I sat down with Andrew Jefford (wine writer & columnist) and Aigards Nords (organizer of @RigaWineChampagne ) to discuss one of wine’s great rivalries: Bordeaux vs. Burgundy. We talk why these regions are so often compared, what really separates them in the glass, and how ideas like terroir vs. estate shape the way we talk about them. We also look at the bigger forces behind the bottles – pricing and value, shifting consumer demand vs. wine-list trends and what might be next for both regions.
Be sure to check out Andrew Jefford’s latest book 📕 Drinking with the Valkyries: https://amzn.to/45mGBOG
I highly recommend visiting one of the Riga Wine & Champagne events, organized by Aigars Nords in Riga each year. More information here: http://www.rigawinechampagne.lv/en
You can also listen to the No Sediment Wine Podcast and ‘Talk Under the VVine’ episodes on Spotify, Apple Podcast, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts and Castbox.
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🍷 My Everyday Go-To Wine Glass: https://amzn.to/3OAQAcW
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📙 Native Wine Grapes of Italy by Ian D’Agata: https://amzn.to/4ggqM1P
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📗 A Life Uncorked (by Hugh Johnson): https://amzn.to/3M5yeyQ
📓 Drinking with the Valkyries (by Andrew Jefford): https://amzn.to/45mGBOG
**WINES TASTED DURING THE CONVERSATION:
🍷 2022 Chateau Siaurac, Lalande-de-Pomerol, France
https://www.wine-searcher.com/find/siaurac+lalande+de+pomerol+bordeaux+france/2022/
🍷 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Saint-Aubin Premier Cru ‘Hommage Marguerite’, Burgundy, France
https://www.wine-searcher.com/find/pierre+yves+colin+morey+hommage+marguerite+st+aubin+premier+cru+cote+de+beaune+burgundy+france/
🍷 Domaine de Montille Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru, Burgundy, France
https://www.wine-searcher.com/find/dom+de+montille+grand+cru+cote+beaune+corton+charlemagne+aloxe+burgundy+france/
Be sure to SUBSCRIBE to my YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@NoSediment, as I am posting weekly videos on all things wine and monthly wine podcast episodes.
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#wineeducation #winepodcast #wine
*CONTENTS OF THIS VIDEO
0:00 Introduction: Burgundy vs Bordeaux
1:40 Riga Wine & Champagne
3:13 Why do we compare Bordeaux and Burgundy?
6:15 Bordeaux vs. Burgundy: palate differences
23:07 Consumer demand vs wine-list & industry trends
30:56 Terroir vs. estate
44:35 Pricing: Bordeaux and Burgundy wines
1:09:00 Sustainability in Bordeaux and Burgundy
1:15:51 What’s next for Bordeaux and Burgundy?
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34 Comments
When I was young I had the Bordeaux palate, but as I have aged my palate has shifted drastically towards the Burgundy. It very well may change again so I am always happy that so much variety in wine exists. I will always have a partner whether it is a ballroom dance or a Tango.
Thank you for mentioning Alsace. Such a wonderful region! I am lucky enough to live in the Finger Lakes, USA region where quality is exploding but cost is still low. I am torn between screaming from the rooftops about the FLX wines and wanting to keep it just the way it is – an affordable niche.
Agnese, paldies par visu, ko dari vīna popularizēšanā, kā arī mūsu informēšanā un izklaidēšanā. Lai jums veselīgs, laimīgs un pārticīgs Jaunais 2026. gads!
My palate changes every other week 🙂 but I don´t like drinking them simultaneously!
A very Interesting and eye an opening discussion.
Agro Forestry in vineyards is a brilliant idea! That’s very sustainable.
Wine collectors like me are excited to buy a case or first or second growth Bordeaux for $300 per bottle on release and spend the next 15 years feeling smug, and dreaming of drinking the first bottle. But I would never pay the $1000 it will cost in a restaurant when it reaches its drinking window. Sommeliers are unlikely to have tasted such wines in their drinking window, and so have little experience or incentive to list or promote them.
Very interesting, once again.
Two very sophisticated guests, especially Andrew Jefford.
And of course a talented host, Agnese, great job again.
And I go for Bordeaux 🍷😃
Do you have a tooth ache Agnese ?
If sommeliers intentionally leaves out Bordeaux on their wine lists then they are doing their customers and establishments a disservice. I personally would not go back to that restaurant. Good sommeliers should give people what they want to drink and not their personal agenda.
