Brian’s 50th Birthday Celebration: Burgundy Day 1

Our first full day together on Brian’s 50th birthday trip included travel by van from Paris to Pommard (our home base for the remainder of the trip) and then either a walk to lunch in Volnay or a tasting at an as -yet-to-be-determined winery. Dinner was scheduled to be prepared and served at the house by the house Chef and staff.

We were warned about the importance of being on time so everyone showed up bright an early for the onboarding. Fred and I went looking for an early morning takeout coffee joint and, after some initial frustration, eventually found one. By the time we wended our way back to the hotel, the vans had arrived and been loaded up. Including my knapsack. I am uncomfortable if my phone and knapsack are not in contact with my body (great chance of leaving them behind) so I dug through the luggage, found my knapsack, and placed it where I intended to sit.

The seating worked out such that Brian and his relatives occupied one van and the “outsiders” the other. Now, if I had been traveling with my relatives, we would have formed a prayer circle, asked for traveling mercies, hugged, and then boarded. This group just jumped into the vans and left.

My first inkling that we might have a problem was when Fred began tapping the outside of his pants pocket as though he had lost something. “What’s wrong?” I asked. “My Apple Watch is showing that my Laptop is back at the hotel,” he said. Two things were wrong here: (i) If his laptop was missing, why was he tapping his pocket? and (ii) Why did he not secure his knapsack (like I did) when we returned from the coffee run? 

We had traveled a bit but we were still within the Paris city limits. We would, obviously, have to return to the hotel to retrieve his laptop but who was going to call Brian in the next van and tell him that? Who was going to let him know that his carefully crafted, immaculate schedule was about to be violated by a doctor? The doctor, that’s who.  We pulled over and stopped. And the second van did the same. Fred went out to tell his story (I did not accompany him — I did not want to see the blood on the floor). Turned out they decided to look in the back of that van and Fred’s backpack was laying there, not a care in the world. It seems that with the laptop not proximate to the watch, the watch was registering the last place the two had synced up. 

We resumed our travel — and, by the way, kudos to the team of drivers who took us around during the entirety of our stay. They were warm, helpful, considerate, and always ready with a helpful recommendation.

We made very good time, arriving at our destination a little before lunch. We were staying at La Maison de Pommard and were welcomed effusively by Anda.

After we had been shown around, and made the appropriate noises, including expressing our satisfaction, nay, amazement, at the space, folks started asking “what’s next.” Brian had been having whispered discussions with Anda and informed us that timing (now post-lunch), day of the week (Sunday), and weather (raining) rendered external lunch sources non-existent and tasting opportunities negligible.

The house came with a fully stocked wine fridge and a backup cellar in the basement so we decided to call in Pizza and call it a day. Turned out to be a great decision. 

Fred, Laurie, and I had left Tatttinger with three gift bottles but there were not at drinking temperature. I plunked mine into the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of Dhondt-Greeley Premier Cru Champagne from the house stash. I had never had this champagne but the host recommended it highly. She was correct. It was absolutely fantastic. And so began an absolutely awesome day, an indicator of what a fine time we would have together creating Brian’s 50th.

The tables in the lunch room were spread out; and that is how we deployed initially. But as the juice flowed, and the food arrived, we wanted to operate more as a single unit; so we  strung the tables together. I didn’t have great Pizza on my bingo card for Burgundy but that number played. And the conversation; insightful and enlightening. I personally had some phenomenal discourse with David and Jen, the people I knew least coming on to this trip. I really like them.

The other guys could only take so much of this stuff so they snuck off; and took their significant others with them. The first indication that I had that they were not in the house was when I received a text from Fred saying that they were tasting at a winery around the corner and I should come join them. I texted him back asking exactly where they were. Crickets. I went out, looked right, looked left, and then came back in. I was not going to desert my soul mates for this crew who flew the nest silently. 

They eventually returned with a number of sad stories. There was not much happening around. They fell in on this winery that turned out to be ungrateful.. The people were bad because Matt dropped one of the bottles they bought and it broke and the woman would not replace it. Of course the winery’s responsibility ceased the minute they left the premises. Entitled tourists. They came home grumbling; but they brought additional wines for the cause. Sweet.

