New World Countries (remember those?) are all about the science of wine making. They can take a wine and "tweak" it to make it better. It is all about the grape varietal. To the French, wine making is all about the land and geographic region the grapes are grown in. They do not "tweak" their wines, they depend on the land to "make" the grape. They are very strict about who can grow what grape and where.
After a recap of yesterday's class, we continued our exploration of France. Next was Burgundy which is in eastern France (southeast of Paris). There are five districts in Burgundy: Chablis, Cote d'Or, Cote Chalonnaise, Maconnais, and Beaujolais. Imagine my surprise after going thru this class and learning that Beaujolais is NOT a grape, but the name of a specific REGION which grows numerous varietals. Burgundy is one of the world's most famous fine wine producing regions. Burgundy grows two types of grapes: Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Of course, there is one exception: Beaujolais which has its own grape, Gamay, and it is often blended. Burgundy has a slightly different "pyramid" of quality. Starting at the bottom is regional wine, which is straight AoC Burgundy, no appellation. Next is District. then group of villages (found in Maconnais and Beaujolais). Often a village or group of villages can quality for special consideration. Next is a single village or commune, then Premier Cru and at the top Grand Cru. I never thought I'd have to learn to read French just to read a wine label!
After a scrumptious lunch of Coq Au Vin served with a spinach salad with vinegrette and walnuts and slice of baguette on the side. We took some of the wine we tried in the morning to lunch with us to see how it tasted with our food. For dessert (yum), crepes filled with Creme Anglaise and strawberry covered with caramel sauce. (They offered us chocolate tart along with quiche for breakfast-I like the way they think, lol).
In the afternoon we learned about the Rhone Valley. The Rhone Valley is second only to Bordeaux in quantity of AoC wine produced annually. The Rhone Valley is in southeaster France (south of Burgundy)and has a continental climate. It has two distinct districts: Northern Rhone and Southern Rhone. 95% of all Rhone wines are red! Northern Rhone has black granite soil which is good because the black rock absorbs the heat of the sun and warms the land and grapes at night. The Northern Rhone uses single varietals, no blending. The main grape of Northern Rhone is Syrah (a red wine). They also grow Viognier (white).
The Southern Rhone has a mediteranean climate with wide areas of rolling hills and rocky soils. Here they blend their wine. 95% of Southern Rhone wines are red made from Grenache (nearly always at least 50% of a blend is Grenache), Syrah, and Mourvedre. Their white grapes are Genache Blanc, Marsanne, and Roussane.
Wouldn't it be great to explore all the wine regions of France? We tasted some awesome wines today that I would recommend to anyone!
I am trying my bread recipe out on Carl. I mixed it up after I got home from school and will let it sit and ferment for at least 18 hours. Mix 3 cups of bread flour, 1/4 tsp dry yeast, 1 tsp kosher salt and 1 and 1/3 cups of water in a glass bowl. The dough should be slightly wet. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it on the counter. I'll clue you in tomorrow about how it finishes!
"Burgundy is for kings, champagne for duchesses, claret for gentlemen." -French Proverb
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