The snow is falling in Paris. Photographers are happy: even the horizontal pollution on the sidewalks, generated by the city’s half-million pooches, looks picturesque. The homeless and those who can’t afford to pay their heating bills are less thrilled. Paris is going back to its millennial default: long, cold winters, brightened (in terms of luminosity) by a dusting of snow.
The snow and ice and cold are also good for the grapevines, specifically those in Burgundy, which are getting a serious chill. That’s what they need. The wines of Burgundy have been tasting more and more Californian of late, and the climate–a long warming trend, with mild winters–is probably–note the modifier–partly to blame. Unwelcome bugs and virus are also getting frozen out, which means winemakers will probably be kinder to their vines and the soil this coming year.
To celebrate the snow, and Saint Valentine, and a newish and better year (we hope), my latest Terroir Guide has come out this week: Food Wine Burgundy.
This may not be the ideal time to sip a chilled Chassagne-Montrachet, but a warming, vintage Aloxe-Corton or even a quirky little red Marsannay might do. Of course, if you prefer herbal tea and honey instead, Burgundy has some of the best of both (just possibly some of the best honey anywhere, period).
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