2006 Louis Jadot Savigny-lès-Beaune Primier Cru Les Vergelesses

This bottle goes for about $35 and is from the Burgundy region for those who don't know their French wine labels. The cork had some issues, moist with a bit of seepage, but the wine doesn't look or taste off.

Rich black cherry on the nose with some interesting floral notes - rose and lavender.

I gave this one a few hours to open and I think it needed it. Everything is very subtle, nothing is going to jump and hit you on the head...black cherry, raspberry, blackberry tea, and a very mild brown spice - clove mostly, nicely balanced, smooth tannins, quite nice all around.

A bit of a black tea thing on the finish, with a dash of blackberry leaf and black cherry.

Not cheap, but if you want to get a nicely done Burgundy this is worth a look.

Score: 89

2003 Leroy Savigny-les-Beaune Les Ratausses

This retails for $65 and has been on the wine rack for quite a while. What better way to celebrate the birth of America than with a French wine? Sound like irony? Hardly.

A bit of a fruit leather thing on the nose - which is sort of a bit of raspberry, blackberry, and a vaguely apple thing.

Black cherry and blackberry at the first - startlingly simple at first - but after a while it opens up with a mid-palate of menthol, cedar, and some funky earthy qualities. Dried brown spices, perhaps some green as well, even some red pepper. A nice drinking wine, to be sure, everything is nicely integrated but I'm not getting any wow factor.

Cherry on the finish with lingering menthol and mint, but surprisingly short.

This wine either needs a few more years or a few hours in a decanter - it's actually quite drinkable at first pour, but it's overly simple. It was not until about four hours in that it came to life. Still a pass though. You let me down France....thanks for the copper statue though, sorry for keeping it outdoors...

Score: 87

2004 Domaine Roblet-Monnet Bourgogne Vieilles Vignes Pinot Noir

This was an ultra bargain – something like $8 marked down from over $20 – and I do recall it was the last bottle they had, let's see how we do.

Earth on the nose.

A lot of acid, a lot of funk, some barnyard, and a fairly thin mouthfeel (not necessarily a bad thing). There are some unpleasant notes of grape stems - something I rarely taste but is certainly present here. A bit of chocolate, some spice, a little bit of vanilla, and as the bottle opens up some *very* distinct cherry cola notes – excellent.

The earthiness and some herbal notes linger for some time.

Even closer to $20 this would be fine....good Burgundy doesn't come cheap and this one, while flawed, has more pros than cons.

2005 Louis Jadot Gevrey-Chambertin Burgundy

I snagged this Burgundy for about $32 at Costco to bring to Schwa. While I did not take notes at the restaurant, we only went through about half the bottle, so here it is, about five hours after opening. Thankfully in Chicago, when you buy/bring a bottle of wine at a restaurant and don't finish it, you are allowed to let the restaurant recork it and bring it home as long as it's properly sealed and in the trunk.

A big nose – raspberry, earth, cola, and cherry.

Lots of acid, lots of fruit, lots of earth – well balanced, but by no means mild. A fair amount of zing, some interesting soda notes – cola and root beer – some cherry and raspberry, nothing in terms of oak really, but some nice spice and a black tea sort of tannin structure.

The finish is all overly steeped black tea with a bit of pomegranate or maybe cranberry.

As I've mentioned in the “about us” - we like Burgundy but we're nowhere near the point of being experts nor are we anywhere near the tax bracket where that would even be possible. I personally really like this bottle, I think it's great with food or on its own, but I'm sure there are Burgundy freaks who will tear me apart so I hesitate saying much more than this is an excellent bottle at a fair price, distinctly Burgundy and solid all around.

2005 Domaine Chevillon Chezeaux Bourgogne

I got this one a while back – yet another clearance find, $16 or so regular, closer to $6 on sale – not bad at all.

Tart cherry on the nose.

This one was open for a couple hours before we tasted it – nicely balanced and somewhat simple on the palate. Light, but certainly tart cherry, a bit of earth – but really not much, a reasonably zing of acid – everything here is solid, but all just very mild.

A bit of chocolate presents itself on the finish, some acidic notes lingers, and some cherry does as well – not surprisingly the finish is mild, but it's lasts for quite a long time.

At under $10 this is perfect, for the upper teens there's just not enough happening in the glass to make this a value. With contemplation there's some reasonable depth here, but unless you're studying the glass it's little more than an easy quaff.

2006 Blason de Bourgogne Pinot Noir

I recall enjoying the 2004 of this one, so I didn't hesitate grabbing the new vintage for six stinkin' bucks.

A funky nose to be sure – raspberry and earth.

Quite light in body, but overall this is tart, somewhat sharp acid, some earthy notes, herbs – notably sassasfrass and anise - and some light raspberry for fruit.

Other than some spicy notes, nothing really grabs me on the finish.

Not bad, but it's certainly nothing outstanding and not as enjoyable as I recall the 2004 being. For the price, it's more than acceptable – not deep, but it's light, easy drinking, and food friendly.

2004 Domaine Bertagna Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits Les Dames Huguettes

I grabbed this for about $20. This was extremely tart on first pour so I let it decant for about two hours.

Green olives and forest floor on the nose.

Funky and earthy while quite acidic. Some cherry and blackberry – tart, dark berries.. Plenty of barnyard and dirt. Some spicy notes and wood mainly coming through as cedar.

