"Please - is this heaven?"

[Donald]

For lovers of fine wine, particularly Burgundy, this might be as close as it gets.

It's not going to win any Sony World Photography awards, but viewed as part of a visual documentary of a holiday/vacation in the area, I think it's an okay image. Your views are welcomed.

For the wine buffs on here, the vineyard between the two sets of pillars in the distance (white first and then grey at the back), is the Montrachet vineyard itself. What's the difference between it and Bienvenues-Batard-Montrachet? Probably several hundred pounds/dollars per bottle. I'm too frightened to check!


Canon 40D, Tokina 11-16 f2.8 @ 16mm. ISO100. 1/180s @f11

[juznobsrvr]

Nice one, Donald :-)

[Kodiak]

…is this heaven?

I don't know just yet…
The first text line in french says (with a mistake!!!)
WELCOMES—BASTARD—

[Mike Buckley]

The image is much better than just "okay." Even so, I agree that it takes on really special meaning to those of us who covet the history of wine.

To give the folks who aren't familiar with the importance of the Montrachet vineyard an idea of what Donald mentioned, part of that vineyard is in one village and part in another. The vineyard has been so highly regarded for so long that the two villages, Puligny and Chassagne, changed their names (I think in the 17th century) to include the name of the vineyard to attract people to the villages. The renamed villages are Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet.

Donald also mentioned price. I looked the vineyard up in a book copyrighted in 1995 and it says wine made from grapes grown in the Montrachet vineyard sells for two to three times the price of the adjacent vineyards and is the most expensive dry white wine in the world.

[Donald]

The renamed villages are Puligy-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet.

And Puligny has the Michelin 1-Star Le Montrachet, which is wonderful and Olivier Leflaive's 'La Maison d'Olivier Leflaive' with its tasting lunch where you can have 5, 7 or 9 wines. Absolutely wonderful afternoons at both places. Just about 200 yards from where I captured this photo.

That's the road from Puligny to Chassagne that you can see at the right hand edge.

[Mike Buckley]

Donald: I edited my post to add a note about price. Get out your credit card.

[Donald]

Donald: I edited my post to add a note about price. Get out your credit card.

At Olivier Leflaive's they had 2010 Bienvenues-Batard-Montrachet by the glass, (far too young of course ) at a price far higher than I normally pay for a bottle. But, you only live once, so I did. It's the only time in my life that I ever expect to taste a Burgundian Grand Cru. But, it was indeed worth it.

[Mike Buckley]

I've had about three Burgundy white Grand Crus and none of them were at all worth the money in my mind. I'll take a Meursault Primier Cru any day over any Grand Cru. (Meursault has no Grand Cru vineyards.)

[Bobobird]

As far as pic goes - the usual Donald high standards. Glad actually you stopped being Sharon.

As far as heaven goes - one never knows unless one gets there.

[Donald]

Glad actually you stopped being Sharon.

Me too. The clothes didn't fit!

PS - For those wondering what Bobo's on about, check this thread.

[Daisy Mae]

Me too. The clothes didn't fit!

Okay, okay...I'll lose a few pounds but the 'Naughty Nun' outfit stays mine!

[Mike Buckley]

the 'Naughty Nun' outfit

Can't wait to see that selfie!

[Shadowman]

Nicely captured.

[HaseebM]

Very nice image and I know you like BW, but wouldn't colour be more appropriate for the title?

[Cliff Roamer]

That picture says it all, it would make a good image for a tourist/travel brochure or book.
The sight of vineyards brings back mixed emotions as I went to France in 1979 for 'Le Vandange' and it was a pretty miserable three weeks

The first week there the weather turned very cold and started to snow, being out in the vineyards picking grapes that are grown around metal fences is a bit scary when the thunder and lightning starts and lightning is hitting the fences in fields near by, also it's taken for granted that the men will empty the women's baskets which can easily weigh around 30-40 pounds when crammed full of grapes, water and mud, that didn't always go down well!

Even though the frost had gotten to some of the grapes they still had to be picked and were still used for wine, the wine aficionados will probably know exactly what kind?

I was in the Poitou-Charentesa region near a small town called Segonzac, in the district of Cognac, it was an experience but once was enough.



Taken on the proverbial plastic Instamatic.

[deetheturk]

Well captured Donald!

[Donald]

... it was an experience but once was enough.

Memories! Memories!

I suspect it is rather more mechanised now, Mike, although the best and hard-to-reach vineyards still do all the picking by hand. Sounds very romantic, but I understand it's b.....y hard work.

[Cliff Roamer]

Memories! Memories!

I suspect is rather more mechanised now, Mike, although the best and hard-to-reach vineyards still do all the picking by hand. Sounds very romantic, but I understand it's b.....y hard work.

Your right Donald, I saw some picking machines that were being tried in some vineyards including picking at night time and I'm sure they are now used a lot, my boss/vineyard owner didn't like them as they were just big flailing machines that often damaged the vines and still needed people to follow them to pick and pick up the grapes that it missed and dropped, but I'm sure they improved and are now probably hired in the same way that combined harvesters are.