This was a lively afternoon filled with great wine, conversation, food, music, laughter, and camaraderie. Lovely. Then we had to go prepare for dinner. 

I don’t know how come we didn’t all fall asleep and miss dinner. When i arrived, one of the last, if I remember correctly, Brian, Matt, and Fred had matching tee shirts which informed of the fact that this was all of their birtday parties, with their births being 10 years removed. 

We settled in for dinner and it was fabulous. The first course was a fish and i had not seen fish presented in this manner before. It looked more like a dumpling than fish. I thought i would have a piece to be courteous but it was stunning: light, airy, full of flavor emanating both from the fish and the accompanying sauce. 

The second course was a chicken which demoted Colonel Sanders to a private. This was followed by a cheese plate and dessert. The wines shown were the wines consumed

over the course of the day.

Wonderful evening capping a wonderful day, I thought, as i dragged myself up the stairs. Brian was in great spirits. Everything fell in place perfectly. His guests were happy. His wife was happy. His kid was happy. And tomorrow was still to come.

Note — a number of the pictures included herein are sourced from Brian.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

Brian Herbst’s 50th birthday celebration: The Paris component

I first heard Brian talking about spending his 50th birthday in Burgundy two years ago while we were in Miami celebrating his 48th. I promised to accompany him but it was so far in the future that I consigned it to a distant place in my “things-i-am-thinking-about” folder. Not so Brian. He mentioned it consistently at our tasting group get-togethers and launched a full frontal attack on the problem beginning late last year.

Burgundy has historically been a tough place to visit for the uninitiated or unconnected. It does not really have a mass wine tourism infrastructure or mentality and the producers would actually prefer not to be bothered. Visitors to the region are mostly wine professionals, writers, and affluent/influential burgundy consumers with long-standing relationships and track records. And visiting groups are generally limited in size.

Brian was bucking that model in that he intended to bring a sizeable group of his friends into the region for four or so days for the purpose of visiting wineries and eating in area restaurants. And he had no cards.

The first favorable thing to happen to him along the way was that the group self-selected down to 11 people, making it easier to handle and, maybe, increasing the likelihood of securing winery visits.

His initial plan was to spend a few days in Paris and then head out to Burgundy for four days. Beginning with these objectives, Brian, ably assisted by his wife Erin, crafted a focused and, ultimately, highly successful program which was enjoyable and satisfying for all involved. And no winemakers were hurt during the process.

Erin, Hudson, and Brian

Brian began with a list of all the important producers in Côte d’Or and contacted each by email to determine if they took visits from the public and, if they did, would they take a group of our size at a time of our choosing. His aim was to do two meaningful tours and tastings per day with solid lunches and dinners at known locales to follow. Over the course of many months he secured appointments with quality producers in both Côte de Beaune and Côte de Nuit, thus ensuring that participants would get a balanced view of the region and its wines.

In addition, Brian and Erin made accommodation arrangements for the group in both Paris and Burgundy, set up activities for the group in Paris, arranged transportation between and Paris and Burgundy as well as within Burgundy. The full travel group was: the aforementioned Brian and Erin, along with their son Hudson; Jackie (Brian’s Mom); David and Jen (Brian’s brother and his significant other); Fred and Laurie; Matt and Caryn; and the author.

                                                Jackie

Jackie, David, Jen, and Laurie

Fred, Laurie, Matt, and Caryn

Attendees arrived into Paris at varying times. The only scheduled group activities were a Friday lunch at Willi’s Wine bar, to be followed by a private boat cruise on the Seine. Most people had activities preceding but those will not be covered as they were not considered a part of the “official” birthday celebration. 

There was some slight confusion as to whether the lunch at Willi’s was scheduled for noon or 12:30. I was already out at an exhibition so I made it to the establishment by noon. The remaining members filtered in between 12:00 and 12:30 at which time we were shepherded into a private room. 

