Off to Burgundy…
It has really all seemed a blur, starting around the middle of June. From then until now, I can hardly remember any specifics. A few weeks in Champagne and Burgundy into IPNC into the Wine Bloggers Conferece into the Wine Country Half-Marathon into harvest into Salud into the Columbia Gorge Marathon and now onto a plane to Burgundy – one continuous flurry of activity that has my head spinning.
The good thing is I have nothing but positive vibes about all of it. It’s been a fabulous year in the Scott Paul World on all fronts. There’s no sign of anything slowing down anytime soon either, so I’ll just remain strapped in for the ride and hang on.
This’ll be a quick trip to Burgundy – just over a week, primarily to get a handle on the 2011s now that they’ve been in barrel for a year, and to secure our supply for next year. Three vintages in a row – 2010, 2011 & 2012 – have produced small volumes in Burgundy, so our producers have exponentially less wine to sell. I need to ensure that we get our fair share.
And then of course there’s the Paulée coming up on Friday. My favorite day of the year, better than Christmas and my birthday combined. It’s the carrot on the stick that keeps me going throughout the year – it’s the Burgundy geek’s ultimate fantasy come true, basically. I’m ready – bring it on, baby.
So, follow along with me if you’re so inclined, as I taste my way through the Côte d’Or, Côte Chalonnaise and the Mâconnais this week, and indulge in the myriad pleasures that come with being in Burgundy at this festive time. (Essentially the entire wine world converges on Beaune this week for the Hospices de Beaune auction, the Paulée and all the accompanying festivities.) I’ll probably be bidding again at the auction this year, though with the miniscule 2012 crop the prices are likely to be headed through the roof. We shall see…
I’ll be updating here on the blog regularly, as well as on Facebook & Twitter – so come join me on the wine roads…
