Bourgeoning Bourgogne

By Mike • Nov 7th, 2008 • Category: Boozin', Features, Grown Up Stuff

Bruno Colin is an unlikely name for a Burgundian wine producer, but this is modern times and here is modern wines. Short and sharp for this wine. Its a 2006 Bourgogne, but is varietally labeled for the uninitiated. I’d love to be snide and churlish about varietally labeled French wine, ranting from my pedestal would be satisfying… but the truth of the matter is, the more the merrier. If dumbing down French wines makes more people try them, get into them and start nailing them then so be it. The smart, modern label states both Bourgogne and Pinot Noir, so the puritans can have their cake and eat it too. So this comes from a variety of vineyard sites in Burgundy, but the Bruno Colin mob are based in the high fallutin’ Chassagne-Montrachet village regions. The wine itself is lunch time drinking personified. Sweet on the snout, it reeks of wild strawberry and raspberry but has a leathery whiff for complexity. The palate has upfront dark cherry, wild raspberry fruit drawl, which recedes behind some feathery tannins and dark chocolate bite. This is good stuff for the price, maybe sensational, the modern twist to the wine means that many more people will get what’s going on. This aint pumped up jammy shit like some ma and pa producers get made in Central Otago by large wine making facilities, nor is it single vineyard enthusiasts from Australia who get magic wands waved over their wineries and throw their booze out at $40 plus for the favour. This is modern Pinot with stoic reserve and some decent sensibility. This is the new twist on Acid Jazz from the mid to late 90’s, and could be the era of new cool from France.