Italian Wine Travel with Stevie Kim, in collaboration with YouTube Channel Mamma Jumbo Shrimp and Italian Wine Podcast, proudly presents its first ever French wine series – a deep dive into the mysteries of Bordeaux
As we know from Part 1 of this vibrant new series, Stevie Kim spent an immersive week in wintery Bordeaux, on a mission to delve deep into this famous wine region. Part 2 starts to unpack the complexities of this challenging region, with all its unique history that is so crucial to the understanding of French fine wine. Guided by Bordeaux expert, Bernard Burtschy, Stevie takes a look at the wines from Medoc and travels from north to south through Saint Estephe, Pauillac and Saint Julien. Stevie and Bernard let us eavesdrop on their fireside chat, which provides the soundtrack to more compelling footage of the famous chateaux, and a behind-the-scenes look at how the professionals work through prestigious wine tastings — discussing, debating and making their notes on the 2022 vintage.
In-depth Visits and Tasting in the North of Bordeaux’s Left Bank
Beginning with Saint Estephe, Burtschy carefully explains the wines from Chateau Montrose, one of the most eminent chateaux of the area. Being in the northern part of the region and very close to the sea, Saint Estephe is colder than the rest of Bordeaux. Burschy discusses the resulting tannic strength of the wine, which he describes as “not easy for beginners.” We find out the specific percentages of the Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blend here and the impact distance from the city of Bordeaux had on the 1855 classification of wines from Saint Estephe. We are treated to a rare virtual stroll through the cellar and a glimpse of the ancient bottles cellared in the vintage bottle library. The Italian Wine Podcast team is always happy when Italian wines drop into the conversation; listen in to hear the interesting comparison between the Nebbiolo wines of Barolo and Barbaresco to the great wines of Chateau Montrose.
Pauillac is next on the north to south journey, where we find soils that are stonier and composed of more gravel. Burtschy’s expertise shines through in his clear definition of these wines: using the same percentages of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the blend as Saint Estephe, he explains that the slight change in terroir creates wines that are still tannic yet fresher, more elegant and clearly instrumental in garnering 20 classified chateaux for Pauillac, as opposed to Saint Estephe’s five. Wine education and wine travel combine as iconic chateaux including Pontet-Canet and Lynch-Moussas provide the scenery for Burtschy’s masterclass.
St. Julien is the last stop in this episode, giving us wines that Burtschy deems the most elegant, the most lovely, easy to drink and spicey, summing up the tasting by concluding, “St. Julien is very elegant, everyone loves it!” He goes on to divulge the significance of little- known facts regarding the availability of boat transport versus road transport for wines in the 19th century and the benefits enjoyed by the areas that had access to the waterways.
Vintage 2022
Episode 2 sets the stage for the quality of wines from the 2022 vintage in Bordeaux. Stevie presses Burtschy to give his impressions of development in the wines from his en primeur barrel tasting in 2022 to the recently bottled wines and we learn what is needed to create a vintage “greater than expected.”
The Discovering Bordeaux: A 4-Part Video Series will continue to roll out over the month of February, adding wine educational value to wine travel and tourism. Be sure to catch the entire series on https://www.youtube.com/channel.
For even more news, conversation and content, check out Italian Wine Podcast at https://www.italianwinepodcast.com/ or wherever you get your pods.
Interested in wine education? Take a look at Italian Wine Academy for WSET courses in Verona https://italianwineacademy.org.
