Where to start with red Burgundy

My small starting cellar is pretty much new world and I've been enjoying the wines. I'd like to buy a few bottles of Burgundy and Bordeaux which won't break the bank but will still give me an taste of those types of wines.

Here are the results of a few searches I did looking for Burgundy at the provincial monopoly that cover the range $30 to $40 CDN. There were way too many at the $20 to $30 range to post here and there were way too many Bordeaux in any range so I'll try to tackle that in another thread.

If you are familiar with the wines of this region - could you glance through to see if there are any wines you recommend that will represent this region to me:

BURGUNDY

. 01 CHAMBOLLE COTES DE NUIT (RION)
2. 02 MONTHELIE ROUGE (PULIGNY MONTRACHET)
3. 03 MONTHELIE ROUGE (CH. PULIGNY MONTRACHET)
4. 04 CHASSAGNE MONTRACHET ROUGE (BRUNO COLIN)
5. 04 CHOREY-LES-BEAUNE ROUGE (TOLLOT-BEAUT)
6. 04 FIXIN 1ER CRU LES HERVELETS (J. P. MARCHAN
7. 04 SANTENAY COMMES 1ER CRU (R. BELLAND)
8. BOUCHARD PERE & FILS MONTHELIE 2003
9. DOMAIN ALAIN GRAS SAINT-ROMAIN 2002
10. DOMAINE JESSIAUME SANTENAY LES GRAVIERES 2003
11. FREDERIC MAGNIEN FIXIN 'CRAIS DE CHENE' 2003
12. GOERGE DU BOEUF BROUILLY**
13. JOSEPH DROUHIN SAVIGNY-LES-BEAUNE 2003
14. ROGER BELLAND SANTENAY-GRAVIERES 2003

-Aamer

I can vouche for the 2003 DROUHIN SAVIGNY-LES-BEAUNE. Ripe fruit with enough of the Burgundian "earth" notes mixed in to give you a feel for the style. 2003 wasn't a particularly strong vintage, but this wine is okay, particularly if you can pick it up at a reasonable price.

BURGUNDY

. 01 CHAMBOLLE COTES DE NUIT (RION)
8. BOUCHARD PERE & FILS MONTHELIE 2003
11. FREDERIC MAGNIEN FIXIN 'CRAIS DE CHENE' 2003
13. JOSEPH DROUHIN SAVIGNY-LES-BEAUNE 2003

03 is not my favorite vintage, but these are what I'd pick up.

The Daniel (Patrice?) Rion Chambolle is by far the best IMO of those options.

Best,
Joe

Aamer,

2003 was a very hot summer in France. You may remember the news of elderly people dying in Paris. It got up to over 100 degress F. and stayed that way for several weeks. I have not tasted widely of the 03's yet, but I hear that the Burgundians dealt with the heat quite well and the wines are not as atypical as many feared. They evidently learned from 1976 and 1999!

As a rule, I tend to pick Burgundy by the producer as much as anything. I have had good luck with many of the ones you list. I have a preference for buying wines that come from a specific vineyard rather than just a village. Village wines with just the name of the village on them can be good and typical of their village, but lack the interest and personality of single vineyard wines.

In any case, you are starting to explore one of the world's most fascinating wine regions. It will take more than a lifetime, but you will love it.

James G. Lester
Wyncroft, LLC

We tasted ALL the Latour '03 whites. They all sucked. Every one of them, including Batard Montrachet.

The reds were a different story. I highly recommend Michel Gay's '03 Chorey Le Beaune, pretty tight but yields to a few hours in the decanter. Wonderful stuff.

The reds were a different story. I highly recommend Michel Gay's '03 Chorey Le Beaune, pretty tight but yields to a few hours in the decanter. Wonderful stuff.

Dave,

The few '03 reds that I have tasted have not been bad, but have featured very ripe fruit. I can't imagine that the vintage will age very well. What do you think?

Hi Aamer,

I am in Ontario and I purchased and have tried the 04 Bouchard Pere & Fills, cote de beaune -villages 13% abv. This should still be available at LCBO. I recieved one for Christmas and bought another myself just before Christmas. This wine is only $25 (not bad for a burg) and I think it is a nicely balanced pinot that goes well with food. I liked it with roasted pork tenderloin rubbed with olive oil and herbs. It is much more burg-like (higher acidity and earthier nose) than the fruity 03 burgs I have had. Good luck.