BurgundyI wanted to start fresh, wiping my slate clean of all that I thought I knew about Pinot Noir from Burgundy. Begin again—not that I would forget some of the Grand Cru red wines I’d tasted in years past; those experiences had been banked— instead, to enhance my Burgundy knowledge and drink more Pinot Noir in the process, I thought it would be great to traipse through Burgundy, one bottle at a time, trying to ascertain differences, stylistically and terroir-driven, between simple Bourgogne Rouge to Grand Cru Bonnes-Mares within Morey-Saint-Denis, from small producers to the most well-known—I was anxious to begin.

My Pinot journey would begin with a 2010 Louis Jadot Bourgogne Rouge. Hardly a romantic start, rather I was looking for a “typical” expression of Pinot Noir—loaded with red fruits and floral touches that would befit the grape’s delicate frame and hopefully set the middle bar.

The Pinot played out somewhat as expected: The clear ruby liquid smelled of ripe strawberries, red cherries and a hint of sweet rose petals. The French red was dangerously thin on the palate; with decent acidity (teetering on medium-plus) and light body, it smacked of freshly picked summer berries, packing a medium finish.

Jadot’s Pinot Noir is ubiquitous and delightfully fresh. Found on most grocers’ shelves in the United States, it serves as a fair introduction to the varietal but came across in this sample a little too easy. No complex aromas or flavors and without a serious finish, it was, in fact,  a tad disappointing. Nonetheless, a necessary step in familiarizing myself with a significant producer’s style. Certainly there are better examples of entry level Pinot Noir out there; I look forward to discovering them. Baby steps.