Understanding Burgundy when Choosing a Wine Gift
It’s often said within the wine world that understanding how to give a wine gift from Burgundy can help you tell if someone is merely a fan of wine, or if they are truly obsessive. Burgundy is probably the hardest wine producing region in the world to understand, with apologies to Germany which makes it as difficult as they possibly can. To start, white Burgundy is almost always Chardonnay and red Burgundy is by law, always Pinot Noir. Secondly a vineyard has a much different distinction in Burgundy than it does in other parts of the world. In America, a vineyard is a piece of land owned by one owner. Ownership draws the lines of the vineyard. In Burgundy, the traits of the land draw the lines, so a single vineyard can be owned by many people. In some cases, descendants of a family own only a few vines, this makes it difficult to achieve a unified answer to basic vineyard management questions such as who to sell the grapes to. I hope this gets you a basic start on your journey through Burdundy.