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Registration NOW OPEN for Boulder Burgundy Festival 2016

Event registration is now open! Click here to register.

Now in its sixth year, the Boulder Burgundy Festival (October 20-23) is thrilled to welcome two of the wine world’s brightest stars: Legacy winemaker and vigneron Étienne de Montille of the Domaine de Montille (Volnay) and Master of Wine and Financial Times wine columnist Jancis Robinson.

One of the things that sets the Boulder Burgundy Festival apart from the many excellent wine events that take place across the U.S. each year is the gathering’s convivial spirit. From the Paulée-Inspired Lunch at Flagstaff House to the family-style seating at the Saturday evening producer dinner at Frasca Food & Wine (the festival’s signature event, where both Étienne and Jancis will be joining us), there is perhaps no better way to get to taste and interact with some of the leading names in food and wine today.

As in years past, we will also be joined by top sommeliers, including many Master Sommeliers, who fly in from all over North American to pour at festival events. Each volunteers her or his time inspired by professional camaraderie and a shared mission to educate our guests about the extraordinary wines presented at the festival.

And you also never know whom you might bump into, whether at Sunday’s Chablis Brunch or the Champagne Kickoff Party, the festival’s inaugural event on Thursday. Winemakers from Burgundy have been known to join in — even when they are not official presenters. They come in to see old friends, colleagues, and collectors and to enjoy the wines in Colorado’s beautiful alpine setting. Rumor has it that Financial Times restaurant critic and television personality Nicholas Lander (Jancis’ better half) will also be in attendance.

As the founder and organizer of the sixth annual Boulder Burgundy Festival, I am overjoyed to welcome you to this truly unique gathering of winemakers, wine professionals, and wine luminaries. Spots fill up quickly so please be sure to register at your earliest convenience to ensure availability.

Cheers,

Brett Zimmerman, MS

The official schedule is here!

Boulder Burgundy Festival 2016
October 20 – 23, 2016

The official schedule is here!

Thursday, October 20
Champagne Kickoff Party at the Kitchen Upstairs
featuring the luxury Champagne Brands of LVMH including:
Dom Perignon, Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame, Krug, and Dom Ruinart
5:00-7:00 pm
Kitchen Upstairs
$75 per ticket, 60 tickets available
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Friday, October 21
“Old and Rare” Burgundy Seminar at the St. Julien Hotel
hosted by Master Sommeliers Jay Fletcher, and Bobby Stuckey,
with Special Guest Étienne de Montille ~ Benefits the Guild of Sommeliers
1:00-2:30 pm
St. Julien Hotel
$295 per person, 42 seats available
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Friday, October 21
Arcana Restaurant hosts a special Burgundy dinner
with a selection of rare Burgundy wines ~ Benefits There with Care
6:00 pm
Arcana Restaurant
$295 for dinner per person all-inclusive, 60 seats available
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Saturday, October 22
Paulée-inspired lunch at the Flagstaff House
with a team of the country’s top sommeliers
and over 50 different Burgundy wines to taste
Benefits Davis Phinney Foundation
11:00 am-3:00 pm
Flagstaff House
$195 per person all-inclusive, 120 seats available
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Saturday, October 22
Burgundy Producer Dinner with Étienne de Montille of Domaine de Montille
at Frasca Food and Wine ~ Benefits the Family Learning Center
6:00 pm
Frasca Food and Wine
$395 per person all-inclusive, 78 seats available
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Sunday, October 23
Sit-down Chablis Brunch at PMG Restaurant
10:00 am
PMG Restaurant
$75 per person all-inclusive, 50 seats available
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Sunday, October 23
“To stem or not to stem?” A conversation with Étienne de Montille
from Domaine de Montille, and Special Guest Jancis Robinson, MW
discussing winemaking techniques used in Burgundy
with the wines of Domaine de Montille at the St. Julien Hotel
12:00 am – 1:30 pm
St. Julien Hotel
$150 per ticket, 65 tickets available
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Sunday October 23
Grand Tasting at the St. Julien Hotel
with over 200 featured wines from Burgundy
Benefits the Growe Foundation
3:00 pm – 6:00 pm
$85 per ticket, 200 tickets available
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Is Burgundy still a minefield or was it ever? The Best Value Burgundy Lunch is a great way to explore

In 2003 Robert Parker, Jr., the founder of the Wine Advocate and the English language’s “über [wine] critic” as he has been called, wrote the following:

“Burgundy is, well, Burgundy. A minefield of potential disappointments beloved by elitists and pseudo-intellectuals who like to discuss ad nauseam growers and terroirs — not quality.”