Earth and pine on the finish.

Not bad at all. This is a finicky region and a finicky vintage, but I think overall it's a decent bottle.

2005 Louis Jadot Beaune Premier Cru Appelation Controlée

This was $23 at Costco – I figured it would be interesting to try a new Burgundy, Fran offered to pay and they didn't have any more expensive bottles so this was settled on.

A strange funk on the nose along with a bit of raspberry.

Smooth, velvety tannins - fantastic. Chocolate, dirt, and some tart cherry on the palate with some eucalyptus coming through..

The earthy and some berry notes linger for quite some time.

Quite good, but it's lacking some depth to say this has a strong QPR.

2004 Louis Jadot Bourgogne Chardonnay

Do not adjust your monitor, this is a bottle of Chardonnay on The Wineauxs. Why? I had a strange urge to try a Chardonnay. This is, I believe the lowest end wine from Louis Jadot, it’s from Burgundy and ran us just about $14.

Buttery, creamy, pineapple nose.

Citrus, pineapple, vanilla...I don’t know if this has seen oak but I seem to detect some–not really a good thing. There are some nice layers in this and it has a decent complexity to it...nothing too deep in the grand scheme of things I'm sure, but it's not a dumb wine.

The finish brings out some more vanilla and pineapple.

I wasn’t really sure I’d be a fan of this and I can’t say I am...but we’re not offended and that’s really the nicest thing we can say about a Chardonnay. I certainly won’t be buying it again, but I’m glad I experienced it. I think the next Chardonnay I try will be a New World unoaked one.

2004 Louis Jadot Pinot Noir Bourgogne

Most French labels don’t have the varietal listed, this seems to be a growing trend with the lower quality, more mass produced wines. This is the low end offering of a decent producer, so I figured I’d give it a shot even at $15.

Raspberries, plums, and oak on the nose.

Right after opening, this one is a bit harsh once it hits the palate...so much acid it’s bordering on sour. After breathing for an hour, it improved tremendously....my experience is that Pinot Noir typically does not need much, if any, aeration. Raspberries on the palate with some nice mild, though present tannins. A bit of oak, a touch of anise, chocolate, earth, and cherry as well.

Some funk and earth on the finish, along with a bit of oak and some lingering berry.

Even after opening, it’s still not great...I can’t recommend this one, especially at the $15 pricepoint.

2003 Domaine Henri Gouges, Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru, Les Pruliers

I received a gift certificate for Christmas for our local wine shop. There’s always an internal debate I have with gift certificates—do I spend it on several bottles of wine in our typical price range (under $20) or do I splurge and go for something I’d never buy for myself? Since the ol’ rack is pretty much full I opted to splurge on a $65 bottle with the request from the shop owner that I get a bottle that is a decent representation of good quality Burgundy.

We enjoy Pinot Noir from the New World but really haven’t enjoyed much from Burgundy, especially towards the higher end (I am well aware this is not a “top” Burgundy). Most good Burgundy need a bit more time in the bottle but I was told this one would be a good representation even if opened right away.

Funk on the nose--earth, barnyard, and a bit of alcohol.

The palate has some strawberry, raspberry, and cherry with lots of earth and a bit of wood. I get some chocolate and coffee (which I suppose means mocha) in the background as well.

Smooth tannins on the finish, lingering mocha, and very late in the finish I get an odd bit of hazelnut and maybe just a touch of pine.

I hope that at some point in my life I’ll be able to buy a case of this sort of wine and drink it over a decade. For now, this one special bottle will have to do. I’ve been a bit afraid of French wine in general, but I think there will probably be some more Burgundy on here in the upcoming months.

2004 Bourgogne Pinot Noir, Blason De Bourgogne

I like to make my own vegetable stock since I find most of the ready made stocks to be little more than salt water. In order to get some more flavor, the bulk of the liquid I use in my stock is wine–since it simmers for over an hour, and then gets reheated when I add it to whatever recipe I’m making, most of the alcohol burns off. I feel the wine really gives it the added punch that you need with something so mild like a low salt vegetable stock.

The number one thing I use my own stock for is a cream sauce which I serve with shallots and mushrooms. I like to use an inexpensive–but good enough quality that I’d drink it from the glass–bottle of Pinot Noir, as that’s a common suggested pairing for mushrooms.

So, I present you the following: A Pinot Noir from Burgundy which I picked up at Trader Joe’s for a whopping $7.

It’s a very simple, easy drinking, light Pinot Noir. All the nose really gives me is earth, I don’t smell much fruit–just dirt. The palate is no surprise: lots of earth. I detect a bit of cherries and blackberries as well, but make no mistake, this is an earthy wine. It’s light but it’s acidic, giving it a bit of tartness. It’s a very simple wine, very little finish, not much complexity, but did you expect that for a $7 Burgundy?

It’s ultimately very good--most cheap wines are either harsh or sweet and overly jammy, this is neither. This actually tastes like a Burgundy. It’s not phenomenal, it wouldn’t last in the cellar, but at this price, you simply will not find a wine this characteristic of the region.

It seems like a shame I’m dumping the rest of the bottle in the saucepan, but next time I’m at Trader Joe’s I’ll be picking up another bottle.