So excited to see another podcast with these two!
Terrific sit down with intelligent conversation about Burgundy and Bordeaux. And Jefford not liking the PCYM all that much was interesting.
I haven't bought Bordeaux wine in years. I'm less and less buying Burgundy unless I find at a really good discounted price. And it's never a Grand Cru and few Premier. It's more Piemonte wines these days I'm drinking. Which I've grown to love
As an American, I find in the US there is one primary palate: Napa Cabs (Bordeaux). Wine drinkers are so entrenched in big, bold, Napa reds, that it is difficult to make the leap to other wine expressions throughout the world. Certainly this is a generalization – I digress. I enjoyed hearing about the risks of exclusivity that both Bordeaux and Burgundy suffer from, making the discussion about the future an important one. I was also encouraged by the bargain shopping that can be achieved in Bordeaux.
With Bordeaux and Burgundy getting so silly priced I’ve moved on to the Loire because there is a lack of pretence and it feels like there is some new blood coming into the region
I’ve had a few “vin de France” from the Loire that blew me away – wine makers that want to get away from the burdens of appellation and do their own thing
Great podcast. Initial question…Bordeaux or Burgundy palate? Well, I checked my wine cellar app, 28 different Bordeaux labels across 74 bottles, white (dry and sweet), red, cremant and one rose, left and right banks and entre deux mers. Burgundy, 26 different labels across 59 bottles, white, red and cremant, generic AOC, village level, 1er cru and even a Passetoutgrain. So, I’m about a bit of a mix. 😎. I love the statement “in 200 years Alsace will be the next Burgundy”. Wow.
This is off the topic of the present episode, but I need to eat my past words regarding Daou's wines, which I had characterized as overrated in a way similar to Caymus. For Christmas dinner, we opened a bottle of Daou's 2020 Reserve Unbound, a most unusual red blend of 40% Petite Sirah, 34% Tempranillo and 26% Tannat — and it has slipped under the finish line as my wine of the year! The blend of fruit and earthiness on the nose was beguiling, and the taste in the mouth lived up to the aroma, the fruit not overly pronounced but in great harmony with the earthy tones; likewise, acidity and tannins in perfect balance. One of the Daou brothers is known for his fixation on the phenolics in wine, and that certainly comes through in flavor and texture (the legs are extraordinary). My revised opinion is that Daou's strengths are reserved for their high-end (higher price point) wines; and now my critique is more about the steep gradient in quality as a function of price. Oh, another thing: the alcohol in the Unbound is a whopping 15.2%, but the wine doesn't taste at all "hot" — perhaps the benefit of all the phenolics? At any rate, I'm happy to say "mea culpa" regarding my comment of a few weeks ago. And now I'll listen to what promises to be a highly interesting discussion of Bo & Bu. A happy New Year to all!
Think Willamette, OR for fantastic Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The French have rushed to set up Wineries over here due to our fantastic Terroir. While our pricing is starting to rise above the $100 price point with some regularity, it has incredible choices at all price points to enjoy. Cheers!
I love it when you bring Andrew Jeffords on, please do more content with him
Ok I’m getting overly stimulated as I drink coffee and get wound up from this chat. The Restaurant & Hospitality industry has a WAY BIGGER problem then this chat. The industry thinks that they earn a 2x or 3x wholesale multiplier to price their wine to a consumer. It is one of the least expensive offerings based on inventory, labor to actual buy, market and pour. The wine industry is allowing the restaurants to live off their hard work and gather way more margin and diminish the potential to have more consumers pair the proper wine with food pairing. I know the price point in theory supports the Somm compensation … but, ugh. ok, I’m off my rant, my apologies from my minor viewpoint of the wine world.
The comments about a shift from, say, Burgundy to Wachau (driven in large part by value) raised a question in my mind: what is the place of Chablis in the shift of values? Obviously it occupies the higher reaches of a middle ground between Burgundy and Wachau, but if one wants to stick with Chardonnay… what are the choices (in Europe)?
I also have a Bordeaux palate rather than Burgundy. I am also a bottem feeder since I am just a retired professor of photography. I have recently been enjoying a wonderful selection of Bordeaux from my local Costco. They offer these wines at great prices at around $30.00 up to about $50.00. Sometimes evern less. This was a very interesting and informative episode. Thank you!
