Oeno-File, the Wine & Gastronomy Column

by Frank Ward

The Romanée Conti Expedition – Part II

Posted by Frank Ward on July 18, 2012

Our lunch at Le Millésime the previous day had been so enjoyable that we decide to repeat the experience today. Propinquity (it’s only two kilometres away) also plays a role in the decision. Another three courses for less than 20 Euros take the edge off our hunger, while the recollection of the stunning DRC wines, still perfuming our palates, has us almost panting aloud for a delicious wine. We go for a 2007 (a delectable, easy-to-drink vintage) Chambolle Musigny*** from Domaine Georges Roumier, one of Burgundy’s finest producers. 

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The Romanée Conti Expedition – Part I

Posted by Frank Ward on June 30, 2012

As we set off for Chablis – a lovely name don’t you think? – rain hammers down on the car and will continue to fall heavily for the whole of our 600 km journey, the final destination of which Puligny-Montrachet south of Beaune – like Chablis, a famous wine village. Our spirits remain buoyant, despite the dreary weather, as we have much to look forward to: a number of visits to top wine domains and as many delicious meals as can be packed into four days. One of the high points of the trip will be a tasting at Domaine de la Romanée Conti.

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A taste of Burgundy – Part II

Posted by Frank Ward on September 17, 2011

lt’s a bright sunny day and the sloping vineyards of Morey Saint Denis are in full leaf and looking at their best. I’ve just left Domaine Dujac, with celestial savours Iingering on my palate, and realize that there’s a thirty-minute gap in my programme. Que faire? The famous Clos des Lambrays, one of Morey’s four Grands Crus, is just around the corner and the wine would be well worth tasting.

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A taste of Burgundy – Part I

Posted by Frank Ward on August 20, 2011

The Pinot Noir of Burgundy is the world’s most delicate red variety. In poor years it fails to achieve complete ripeness and can give thin, acidic wines. ln excessively hot years it can also yield unsatisfactory results. When grapes approach or attain overripeness the resultant wine is heavy and disagreeably jammy.

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Piedmont, Italy – Region of mists and mellow fruitfullness (II)

Posted by Frank Ward on July 30, 2011

A couple of decades ago Aldo Conterno was the hot name in Barolo while his cousin Giacomo was looked upon as staid and old-fashioned. The situation has gradually reversed and it is now Giacomo Conterno who is regarded as one of the absolute leaders of the appellation. Their approach to vatting-time is diametrically opposite to that of Altare.

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Piedmont, Italy – Region of mists and mellow fruitfullness (I)

Posted by Frank Ward on July 21, 2011

The roar of the traffic gives way to birdsong as we quit the autostrada and find ourselves doing a gentle rollercoaster through the green hills and valleys of Piedmont. I give silent thanks to the people here, for knowing exactly where to place a building on a hillside in a way that enhances both peak and edifice. And the buildings are beautiful in their own right.

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Three days in Budapest – and some tastings of older rarities

Posted by Frank Ward on June 26, 2011

June 2011. The Vàsàrcsarnok market in Budapest is the biggest indoor market I’ve ever seen – as vast as a main line railway station and just as busy. Hundreds of stalls are festooned with almost every imaginable item of food, smoked, preserved, salted, tinned, or fresh. Arrays of ham hang like bloated wineskins, while below are ranged every conceivable cut of pork, beef, or lamb.

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Sixty Burgundies from 2008

Posted by Frank Ward on May 22, 2011

History, they say, repeats itself though never in exactly the same way. The same is true of Burgundy vintages, with the repetition often occurring in pairs, at ten-year intervals. The 2008 vintage in Burgundy bears an uncanny resemblance to 1998, while 2007 is strikingly like 1997. Ten years before that, ’87 and ’86 followed a similar pattern.

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A tasting of California’s most famous Red

Posted by Frank Ward on December 10, 2010

A tasting of eight of the best-ever vintages of Opus One, California’s most celebrated red wine, was recently hosted in London by the Masters of Wine. Including the 1979, the very first vintage, the eight wines were personally chosen by Michael Silacci, who has been in charge of wine-making since 2004...

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Tasting the 2006s of Domaine de la Romanée Conti

Posted by Frank Ward on February 25, 2009

To Corney & Barrow, hard by the Tower of London, to taste the 2006 wines of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. l’d tasted the wines earlier, in May 2007*, when still in barrel, and it would be fascinating to see them again now that they were in bottle. I might also have a chance to have a chat with the joint owner, Aubert de Villaine, who I’ve known for well over 20 years. M. de Villaine had already commented on the vintage…

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