A good solid starter Burgundy

[wondersofwine]

Burgundy Wine Company in NYC ( 143 W. 26th St.) specializes in Burgundies, Oregon Pinot Noirs and Rhone wines. Their prices seem high (probably because of costs of doing business in NYC). I just viewed some of their offerings and most of the wines I would suggest are more than $40 or $50 dollars. They do have Joseph Drouhin Volnay for $28.75 and Joseph Drouhin Chambolle Musigny for $34. These are both 1999 vintage which may be closed down now. I also saw a 2002 Pernand Vergelesses Ile des Vergelesses (a premier cru Burgundy) from Rapet Pere & Fils (father and son) for $39.50. Nicolas Potel, a Burgundy negociant whom I respect, is represented with a couple wines from the very good 2002 vintage: a half bottle of Bourgogne A.C. Vielles Vignes (old vines) for $11.75 (I assume that is red Burgundy although the notes don't say red or white) and a regular-sized bottle of Chambolle-Musigny for $49.50. The website says Burgundy Wine Company has nightly wine tastings so maybe you could attend one of those. They open wine for tasting from 5-7 PM (free) (also free wine tasting on Saturdays from 11-7 PM)and have a monthly special tasting with a particular winery for $20 (price may vary) with wine and cheese (6:30-8:00 PM). On May 4th they are having jazz music at the nightly tasting.

Chamber Street Wines has some relatively inexpensive white Burgundies. These include two different 2001 Pouilly Fuisse wines at $16.99 and $19.99. There is a 2002 St. Veran at 14.99 and 2002 St. Aubin at 23.99 from one producer and $31.99 from another producer.

I'm editing this to add that a basic starter with Burgundy is a generic such as Bourgogne Rouge or Bourgogne Blanc. These can be quite variable and may not leave a good first impression. Burgundy region also includes Chablis and Macon for white wines, although this may not be what is typically thought of when you mention Burgundy. The Macon wines in particular can be fairly inexpensive. Beaujolais is considered part of Burgundy too, but its red wines are from the Gamay grape and not the Pinot Noir that is generally considered the red grape of Burgundy. So while exploring Burgundy, you may want to try a Chablis, a Macon, and a Beaujolais-Village or Beaujolais Cru (such as Moulin a Vent, Fleurie, Brouilly, Julienas, etc.)

[This message has been edited by wondersofwine (edited 04-28-2005).]