Re: the absence of fine restaurants in Pauillac: there's always the restaurant at Chateau Cordeillan-Bages, on the Lynch-Bages property… of course, I daren't imagine how prices must have changed since I ate there in 1999…
Great podcast with a very relevant topic and great guest speakers. I must admit my wine drinking experience started with primarily Napa cabernets but over the course of many years my tastes have broadened significantly. Having said that, I lean more to white burgundy but if I am buying the bottle it is usually a village level wine. I did attend a very nice wine dinner last year with one of the top white burgundy producers (including the Managing Director of the family winery) and I really felt like the distributors for the wine came across like investment bankers pitching a project to investors. I wish I could afford to "invest" in those types of wines but they are completely out of the question in my opinion. My wife and I are going to Bordeaux in May 2026 for the first time. Looking forward to getting a better understanding of what makes it special and hopefully find some less know gems that are more reasonably priced. Again, great job and all the best wishes for a Happy New Year!
I gotta post another comment now that I´ve seen the full discussion. I agree so much with the Bourgogne thing, there is no wine area in the world that´s disappoint me as much as Bourgogne. If you pay 200-600 € for a Bordeaux you ar 100% to get something AMAZING, but with Bourgogne there is not guarantee… I´ve had several Grand Crus that didn´t perform well, also when it comes to age, Bourgogne is like the most inconsistant wine there is, it´s like a lottery, some bottles don´t survive 10 yrs but very few can survive 20 or more…. but every once in a while you get that magical bottle, and that´s what you keep on chasing…
P.S. Robert Parker was the best thing that ever happened to the wine industry! I bow to his legacy, all haters & frail sommeliers can just get lost!!!
Love this format about topics that are appealing to newbies yet provide the depth for experienced tasters 😋
Agnese, hats off to you for the vision and execution of this episode. Insightful, engaging, and beautifully moderated—with two outstanding experts elevating the Bordeaux vs Burgundy conversation. If there were an Oscar category for wine content, this would be a serious contender… perhaps an Oskar de la Vigne 🍇
FANTASTIC TALK, I can so relate to this as a new wine lover. I have to purchase less expensive wines to try as I develop my palette, so I don't feel guilty doing a sink pour for something I don't like and won't drink. I would love to try many of these high-quality wines but have to purchase wines that range around 40 to 50 dollars. That means I am drinking Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and local wines (I live in the Willamette Valley) and cheaper French wines. I did get to visit Loire Valley last summer and shipped home cases of wine that I LOVE…Sancerre, Pouilly Fume, etc. from the small growers that were well within my budget. This summer I am heading to Portugal and part of Spain, north or south yet to be decided and hope I can do the same but with our current govt am sure it will be much more difficult. Thank you so much for your podcast. I have learned so much and write down wines to try after every podcast!
This was a great episode. What do you do if you have a Rhone palette? 😂 Actually bordeaux styles from France or around the world are my home base, entry drug to great wine. But I have started to love GSMs and the singles on their own. But food choice always steers the ship.
Fascinating Agnese— well done. Speaking of comparing Bordeaux and Burgundy in terms of scale I will give you another— Burgundy is 10x the size of the Northern Rhone!
All wines are different as are drinkers. I love all three regions. Grand Cru Burgundy is untouchable — I have three bottles in my cellar. However Premier Cru is still very accessible. And for Bordeaux, I have many of of the 2nd -5th growths — the Chinese ruined the 1st growths for everyone but the masters of the universe.
However, the Northern Rhône’s greatest wines are still accessible. And one notch down, there is tremendous value. I guess I am gratified that few drinkers have found the Rhone— just yet.
The same goes for Barolo — I know your personal favorite, is even smaller — about 80% of the size of the Northern Rhone. And again, the greatest wines are still accessible to us mere mortals.
Great interview Agneses, I always enjoy Andrew and Aigars talk wine. I love Bordeaux styled wines. I’ve never found Burgundy wines I liked.
What a great talk!
Enjoyed this episode (on my birthday as well)!
I definitely have a Bordeaux palette, which better matches my budget (at least compared with Burgundy prices). I will be exploring Alsatian wines – definitely curious.
I agree with Andrew on two things. I love wines from Alsace and for me it’s irresponsible to spend more than $60 for a bottle of wine.
Insightful video. Thanks for it!
I think your channel is the only one which has this kind of format with such amazing guests. Enjoyed the discussion and I wish you a happy and prosperous New Year 🍷🥂
Love both but if you had to pin me down; for red I’d take Bordeaux, for white I’d take Burgundy