I’m really behind here (I drank this wine something like 10 days ago). It took me a while to locate my tasting notes! As I always do before writing a post, I got out my hulking copy of the World Atlas of Wine and read the entry for the Côte Châlonnaise.

This is not the Côte d’Or and that’s precisely why I threw in a wine from this region. I wanted to see if the Côte d’Or is really that much better. And I think I’m going to just simply quote the wonderful, dry, British wit of Jancis Robinson and Hugh Johnson:

“So close is the north of the Côte Châlonnaise to the southern tip of the Côte d’Or that it is surprising that most of its wines taste so perceptibly different, like slightly undernourished country cousins.”

I couldn’t possibly think of a better way to describe the 2007 Antonin Rodet Chateau de Mercey Mercurey Rouge as compared to the wines from the Côte d’Or I’ve drunk since-- please stay tuned, posts will appear shortly. (By the way, Mercurey is one of five major communes here in the central strip of this area, the most "celebrated" of the region. ) It was a reddish pink, and light, color. It smelled very fruity and fresh, but also of dried cherries. It had a light body and soft tannins, but the acid was bitter and the wine was a bit green overall. Too vegetal and earthy, absolutely no fruit. Though drinkable, I’ve had many pinots from various places around the world that are better than this one.

The Score: ★★