Yves wrote:

> As I am just sitting at this keyboard, can I just ask the Burgundy geeks
> among you if your cellars are absolutely perfect (temperature and
> humidity-wise)?
> My own cellar has less than ideal temperature variations (14 °C in winter,
> 19 ° to 20° in summer) and, more often than not, I am disappointed by the
> evolution of Burgundies, whereas there is almost never a problem with
> Bordeaux. Any comments?

What is perfect, asked jesting Pilate? Is a constant 10°C considered
more perfect than what you've got and, if so, why? I do concede that
there's some anecdotal evidence that cooler cellar temps (hence slower
evolution) lead to greater complexity once/if the wine reaches maturity,
but it hardly seems like a consensus opinion. That being said, my
cellar is pretty much like yours, though in very cold winters, I've seen
temps as low as 5°C.

Regarding your question: there are several reasons why Burgundy may
offer greater disappointment than Bordeaux. One is that less robust
wines seem (anecdotally, again) to be more sensitive to heat damage than
bigger, more robust wines. That heat damage could have occurred before
it ever reached your cellar, or there might be subtle heat damage
resulting from the temperature oscillations and higher summer
temperatures in your cellar. Finally, Pinot Noir is a more finicky
grape. Most everyone I know experiences more disappointment with
Burgundy than with other areas, at least until recently.

Apropos the question of whether your cellar temperature variations lead
to subtle heat damage: stay tuned to this "channel," as on 4/1/2010 Dale
Williams and I will conclude The Great April Fools' Day Heat Damage
Trial. He and I, along with several others, have placed several bottles
of wine in two different locations, one in a temperature-controlled
cellar and the other in an area without temperature control (in my case,
a shelf in a room adjoining our bedroom). We'll compare in head-to-head
tastings whether there's any evidence of heat damage in the latter
wines. All results will be published here in alt.food.wine.

Mark Lipton

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