WTN: Bourgogne and Cahors

Monday was the Zuni cafe roast chicken with bread salad recipe (still my all time favorite chicken dish), with beet salad and cauliflower. She suggests Pinot Noir, I opened the 2004 Catherine et Claude Maréchal "Cuvée Gravel " Bourgogne. Red and black cherry fruit, some earth and a little pepper. Structured and nicely ripe, I can't see any trace of the green some keep finding in 2004s (though I've mostly been sampling wines from Cotes du Beaune, so not a broad sample). B+

Tuesday I was in charge, dinner was leftover cassoulet, preceded with some Tennessee proscuitto and accompanied by green beans in a mustard sauce (only I would pair beans and beans). I had done some digging to get out the 1995 Ch. du Cayrou Cahors. Dark fruit, still a bit tannic though not the tannic monster of some Cahors. Sweeter blackberry fruit notes, some clay-ey earth and leather. A little low-acid for my tastes, but good wine and good match. B

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.

I can't see any trace of the green some keep finding in 2004s (though I've mostly been sampling wines from Cotes du Beaune, so not a broad sample).

Glad to hear it, I know somew people predicted it would subside/settle with a few months in bottle.

But was the Cotes du Beaune supposed to have had significantly "better" weather than the Nuits in 04?

Rahsaan, I admit I'm a poor excuse for a geek, can tell you virtually nothing about weather. And don't know that CdB was supposed to be better than CdN. I just added that comment as it seems to me that the wines that caused some people consternation were mostly CdN, and the wines I've tried were mostly CdB (Volnay, Savigny, or Bourgognes from producers based there).

Although come to think of it, the rep of the whites are a bit better than the reds, which to some small extent argues for good weather to the south.

Rahsaan, I admit I'm a poor excuse for a geek, can tell you virtually nothing about weather. And don't know that CdB was supposed to be better than CdN. I just added that comment as it seems to me that the wines that caused some people consternation were mostly CdN, and the wines I've tried were mostly CdB (Volnay, Savigny, or Bourgognes from producers based there).

Although come to think of it, the rep of the whites are a bit better than the reds, which to some small extent argues for good weather to the south.

I have several 04s from both CdN and CdB slated to open in the next few weeks, will be my first real exposure but was looking forward to them and hoping that indeed this greeness would be overhyped, as I would love to find a crop of affordable and enjoyable and available Burgundies