Parker made a similar sweeping assertion in 2008 when he wrote in Bloomberg Business that “red Burgundy is the ultimate minefield of the wine world—notoriously unreliable, often disappointing, and rarely living up to its illustrious reputation.”

In direct response to Parker, New York Times wine critic Eric Asimov wrote, “in fact, the quality of Burgundy — red Burgundy in particular — has risen strikingly over the last two decades. From the smallest growers to the biggest houses, the standards of grape-growing and winemaking have surpassed anybody’s expectations. These days, Burgundy has very few bad vintages, and among good producers, surprisingly few bad wines.”

Today, seven years since the last back-and-forth between these princes of wine writing, the “minefield” myth has become so pervasive that you often see it quoted erroneously and out of context by mainstream wine writers, bloggers, and wine merchants as well as consumers.

In a 2013 interview with Food and Wine executive wine editor Ray Isle, the über critic backpedalled only slightly.

“Thanks to a more meticulous younger generation,” he told Ray, “red Burgundies have made improvements, but they, too, are still a minefield, and top vineyard sites are still significantly overpriced.”

The Best Value Burgundy Wines Lunch on the second day of the Boulder Burgundy Festival 2015 (Friday 10/23) was conceived to show that there are actually many great value-driven wines to discover (and to prove that, with all due respect, Mr. Parker is wrong!).

Please note that as of this posting, there are only a few spots left for this event.

Click here to read more about the event and to reserve.

#BBF2015 events: A tour of Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru 10/25

Seminar: “A tour of Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru”

Sunday, October 25
with Jean-Charles le Bault de la Morinière (Bonneau du Martray)
and wine writer Ray Isle (Food and Wine Magazine)
Featuring a vertical tasting from the domaine.
St. Julien Hotel
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
$150 per person (80 tickets available)

We are thrilled to have Ray Isle from Food & Wine with us this year. We have added him to the panel with Jean-Charles le Bault de la Morinière and Importer Paul Wasserman for what is certain to be a mind-blowing combination of wines and educational discussion. We have selected Jeremy Parzen of Do Bianchi and the man behind our fantastic social media presence to be the moderator of the panel. The selection of Corton Charlemagne will include vintages 2013, 2011, 2009, 2007, 2005, 2003, and 2001. Come taste seven vintages from this iconic producer for less than it would cost for one bottle!

CLICK HERE TO RESERVE

#BBF2015 Best Value Burgundy Wines Lunch

Best Value Burgundy Wines Lunch

Friday, October 23
Oak Restaurant
11:30 am
$95 per person all-inclusive (90 seats available)

Finding value in Burgundy can be a challenge. We have teamed up with our supplier partners to find a selection of wines that offer both greatness and attractive pricing. We will be looking in the “backwater” areas of Burgundy to find these delicious gems in areas like Chablis, Mâconnais, Côte Chalonnaise, St. Aubin, and Beaune. These wines will be accessible, approachable, and delicious with the cuisine of Oak Restaurant.

CLICK HERE TO RESERVE

#BBF2015 events: Champagne and Caviar Kickoff Party 10/22

Champagne and Caviar Kickoff Party

Thursday, October 22
Featuring live music.
CU Koenig Alumni Building
5:00 pm – 7:30 pm
$75 per ticket

We have teamed up with Will and Coral from Cured in Boulder to offer some delicious bites of Champagne-appropriate food to accompany our stunning selection of Champagne wines that were carefully selected to dazzle the group. To energize the program we will have a live band of talented local musicians to entertain the crowd during the reception. This is a brand new event for the Boulder Burgundy Festival and we look forward to making a splash with our opening party for the 2015 Burgundy events. Some of the featured Champagne producers include: Gosset, Bollinger, Georges Laval, Robert Moncuit, Bérêche, Cédric Bouchard, Charles Heidsieck, Waris-Hubert, Michel Maillaird, and more…

CLICK HERE TO RESERVE