It did not take long for the volume in the room to begin heading north as an effusive wine-consumption benchmark was quickly established. We had a wonderful meal and enjoyable wines but, more importantly for people who were going to be spending a week together, no one sucked.

At the conclusion. of the lunch we walked over to the River Seine to link up with our boat. I was excited. I had ridden Bateaux-Mouche-type boats on the Seine on many occasions but had not gone the private boat route previously. Erin and Brian had rented a boat and captain exclusively for our party. 

Once the boat dock was vacated our boat made its way onside and we boarded. 

The day had warmed up considerably and was perfect for a river cruise. The river banks were peppered with people walking, sitting, standing, and even dancing, welcoming, as they were, the sun with open arms and hearts. 

Champagne and conversation flowed freely as the equally young Captain and First Mate maneuvered the boat down the river and the wines down our throats. 

A beautiful way to see the sights of Paris but, like all good things the ride came to an end. We disembarked and headed back to our individual habitats. Somewhere on the way back i discovered that i had left my scarf and jacket on the boat. It has not surfaced as yet.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

Frank Cornelissen: An Etna pioneering path that remains less-trodden

I am in the process of writing a series on the Mt Etna wine pioneers and have, to date, covered the late Giuseppe Benanti (Benanti Viticoltori), Salvo Foti (I Vigneri Salvo Foti & Figli). and the late Andrea Franchetti of Vini Franchetti. I continue herein with Frank Cornelissen.

Very few names are as tightly linked to the emergent Etna quality wine market as is Frank Cornelissen's. According to Roberto Camuto (Palmento: A Sicilian Wine Odyssey):

Frank ... had come to Etna because he believed it was the one spot in the world where you could make a wine entirely free of all chemicals, additives and modernity both in the vineyards and in the winery. ... Among fellow winemakers ... Frank is generally respected as a perfectionist. Among hard core enthusiasts in northern Europe and Japan, Frank has developed a fan base for a miniscule production ...

Nesto and di Savino (The World of Sicilian Wine) described Frank as having helped ignite interest in Etna wine. "Since ... he first visited Etna, he has tantalized both locals and wine cognoscienti with his boldly intuitive artisanal wines." And intuition is the key here as he had no formal training or background in winemaking prior to embarking on this venture. His prior relationship to the industry had been as a wine broker.

In reviewing the literature, I found two versions of Frank's initial encounter with Etna: one more elevated and the other more down-to-earth. In winesofetna.com, Frank states:

Piemonte was actually my reference point in the search for a great winemaking area. And so when I arrived here on Etna, I found a lot of values of Piemonte, the artisanal part, the rustic part, and the link from producer to soil, to territory ... And so when I arrived, I found Piemonte from the 80s, the 70s and I thought "Wow, I found a new Piemonte!" ... so what we have here is an unpolished jewel and a pure diamond, a raw diamond, and we are gradually polishing it, which means that we are also the cause of, lets say, a new arc of winemaking on Etna.

In a more earthly dialogue with Sedimentary Wines, Frank said:

After years of traveling all over the world in search of territorially expressive wines, I tasted a bottle of Etna which was served blind and it struck me. So I decided to visit Etna and after spending a day driving around the mountain, I was instantly attracted when entering the northern valley. The natural beauty of its environment reminded me of Georgia: the climate, the old vines, the stone walls ... Everything fell into place here: altitude, real winters with snow, intensity of the light, dry climate, the century old culture of vine growing ... I was lucky to find a small plot at the end of 2000 and I started working it for 2001 -- which was my first vintage.

It has never been clear which Etna wine it was that set Frank off on his path but we do know that his first plot was 0.4 ha of ungrafted, high-elevation vines in the northern valley of Mt Etna.

As reported in wineanorak.com, after 20 years of tasting, Frank leaned towards wines that were "an expression of culture, that were more evolved, and which express the soil more than the fruit." To get to the types of wines that he liked, he figured that he would have to make his own wines without any interventions in the vineyard, winemaking, or bottling. 

