A Little Slice Of Burgundy

The excitement continues to bubble in the Overstreet's wine adventures. In May, we took a trip to the Burgundy region of France where we purchased a small plot of a vineyard in a village by the name of Villars Fontaine (not far from the famous Romanee Conti vineyards).

The Chateau de Villars Fontaine, the winery of the same name, and the adjacent vineyards are owned by Monsieur Bernard Hudelot who planted them in the 1970's and is now selling the land in shares. Our "plot" of land is 214 square meters or about two times as big as the house where we're currently living. As I write this, approximately 2/3 of the total available shares are sold. Besides the fun of "owning" a small plot of a vineyard and "investing" in a small part of the winery operations in one of the world's great wine regions, we can also purchase high quality vintages at affordable prices. I probably don't need to tell you that having a few hundred bottles of fine, Burgundian wine in our personal wine stash is a very lovely situation.

Villars Fontaine produces Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, the varietals this region is famous for, using traditional methods to create superior wines intended to be aged for long periods. Monsieur Hudelot also recently resurrected Gamay in an attempt to change it's stereotype from a mediocre wine to one that can also be a great, long-aging wine. To me, Monsieur Hudelot does amazing work with his wines that sets them apart - first, he ages them for a very long time (whites 18 months, reds 30 months) and second, because of the barrels he uses, the wines come out not overly oaky but complex, smooth and balanced. This is due, in part, because Monsieur Hudelot contracts a single barrel maker who, over a three year period, slowly and naturally air dries the French oak staves used in the barrel production. This process eliminates the rough tannic properties of the oak. The long aging process in contact with the naturally dried wood enhances the structure and helps to produce the brilliant result so elegantly emanated in the wine. The whites can easily sit in the cellar and improve for 10+ years and the reds for 30+ years.

In May, we brought home the 2005 vintage. The Chardonnay is already delightful but can, amazingly to us, age some more (if we can keep it around long enough). The Pinot Noir is showing great potential as it gives us a hint of what is to come. We found ourselves back in France in June, so we visited the winery again and purchased about 100 bottles of the 2002 vintage of both varietals. The whites are stunning - smooth, subtly complex, perfectly balanced! The reds - still not at their intended drinking age, appear to be slowly working their way to excellence.

So, we have officially started a cellar and look forward to tasting the progress of the wines we purchase as they show their complexity and style in a new way each time we treat ourselves to a glass. It is sort of like they are starting out in a comfortable, cotton dress and working their way up to the perfect, little, black dress.

If you're interested in owning a little slice of Burgundy for yourself, the "ownership" involves the purchase of a plot of a vineyard and advanced purchase of about 100 bottles of each current year's vintage, to be picked up two to four years later when properly aged, bottled, and released. Please feel free to contact me for more information.

Written with assistance from Stevie Bobes, Chateau de Villars Fontaine

Oh The Opportunities! - GAJA Winery

Oh the opportunities that have come my way since coming to Italy in April 2007. I have been taking them all in with utter amazement. The experiences and adventures have been just incredible.

One such experience took place in May while traveling through the Piedmont region in Northern Italy. My husband, me and some of our favorite wine-crazed friends, the Stockermans, were on our way to Burgundy. We stopped over in the famous town of Barbaresco just to have a look around (by the way, the expanse of vineyards flowing over the land enroute was absolutely beautiful). It was a rainy day but the town was still welcoming with its quaint shops and picturesque streets. We spotted an Enoteca opened and excitedly parked our cars across the street. Upon exiting our car, we became even more excited when we spotted the GAJA winery right next door to the Enoteca! Oh my goodness! I can't even begin to tell you the adrenaline rush to literally stumble on such a prestigious find! We went into the Enoteca and my friend, Cathy (who thankfully speaks fluent Italian), asked if GAJA was open for tours. The lady behind the counter graciously offered to call and ask. She said they usually do not give public tours but by nothing short of a miracle, we were given the opportunity for one.

Let me take a moment to give you a little history - Four generations of GAJAs have been producing wine in the Piedmont region of Northern Italy's Langhe hills since 1859. That is the year Giovanni GAJA founded GAJA Winery in Barbaresco. Today, the winery is owned by Angelo GAJA. Besides combining respect for traditions with bold innovations in the vineyards and cellars, Angelo also introduced GAJA wines to the foreign markets. In addition, he recently started introducing wines, spirits, and accessories such as wine coolers, decanters & wine glasses to Italy through "GAJA Distribuzione." Angelo's wife, Lucia, and 3 children, Gaia, Rossana & Giovanni also work with him. In fact, Gaia GAJA officially joined the winery in 2005 making her the fifth generation of GAJAs to work at the winery. Besides the 250 acres of vineyards GAJA has in Barbaresco and Barolo, they have added 40 acres of vineyards in the Tuscan town of Montalcino and 250 acres in Tuscany's Bolgheri district. Guido Rivella is the very talented winemaker for all three of these estates (a busy man no doubt).

So there we went. We arrived at a large, ominous door which began to creak open and expose the vast, beautiful business structures with views of the vineyards beyond. We walked in and were showed a room to wait in until someone came for us. We were sitting there so giddy with glee, it was hard to actually take in the whole gamut of where we were, what we were doing, etc.

As if we were at the end of the rainbow, luck was continuing to overwhelm us. Our tour guide showed up and introduced herself as Sonia, Angelo GAJA's personal assistant! Sonia was a delight and spent a generous amount of her time taking us all over this lovely winery. And I do mean lovely, the building where the press, tanks, and barrels, etc. dwell were decorated as if on the pages of "Architectural Digest." Beautiful sculptures, lighting, wall hangings - even the floors were shiny, black and uniquely exquisite. We were shown an art gallery on the premises that displayed several wonderful pieces (there was a painting I would've loved to have in my home :) ).

As our tour came to an end, we were taken into yet another beautiful room where a tasting was set up for us. Ok, I know I keep going on with ridiculous adjectives to describe this whole experience, but the wines we were able to taste were absolutely divine. We tasted 5 wines:

Sori Tildin 2006 Langhe Nebbiolo DOC

(a similar wine, much older vintage: 1989 Gaja, Angelo Sori Tildin 750ml)

Costa Russi 1997 Langhe Nebbiolo DOC

(a similar wine: 2001 Gaja, Angelo Costa Russi 750ml)

Sori San Lorenzo 1997 Langhe Nebbiolo DOC

(a similar wine, much older vintage: 1988 Gaja, Angelo Sori San Lorenzo 750ml)

Conteisa 1997 Langhe Nebbiolo DOC

Rennina 2001 Brunello di Montalcino DOCG

It would take a whole other post to describe this tasting so let me just say - SPECTACULAR!!!

As you can tell, I was awestruck by this day in the life of living in Italy. I can hardly wait to see what adventure awaits us around the next corner.....just not sure if it can top this one!

If you ever have the opportunity to pick up a bottle of GAJA wine, you must! This is the time to splurge (prices range from $40-$350+). Here's a great source and a discount to help you out - 10% Off for New Customers of JJ Buckley Fine Wines. Buy a bottle for a special occasion or to open for a time you want to remember for years to come -the wine will actually help make your special occasion even more memorable. I would be remiss if I didn't inform you that your life will not be complete without it. :)