Restaurant Le Conty- Beaune

My Favorite Literature, a big Wine Menu



Restaurant Le Conty


Beaune, France

Visited 21-12-2010

So today we are getting into some serious stuff, no messing around. Take a moment to think about a place in the world you would love, even NEED to visit. We will call it your Mecca. Well for me, France in general is a destination for the wine alone, but more focused is Beaune, the heart of the Bourgogne (Burgundy). These are the wines of mystery and mystique, with long standing history and some of the most confusing labels out there. The important stuff, the juice, is absolutely unparalleled when executed well.

The little lesson on Burgundy is pretty easy. The reds are made purely from Pinot Noir and the whites are purely from Chardonnay. One exception being Beaujolais, from the grape Gamay, which is located in the far southern end of Burgundy. You also have small outcroppings of Sauvignon Blanc and a grape called Aligoté, both whites, but these are a small and insignificant percentage for most. I will also mention the Cremant de Bourgogne which is Champagne method sparklers made in the region, great wines and some good value substitutes for Champagne. The history of the vineyards of Burgundy goes back to the 12th Century and the experiments of the Cistercian Monks who began to divide up the best sites, the Grand Crus, which are still acknowledged as the best today. Burgundy in recent times is powered and controlled mainly by the negociant, one who has holdings all throughout the region and produces wines from these sites. Napoleonic Laws divided land equally amount children and so the vineyards which exist today can be divided into over 100 owners due to this fact. So it is important to pay attention to who is making the wine sometimes more so than where the grapes are coming from. Find a producer whose style fits your palate and then experiment with different vineyards they source from.

Also the division of Burgundy is a ranking system for the vineyards and it goes like this:

Grand Cru (the best of the best)

Premier Cru (very good still)

Regional Commune (can be good, blends from sites within the whole commune, e.g. Pommard, Vosne Romanee, Volnay, etc)

Bourgogne Region (grapes come from all over the place and are basic wines)

The two most famous negociants that are easily recognized are Louis Latour and Louis Jadot, both of which are readily available in the U.S.

So onto a wonderful lunch in Beaune at Restaurant Le Conty, located within the old walls and very near the Hospices de Beaune. This is a great little place with a vast wine list covering all your Burgundian desires. Most every place in France will do at least 1 fixed menu every day, and for about 15€ they served a Plat (main course) and a Dessert. That day was a chicken breast with a mustard sauce accompanied by a simple pasta mixture and a roasted tomato with olive tapinade, all in all a good portion size. The dish was very good, although the bird was a tad dry, but the sauce made up for it a bit. Dessert drowned away all memories of chicken though, the best dessert to date in France, a rich exotic but not heavy piece of chocolate cake. Honestly I could have had seconds it was so good.

The best Chocolate Cake Ever!



And of course, the wine...

Louis Jadot Blagny 1999 1/2 Bottle (19€)

Mmm Mmm Good!

So here we have a famous producer who I know makes some quality wines. The 1999 vintage was a good vintage and the region of Blagny is very small....I mean very small. The whole AOC, the region, covers about 11 acres and is in the Cote de Beaune on the border of Mersault. It was a bottling I had not seen before from a good vintage and a great price so I went for it...and it paid off.

The wine way still fairly bright in color, a soft ruby red, with a medium concentration and fully clear. I found the rim to be showing a fair amount of variation due to its age and the viscosity was moderate as well-no staining to the tears.

The nose took a little bit to wake up, but it definitely did. A wine with definite non-fruit dominant characteristics. Slightly gamey initially with tea spices, saddle wood, and cinnamon stick and dried red berries; especially tart cherries, behind it for fruit. The palate was dry and very balanced with light tannin structure and medium acidity. The finish was very well rounded and not super complex, although it did have a moderate length. More florality of dried rose petals and some mushroom notes emerged with time. I found the wine very pleasant and definitely in its peak plateau area, especially for the 1/2 bottles. I am sure that wines from this vintage of the Premier and Grand Cru level cab continue to go for a few years, but this being a Regional Commune wine it was ready now.

Definitely take a day trip from Dijon or Lyon to Beaune, it has charm and history....and lots of great wines. For lunch check this place out and get a good value for the price and a little feel for what the region is all about. Next report is the after lunch tasting at the Marché Aux Vins, tasting down in the cellars below Beaune, Salute!

Who likes Beaune, this guy!