Wset - Burgundy

Question 1

What climate is there in Burgundy?

Answer 1

Cool Continental climate in the north around Chablis
and more moderate continental the further south you get.

Question 2

which different natural climatic hazards does the grower may face?

Answer 2

Rain - that can disrupt both flowering in early summer and harvest later in the year
Spring frost - particularly in the Chablis region, could appear as late as May.
Summer hailstorms - that can destroy considerable proportions os a grower’s crop

Question 3

Where’s the basic village-level vineyards located, vs. the premier cru or grand cru located?

Answer 3

The basic village-level vineyards are mostly located on the flat sites or at the bottom of slopes.
Premier cru’s or Grand cru’s are located on mid-slopes.

Question 4

How much percent of the total vineyard does Pinot noir cover?

Answer 4

Pinot Noir accounts for over a third of the total vineyard areas.

Question 5

What’s the characters of an Classic Burgundian Pinot Noir?

Answer 5

young: red fruit flavours
evoloved: flavours of earth, game and mushroom as the wine mature.
high acidity
low to medium tannins

Question 6

How do the winemakers age their wines to produce the best wines?

Answer 6

16 to 18 mounths’ barrel ageing is normal
the better wines will be ages in a proportion of new oak.

Question 7

How much percent of the total vineyard does Chardonnay cover?

Answer 7

nearly half of the total vineyard area.

Question 8

Whats the typical character of Chardonnay throughout Burgundy?

Answer 8

Chardonnay varies dramatically from the lean, steelu, high-acid wines of Chablis,
to the often daboulously complex, expressive wines of the Côte d’Or,
to the more full bodied, riper-fruited wines of Mâcon.

Question 9

What techniques was the Burgundian winemakers pioneers of?

Answer 9

Barrel fermentation, barrel ageing, malolactic conversion for white wines and use of the lees during maturation.

Question 10

What happened around 20 years ago, that would change the burgundians techniques when producing chardonnay?

Answer 10

they started noticing that some Burgundian chardonnays were not ageing as expected, they showed signs of premature oxidation for their age.

Question 11

What character does Aligoté have?

Answer 11

It’s a white grape that tends to produce nautral wines with high acidity.
Can make high quality wines when grown in sites where it can reach full ripeness.

Question 12

What character does Gamay have?

Answer 12

Ut produces early drinking red wines with ripe berry fruit and low tannins.

Question 13

What’s the river running through Chablis called?

Answer 13

the River Serein

Question 14

What’s a major problem in Chablis?

Answer 14

the frost. They use sprinklers and heaters for protective measures.

Question 15

Which is the only grape allowed in Chablis?

Answer 15

Chardonnay

Question 16

Where can you find Basic Village level Chablis?

Answer 16

often grown on north facing slopes and flatter lands.

Question 17

Where can you find the premier cru and grand cru in Chablis?

Answer 17

On south facing hillsides, giving greater concentratio and ripeness to these wines.

Question 18

What character does a wine of Chablis premiercru and Chablis Grand Cru have?

Answer 18

Riper, ore concentrated fruit(citrus rather than green apple)
more body, still balanced by high acidity
Some producers ferment or age a portions in old oak, which gives a rounder texture and subtle flavours.

Question 19

What’s the name of the mountain range that runs alongside of Côte d’Or?

Answer 19

The Massif Central

Question 20

What’s the difference between Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune, when it comes to varietals?

Answer 20

Côte de Nuits are famous for their full-bodied long-lived Pinot Noirs are produced here
Côte de Beaune also produce Pinot Noir bur generally in a fruitier style but it is more famous for producing the best chardonnays in the region

Question 21

How’s the varietals in Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune reflected in the appellation system?

Answer 21

all of the red grand crus, except one, are produced in Côte de Nuits, and all of the white grand crus, except for one, are produced in Côte de Beaune

Question 22

Name the key villages of the Côte de Nuits, and their most famous grand crus sites, north to south.

Answer 22

Gevrey-Chambertin - (CHambertin, Chambertin CLos de Bèze)
Vougeot - (Clos de Vougeot)
Vosne-Romanée - (Romanée-Conti, La Tâche, La Romanée)
Nuits-Saint-Georges

Question 23

Name the key villages of the Côte de Beaune, and their most famous grand crus sites, north to south

Answer 23

Aloxe-Corton - (Corton, Corton-Charlemagne)
Beaune
Pommard
Volnay
Meursault
Puligny-Montrachet -(Montrachet)
Chassagne-Montrachet -(Montrachet)

Question 24

Which two villages only produce white wine in Côte de Beaune?
But which three have the highest reputation for their white wines?

Answer 24

Pommard and Volnay

Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet

Question 25

What the difference between Côte de Nuits-Village and Côte de Beaune-Village?

Answer 25

A Côte de Nuits-Village can both be a red and a white wine, and is produced form those vineyards that lite in Côte de Nuits but that do not qualify for one of the more famous village appellations.
Côte de Beaune-Village must be a red wine, but can come from ant of the villages on the Côte de Beaune, but there are some exceptions.

Question 26

What can you expect from a Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits and a Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune?

Answer 26

The wine then comes from the west of and at a higher altitude to the main strip of vineyards. Their altitude and greater exposure to wind gives them a cooler climate and means that the wines typically have slightly less body and concentration.

Question 27

What’s the altitude and where are the vineyards placed in The Côte Chalonnaise?

Answer 27

There’s a high altitude of these vineyards, with give a late harvest and less reliable ripening.
The vineyards are found on hillsides towards the east.

Question 28

What character does a wine from The Côte Chalonnaise have?

Answer 28

lighter and tend to mature earlier.Eh

Question 29

Which are the four main village appellations in Côte Chalonnaise? And what do they produce?

Answer 29

Rully - more white than red. Spark. as well.
Mercurey - red wine, highest reputation.
Givry - red, paricularly admired. smallest appellation
Montagny - only white

Question 30

What can you expect from a Bourgogne Côte Chalonnaise?

Answer 30

only pinot noir for red
only chardonnay for white

Question 31

Which grape varieties can you find in Mâconnais?

Answer 31

mostly Chardonnay
Gamay and a little bit of Pinot Noir.

Question 32

Which is the local regional appellation of Mâconnais?
And what different characters can these wines have

Answer 32

Mâcon, can be both red and white.
White wines show a good balance of fresh apple or citrus fruit, medium acidity, med-full body. May be a hint of mlf
Red wines tends to be light and fruity, early drinking

Question 33

What does the label Mâcon Village or Mâcon -(followed by the name of a particular village) means?

Answer 33

white wines that generally represent excellent value for money

Question 34

Name two of the most famous villages in Mâconnais and what character can you expect from the wines from here?

Answer 34

Pouilly-Fuissé
Saint-Véran
they display ripe notes of tropical and stone fruits, matured for a period of time in barrel.

Question 35

What does the slopes look like in Pouilly-Fussié & Saint-Véran?

Answer 35

They are builled up like amphitheatre-like slopes, which act as natural suntraps to help to produce some of the richest and ripest Chardonnay in Burgundy.