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In the winter of 2000, only a few weeks after the dreaded Y2K bug had turned out to be the non-event of a lifetime, I found myself headed to Paris on business for, get this, two weeks! There were a pair of back-to-back science conferences that left me a free long weekend in between. So I hopped the TGV out of Gare de Lyon in Paris and headed off to Beaune, the undisputed capitol of Burgundy. This turned out to be a wine tasting experience like none other. Instead of tasting fairly new wines in small studios and tasting rooms in Southern California, here the wines were old, many over 10 years, and the tastings were often in caves beneath the city, some dating back to the 13th century. It was a haunting experience, in a good way, and made me think of the history of the land and people whose livelihood all these years was driven by the vineyards and caves that produced these fabulous burgundy wines. It was so thick with history and tradition.
There was one problem though. On this trip I was alone. I knew Jennifer was on a rapid rise in her interest in wine and enjoyment of it, and somehow I wanted to get her here to see this majesty and taste these wines. As I pondered this while sitting at the wine bar of Anthenaeum in Beaune, I noticed a small poster on the wall. It was announcing “Le Dégustation du Siècle” or “The Tasting of the Century”. In November 2000 on the third weekend of the month, one of the big négotiants in Beaune, Patriarche Père et Fils, was holding a special tasting event featuring thirteen wines from 1959, which by most at that time was considered to be the vintage of the century in Burgundy. The thought of tasting thirteen wines that were older than me was mind-blowing enough. The fact that this event was being held on Jennifer’s birthday was too good to be true and must be a sign! Impulsively I bought two tickets to the “Le Dégustation du Siècle” and two tickets for a lavish dinner in the caves the same evening for good measure. I was sure this would be the best birthday present Jennifer had ever received.
In the winter of 2000, only a few weeks after the dreaded Y2K bug had turned out to be the non-event of a lifetime, I found myself headed to Paris on business for, get this, two weeks! There were a pair of back-to-back science conferences that left me a free long weekend in between. So I hopped the TGV out of Gare de Lyon in Paris and headed off to Beaune, the undisputed capitol of Burgundy. This turned out to be a wine tasting experience like none other. Instead of tasting fairly new wines in small studios and tasting rooms in Southern California, here the wines were old, many over 10 years, and the tastings were often in caves beneath the city, some dating back to the 13th century. It was a haunting experience, in a good way, and made me think of the history of the land and people whose livelihood all these years was driven by the vineyards and caves that produced these fabulous burgundy wines. It was so thick with history and tradition.
