether or not that sweet spice flavour is fairly common in Burgundy (if it's not I shall get the same bottle again, which would be a bit of a shame) and whether or not it's likely to pair well with the sorts of things vegetarians eat at Yuletide - our common choices being chestnut nut roast and cheese (usually Brie) en croute?

Welcome to a beautiful, dangerous corner of the wine world, MattThr (people have been enraptured, and ruined ...) One down, 45722 to go.* Sweet spice scents and flavors are not uncommon: smell and taste of cloves etc. are contributed especially by the wood, I get them all the time in blind-tasting these wines and (though I didn't catch what color of Burg you had), red Burgs are normally Pinots Noirs; the UC-Davis sensory evaluation program uses the descriptor "mint" as an association for Pinot Noir wines.

Things like nuts and cheeses are superb pairings with Burgs in general (first-choice pairings, for older red Burgs in particular) for vegetarians, onmivores, everyone.

* From Yoxall's count of individual labels at the time of his popular British book on the wines of Burgundy. Inevitable Yox quotation sample now follows (he paired his wine wisdom with wry).
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“[In Beaune] there is an admirable hotel and restaurant, the Poste, belonging to the Chevillot family -- where incidentally ... I first met, in 1929, Siamese cats and a machine for shelling peas. The former have become more widespread than the latter.”

Thanks for the replies.

(though I didn't catch what color of Burg you had), red Burgs are normally Pinots Noirs;

It was red - details and WTN here:
http://www.wineloverspage.com/forum/vil ... highlight=
I've never had any white Burgundy from outside Chablis - and in fairness I love Chablis to the point where it's seemed kind of pointless to be buying Burgundian Chardonnay from other regions. I'll get round to it one day though.

I'm aware that Burgundy is complex and expensive and - in honesty - part of the reason I've not dipped my toe further is fear of getting too involved. The other reason is simply that although I enjoyed my Burg, I prefer medium-bodied reds like Bordeaux and Rioja.

However, my partner liked it and it does seem like an ideal Christmas wine, so I might splurge on a few good bottles and see how it goes

St.-Aubin is one of the corners of Burgundy -- like much of the Côte Chalonnaise too, and some other parts -- quietly famous for not being fashionably famous, therefore a potential source of good values contradicting the glib cliché that all Burgundies are expensive including the good ones. (Kindly keep this quiet.) Good St.-Aubin reds have been characterized before with the flavor of wild strawberries, found also elsewhere here and there in the region.