Frank refers to his early wines as "extremely intellectual" in that they were linear, angular, precise, and full of minerality. His goal was to "create liquid stone." His wines have softened with the passage of time as he has sought to "strike a balance between fruit and dynamic minerality."

The Early Years

We get a peek into the early Cornelissen wines from a series of Jamie Goode (wineanorak.com) reports on tastings. The first report came out of a session in London in 2004. At the time Jamie described the Cornelissen project as "one of the most unique and unusual projects I have encountered in the world of wine."

At that time Cornelissen was managing 5 ha of which 2.5 ha were devoted to ungrafted vines grown alberello style. The remainder was home to olive and fruit trees, bushes and other plants, all intermixed  to avoid a monoculture. The grape vines were planted at a density of 4000 vines/ha in order to promote ventilation and allow the cultivation of other plants and vegetables between the vines.

Treatments in the vineyards and surrounds were shunned; except for the 2002 and 2003 vintages when Bordelaise mix was required to save the vines.

The strategy was to harvest late -- and in multiple passes -- in order to obtain "beautifully healthy and ripe grapes." Yields were at 300 gm/vine, effected via short pruning, tailoring of bunches, and hand plucking of unripe or damaged berries.

The wine was subjected to lengthy maceration of the skins in order to "extract all possible aromas of soil and area." No sulphur was added at any phase of the winemaking process. The Magma wine was made from grapes grown on 50- to 80-year-old vines from the highest part of the vineyard. These grapes were fermented and aged in ~400 L terracotta amphorae which were buried up their necks in the cellar. Frank traveled widely in order to secure clay with the right density for his amphorae. The amphora allows oxygen ingress without imparting wood tannins and color to the wine. The skins were separated from the wine after malolactic fermentation.

The 2001 vintage was comprised of 515 bottles of Magma Rosso made with grapes sourced from the Muganazza Vineyard and an equivalent number of bottles of Rosso del Mungibello. The 2002 vintage amounted to approximately 2000 bottles of which 1100 were Magma Rossos sourced from the Trefiletti, Marchesa, and Calderara Vineyards, respectively. and 900 bottles were labeled Rosso del Contadino.

The goal at that time, as stated to Jamie, was to arrive at 6000 to 8000 bottles  spread over the following labels:

• Magma Rosso -- monovarietal, single-vineyard wines
• Magma bianco -- Jura-style oxidized wine
• Rosso del Mongibello -- multi-varietal, multi-vineyard wines with lower levels of maceration and bottled with fine lees.

At the time of the 2004 tasting, the estate was planting ungrafted Riesling renano at 980 - 1010 m for the Bianco. In regards to the wines tasted, Jamie said as follows: "I was expecting the wines to be weird and oxidized. But they were actually fantastic."

By the time Jamie tasted the Cornelissen wines again in 2008, the estate surface area had increased to 12 ha, 8.5 of which were designated for vineyards. By the May 2011 tasting, the vineyards had increased to 11 ha, the vines numbered 55,000, and 22,000 bottles were produced. In the discourse accompanying the tasting, Frank identified 2006 as a turning point for the estate. That was the year in which the number of plots were managed down. He identified 2010 as a year of significance because of (i) the recognition of the fact that the wine style had changed over the course of the foregoing decade and (ii) the introduction of epoxy lining for the amphorae. The wine style had changed over the years mostly due to changes in the timing of bottling as well as accumulated experience. Epoxy lining was introduced for the amphorae as a means of combating elevated VA levels induced by the retention of bacteria in the walls.

My Conversations with Frank

Brandon Tokash and I visited Frank at his cellar in 2016 and I subsequently did an InstagramLive with Frank during the time of the pandemic. My learnings are recounted herein. 

During my visit to the cellar, there was a low-walled container, sitting just inside the entrance, which was semi-filled with a liquid and we were asked to douse the soles of our footwear into that liquid in order to "decontaminate " them. This was the very first time I had ever encountered this practice. This guy was definitely different.

