Domaine des Terres Gentilles Bourgogne Pinot Noir La Cadole 2020

Even in the brief span of Waterford’s lifetime, it's amazing to think about the changes in Burgundy. Way back yonder in 2005, Burgundy wasn’t really on anyone’s radar except for a very few select collectors. The wines were known to be supremely variable, low-rated compared with Bordeaux or Napa, and hard to get. The wines were never cheap, but looking back, compared to where they are now, they were indeed inexpensive. And so begins our yarn of the day:

It’s cliche to say that in Burgundy a rising tide raised all the ships, and further, it’s not quite true - some of the “ships” got rocket-fueled and blasted their prices through the atmosphere and, in some cases, out of the solar system. Good for those farmers, they are now making bank. But, by and large, the trickle-down has eventually made it to the least wealthy farmers in Burgundy, and those are usually co-operatives. With the rise in Burgundy’s wine prices, even at this lowest end of the scale, farmers have been able to reinvest in their vineyards, bring modern winemaking to the fore, and draw out even more amazing wines then they had been making in the past. 

So it is with Domaine des Terres Gentilles - The Domaine of the Kind Land. While I haven’t been to this place nor met with the group of farmers behind it, I quite appreciate that the name is pretty in a gentle way, which echoes the wine itself.

Here, with their "La Cadole" bottling, the nose jumps with juicy raspberry freshness, bouncing around the room like a prancing kitten.  The palate bubbles with Bing cherries, fresh strawberries and pomegranates.  It’s frisky and exuberant, chock-full of minerality and energy. Named after the ancient stone huts “Cadole” that were farmer shelters during inclement weather in the vineyard, this also reflects the soil as well - stony and mineral, and being grown in this soil brings an extra depth and richness to the wine. 

One thing to note - the coming vintages of Burgundy’s wines are very “short”, meaning harvests were down considerably. Annoyingly, we will all see prices rise as well as wines become harder to get. So that was why when I was told the price of this wine, I was quite astounded. It’s worth its regular price, but at the sale price, it's a steal. We got a little stash of it, don’t miss it!