Becky Wasserman Selections Burgundy Wine Tasting with Special Guest Peter Wasserman

“Bad news isn't wine. It doesn't improve with age.”
Colin Powell

August 28th we have one of the top names in Burgundy at the Wine Bar for a special Wednesday night event.  Becky Wasserman has become one of the top players in the field of small domains that are at the top end of the quality scale in all appellations of Burgundy.  I remember my last trip to Burgundy and the best wines at the Marsannay/Fixin tasting were represented by Becky. 

Tonight, we have the next generation of the Wasserman family here Peter Wasserman in town to show us wines from the exciting new releases from this legendary portfolio, mostly Burgundy in origin.  Peter grew up in the cellars of Burgundy and today he is one of the leading authorities on the subject.  Join us as we welcome Peter back to South Florida for a tasting featuring new releases from mostly the 2016 vintage.  The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $125 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.

Burgundy Tasting with Special Guest Peter Wasserman
Wednesday, August 28th
7:30pm

2014 Jean-Noel Gagnard Cremant de Bourgogne Grand Lys
Price: $47.25    Sale $41.58

Sourced from the hills above Chassagne-Montrachet, ‘Grand Lys’ combines the complexity of a mineral red Burgundy with the precision and elegance of Champagne.

• Variety: Pinot Noir
• Terroir: Hautes-Côtes de Beaune, 300-400-meters altitude, limestone and white marl soil
• Viticulture: Certified organic (Ecocert), biodynamic methods
• Vinification: Méthode Champenoise: second fermentation, aged on lees in bottle, hand-riddled, disgorged as needed.

2016 Chateau des Quarts Pouilly-Fuisse Clos Des Quarts
Price: $66.00    Sale $55.44

Planted to the density of 10,000 vines per hectare (higher than the typical 6,500 to 8,000 vines per hectare in the Mâconnais).
·  Vine Age: 1/3 planted in 1917, 2/3 planted in the early 1950s
·  Terroir: East-facing, Quarts vineyard in Chaintré with shallow ferruginous topsoil, Bajocian crinoidal limestone bedrock
·  Viticulture: Organic
·  Vinification: Whole clusters pressed; no foulage; indigenous yeast alcoholic fermentation, full malos, and 18 months' aging in 6-7% new oak (most 1-3 years old) barrels.

2017 Jean-Claude Bessin Chablis Grand Cru Valmur
Price: $96.00    Sale $84.48

• Size: 2.08 ha (4.99 ac)
• Variety: Chardonnay
• Vine Age: Planted 1947, 1962-1974, 1995-2000
• Terroir: Northeastern side of Chablis, Kimmeridgian clay and limestone soil, surrounded by Grand Cru vineyards, density of about 6,000-8,000 vines per hectare
• Viticulture: Lutte raisonnée
• Vinification: Whole-cluster pressing (pneumatic), indigenous yeast fermentation. Aged for 6-8 months in small, temperature-controlled tanks and barrel (0-10% new oak) and . Fined before blending in tank.

2016 Nicolas Joly Savennieres Laes Vieux Clos
Price: $66.00    Sale $55.44

• Size: 5.5 ha (13.6 ac)
• Variety: Chenin Blanc
• Vine Age: Planted in the late 1990s
• Terroir: Facing east (some very steep), soils of schist, quartz, and sand
• Viticulture: Certified organic and biodynamic
• Vinification: Indigenous yeast fermentation, no temperature control or chaptalization, in tank or barrel, no settling of must. Aged for 6-8 months in older barrels, 1-2 rackings, very low sulfur additions.

These vines are from massal selection and have a yield of 30-35 hL/ ha, well below the authorized maximum yield of 50 hL/ha.

2017 Heritiers du Comte Lafon Macon-Bussieres Le Monsard
Price: $37.50    Sale $33.00

• Size: 0.74 ha (1.83 ac)
• Variety: Chardonnay
• Vine Age: Planted in 1982
• Terroir: Lieu-dit En Monsard, just below the rock of Monsard, facing southwest, 250-meters altitude, shallow, lightly clay soil with limestone rocks from hard limestone bedrock below.
• Viticulture: Certified organic, biodynamic methods
• Vinification: Indigenous yeast fermentation in 41 to 45hL oak barrels. Aged for 7-8 months on fine lees, racked pre-bottling.