Frank and Brandon

Looking around the cellar, I was greeted by unfamiliar sights. In your typical cellar you see stainless steel tanks, or cement tanks, or concrete eggs, or wooden vats. Not so here. Instead I experienced a number of mud-colored, plastic-looking containers (turned out to be fiberglass) and a jarring absence of the expected.

Cellarware

Frank walked over to a large map on one of the cellar walls and embarked on a disquisition of site and grape growing in the Etna region. According to Frank, Etna can be divided into four sides:

• Western
• This side has never been planted to vines (too cold)
• Northern
• This area gets more sun than the southern slopes
• In this zone it is all about the vineyard
• He sees it as the future Côte de Nuit with Nerello Mascalese and vineyard diversity as the vehicles
• Southern
• Variety is key here
• Eastern
• Variety is key here.

Etna growing zones

The northern zone stretches between the towns of Linguaglossa in the east to Randazzo in the west and it is from within this area that Frank sources the grapes for his wines. He farms between 18.5 and 24 ha, 10 ha of which is owned and the balanced leased. The vines are distributed between 12 red and 6 white vineyard sites in Linguaglossa and one red and one white vineyard site in Randazzo. The location of the vineyard sites are shown in the figure below.

Linguaglossa as the right-hand map; Randazzo as the left

Frank is looking to buy a new property each year up until he gets to 30 ha. The characteristics that he looks for in a site include exposure and quality/type of subsoil. He sees high-altitude vineyards as "precious" due to their greater access to light.

As it relates to farming practices, Frank is not a big fan of biodynamic farming. He sees it as beneficial if used as a cure rather than as a practice. For example, if a site is "dead," biodynamic farming could be used to regenerate the soil. That was the basis for Steiner's introduction of the method: an attempt to combat beaten-up soils in Europe. Intensive agriculture has not been practiced on Etna so the soils are in good shape. There is no need for biodynamic farming here.

Biodynamic farming as a concept is fine but biodynamic wine does not exist by principle, according to Frank. You can say wine made from biodynamically grown grapes but not biodynamic wine.

As opposed to biodynamic farming, Frank sees benefits to organic farming with homeopathic applications. Cornelissen is certified organic (Frank observed that organic certification had higher standards in the US than it did in Europe.).

The foundation of the Frank Cornelissen style is non-intervention and this philosophy permeates every aspect of the estate's grape-growing and winemaking activities. The figure below attempts to capture the Cornelissen viticultural environment in a single place and, in the areas of fertilization and pest management, we see that philosophy clearly demonstrated.

Frank is so committed to letting nature take its course that he has sworn off the broadly accepted Mt Etna practices of monoculture and high planting density to interplant local fruit trees with vines in pursuit of a more complex ecosystem.

The core objective of Frank's viticultural regime is the production of grapes that lead to profound wines. The practices to promote this goal include: crop management through pruning; tailoring of bunches to concentrate sugar; handpicking of defective grapes; late harvests; and multiple passes through the vineyards to ensure harvesting of fully ripened grapes.

In the cellar, Frank does not add sulfur either to combat oxidation or micro-organisms. Wines are fermented by indigenous yeasts in small, food-grade plastic tubs. To ensure vintage integrity, all yeasts resident in the cellar are killed prior to the start of wine production. Fermentation is conducted with yeasts brought in from the vineyards on the grapes.

Both white and red wines are fermented with skin contact. Red grapes are lightly pressed and then placed in large fiber glass containers, if destined for early bottling, or into epoxy-lined, underground amphoras for longer-aged wines.

Underground amphoras

The array of wines produced at the estate is shown in the two charts below.

Cornelissen Estate and Grand Cru Wines (Source: frankcornelissen.it)

Cornelissen Premier Cru Wines (Source: frankcornelissen.it)

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Like Benanti and Foti, Frank's initial focus was on native varieties; and he has continued on that path. His approach to vine-growing and winemaking, however, differed significantly from the newcomers and locals alike. This unique approach to winemaking, and the quality of his wines, has made him very respecetd among his peers and very successful in the sale of his wares.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme