I’ve become fascinated with Burgundy and learning more about it. Burgundy is a complex region in eastern France with varied terroir, history, and tradition.

I visited the famed Pinot Noir/Chardonnay region in 2014 as a real novice and visited a couple good wineries and a couple which disappointed. In 2019, three buddies and I traveled to Beaune to visit wineries and eat in a few of Beaune’s magnificent small restaurants. I think we had better wine experiences on my second trip which we arranged on our own.

Our very first stop on the trip proved to be one of the best in my mind. We drove out to nearby Vosne-Romanee and tour and tasted at Domaine Armelle and Bernard Rion. The winery, caves and tasting room sit in the heart of the really small village. Alice, one of three daughters was our tour guide. She took us through recently updated winemaking facilities, then into the cellar for more history, philosophy and tasting.

The winery was founded in 1896 by Pierre Rion and has remained in family control and operation since. The history has allowed for growth and adding vineyard plots from all over Burgundy, many of them very sought-after and prestigous vineyards.

We tasted maybe six wines and then enjoyed a couple of truffle samples. Truffles are found on the Rion property. I purchased a bottle of Nuits-Saint Georges Dame Marguerite for about 47 Euro. That imported bottle today sould cost about twice that amount. I also brought home a Rion bottle from Vosne Romanee, one of my favorites.

I opened that Nuit-Saint-George Christmas weekend. The fact sheet from the website said ageability was about 10 years. So I was pushing up against the maximum on that bottle. I found the wine a bit rustic, leathery, earthy, and with good depth. And Interesting enough it was even better the next day when the fruit became a bit more pronounced.

I have a lot more to learn and understand about Burgundy. I still have about 7 bottles of red I purchased during the trip. My life’s wine journey has gone from Lambrusco and Riesling to a little bit of everything to nowdays Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The journey never ends.