Sourced from a single vineyard in the commune of Bussières.

2017 Domaine Lafarge Vial Cote de Brouilly
Price: $58.25    Sale $51.26

• Size: 0.66 ha (1.63 ac)
• Variety: Gamay
• Vine Age: Planted in 1968
• Terroir: Southeast-facing, on the slopes of Mont Brouilly, soils and bedrock of granite with blue rocks
• Viticulture: Organic and biodynamic (awaiting certification)
• Vinification: 25% whole cluster (in 2016), indigenous yeast fermentation in concrete tank, extraction by punch-downs and pump-overs depending on the vintage. One year aging in older 228 and 350-liter barrels, with racking in the spring.

2016 Domaine Sylvain Pataille Marsannay Rouge L'Ancestrale
Price: $136.50    Sale $120.12

• • Size: 0.7 ha (1.73 ac)
  • Variety: Pinot Noir
  • Vine Age: Planted between 1930-1945
  • Terroir: Moderate to sleep slope, faces to the east. 290-meters elevation. Light pinkish gravelly grèzes litées soil that sits on White Oolite. Prestigious lieux-dits Clos du Roy, Clémengeot, Les Ouzeloy. One of the northernmost vineyards in the Côte-d'Or.
  • Viticulture: Certified organic
  • Vinification: 100% whole-cluster pressing, indigenous yeast fermentation, gentle extraction. Aged for 24 months in barrel (50% new oak), low sulfur additions only at bottling.

2016 Camille Giroud Volnay
Price: $75.00    Sale $66.00

• Variety: Pinot Noir
• Vine Age: Planted from about 1970 to 1990
• Terroir: Middle of slope, facing south/southeast, 240-meters elevation
• Viticulture: Lutte raisonnée
• Vinification: Alcoholic fermentation in stainless steel tank. Aged for 16 months in barrel (20% new oak), 3 months settling in tanks.

2016 Comte Armand Pommard 1er Cru Epeneaux
Price: $225.00    Sale $198.00

• Size: 5.23 ha (12.92 ac)
• Variety: Pinot Noir
• Vine Age: Planted from 1930 to 1986
• Terroir: 80% Petits Epenots, 20% Grands Epenots, brown clay soil, hard limestone underneath
• Viticulture: Certified organic (Ecocert), biodynamic
• Vinification: Grapes from the Clos vinified by vine age (4 different cuvées). 100% de-stemmed, indigenous yeast fermentation. Aged for 18-24 months in older oak barrels.

2016 Domaine Jacques-Frederic Mugnier Nuits St Georges 1er Cru Clos Marechale
Price: $150.00    Sale $132.00

(93 points)  Aromas of cassis, dark plums, baking chocolate and rosehip introduce the 2016 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Clos de la Maréchale, a full-bodied, rich and layered wine with a broad-shouldered chassis of fine, stony tannins that are entirely enveloped in fleshy, gourmand fruit. This vintage is atypically rich and concentrated, so it's hard to predict if and when it will shut down. Wine Advocate

Menu

Selection of cheese and Charcuterie

Pacific King Salmon Carpaccio with grapefruit citrus segments, mint and pink peppercorn aioli

Duck Confit with Cherry Burgundy Reduction and Brie Mashed potatoes

The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $125 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com. Please let us know when you make your reservations if you have any issues with the food we are serving, Toni will be happy to accommodate you.

Becky Wasserman & Co. was founded in 1979 by Becky Wasserman-Hone, an American expatriate who has lived in Burgundy since 1968. Our company exports wines from small domaines and shippers in Burgundy and other regions who honor their terroirs. We do not endorse any single method of vinification or an “ideal” type of wine.
Our international team, based in Beaune, is comprised of thirteen people, including sales and administration (plus two office cats). We lunch together at the office each day. We are all enthusiastic eaters, and we taste wines that are old favorites alongside potential new members of the Becky Wasserman portfolio. We follow a simple rule: “If we won't drink it, we won't sell it.”
Wine is more than a commodity to us. We have gone through many highs and lows and none of us would be working here if we didn't believe that wine eases and embellishes peoples' lives. We hope that our website fulfills its ambition to be informative, educational, provocative, and amusing. Santé!