Charles de Gaulle's Terminal 1 is a multi-story cylinder, with what look like human hamster tubes crisscrossing the center. It was a slow line to get through passport control, but our bags and Enterprise we easy to locate.
Since Zach and Carolyn are meeting us on Wednesday, I wanted to make sure we had a car that would fit four people and our bags. Given that I didn't recognize the car makes and models they were suggesting, I apparently erred on the side of larger. Our wide car had a third row that can fold up, if we really wanted to add more people! It does mean that all of Mark's rugby gear fits no problem. It also means that we get to practice six-point turns.
I was too stubborn to withdraw money from the ATM at the airport that was giving a $0.97 exchange rate for dollars. (In retrospect, I wonder if I could have declined their exchange rate to use my bank's instead...) I was convinced that we could easily find an ATM at the next gas station.
The first gas station, with its tiny parking lot and odd exit, didn't have an ATM. Mark, thankfully, has international data, so started looking up banks and ATMs. We ended up in a business park, drove in a few circles, parked, wandered through vacant malls, then finally found a bank right next to where we came in. Cash, acquired!
The reason for the cash was the toll road we were taking for the next 2 hours. Turns out, there are rest stops all along the road with ATMs at them before you have to exit and pay the toll. Le sigh.
It did mean that, even after a stop for snacks, we were only a few minutes early for our first tasting of the trip - Domaine Lejeune in Pommard.
I learned a lot about Burgundy wines today. There are four different classes of grapes for each region: three have the name of the exact vineyard, and then the regional grapes just have the area. The named vineyards can be ranked. Grand Cru are the lowest yield and most expensive and rare; premier cru are slightly less rare and desired. A "village" wine is made of grapes from a named vineyard, but no ranking.
Burgundy wines have to be aged in oak to satisfy the conditions for labeling, so we first saw the casks where fermentation happens before exploring the cellar from the 14th century with the barrels.
We tasted a few of their whites (one a Aligoté, the others all Chardonnay) and their reds (all Pinot Noir). They didn't have anything older than 2013, so all of their wines had young tannins and room for growth. We got a Chardonnay to bring back.
We spent over an hour with Tatiana, our host, and she made it sound like a taxi probably wasn't going to happen, so we checked out our B&B's location (though check-in wasn't until 5) and drove on roads that separated vineyards to Château de Chassagne-Montrachet.
We are staying in Puligny-Montrachet. The next town over is Chassagne-Montrachet. Like, a stone's throw away. Like, just five vineyards (with none more than five acres) away. And each town has old stone houses intermingled with an acre or two of grapes. It is far from the vast vineyards of America, or even the ones I've seen in Portugal and Spain. They are all on top of each other.
Château de Chassagne-Montrachet was definitely a more polished enterprise. Though it was only started in the early '90s (versus seven generations for Domaine Lejeune), its cellars date from the 11th century. The owner also grew up making wines, so the process is very sophisticated for being "young."
Our host was passionate about the subtle changes that make the wine. For example, they ferment their whites in the barrel, to ensure the oak quality is fully integrated with the wine. We had a 2010 that had me convinced - it was the first Chardonnay that I've been excited about the oak in it.
It was only slightly after three - as ready as I was for a bed, check-in wasn't for another two hours. With a mass of tiny roads, and a car that could (theoretically) fit in them, it was time to explore.
First, we attempted to get to the top of the hill by Chassagne-Montrachet. The first road we took led to a barbed-wire-blocked road, then a construction site (or maybe limestone quarry? That's where the minerality of the wine comes from). The second road we followed was more successful - we made it nearly to the top.
We had noticed another car, and then a yellow triangle warning sign with a dog on it and some French words blocking the road. We were ready to pull off for our pictures anyway, so we took a few then turned around.
It was only as we turned that I saw a man in a orange hunting jacket holding a rifle just ten yards in from the road. The sign, translated, said "hunting in progress"! He gave us a nod as we headed back down - hopefully we didn't scare off whatever he was looking for. We've seen signs for deer, but were told there are badgers, fox, and wild pigs as well.
A few more tight streets (I can only imagine what this is like in the height of tourist season! Most are bidirectional but can only hold one car-width) and I was ready to park and not worry about the bricks everywhere.
It was 3:45 when we parked by the domaine. Mark had napped on the way down to the Beaune area, but I wanted my forty winks. We leaned our chairs back and slept.
Mark woke up at 4:40, his bladder insisting that we ask to get let in early.
A tentative ring of the bell (literally, a bell with a string and a knocker), and we were in!
The earliest we could do dinner was 7. That meant it was another hour's nap, the first shower and change since getting off the plane, and an easy walk across the square.
L’Estaminet des Meix had a fixed course menu that Mark and I shared - though I was tempted by my own main course of mushroom risotto to his beef Bourgogne and my chocolate pannacota to his creme brûlée. The escargot were tender and buttery; the mains were great. The cheese plate was a fun addition, as were the wines and the local blonde beer that Mark tried.
The end of the Scotland-Englad Six Nations rugby match was showing as we sat down. We were told by John that France was playing Italy tonight, so once we finished up, we headed - heavy-lidded - back to the domaine across the square. Turns out, it was the women's Six Nations game. Could still beat Mark's team, no question.
The sun shone for us today - something I wasn't expecting to see here in February. Tomorrow is 100% chance of rain and in the 40s. All the wineries are closed on Sundays, so we'll be checking out the other sites in the region.
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