1996 Camille Giroud Beaune Les Cras

Maison Camille Giroud is a 2.5-acre estate in Beaune and a negociant. It was founded in 1865 and remained in the Giroud family for several generations. Then in 2002 a consortium of American investors, including famed Napa Valley winemaker Ann Colgin, purchased the estate. The influential American Burgundy exporter Becky Wasserman helped arrange the deal and recruited David Croix as winemaker. Maison Camille Giroud makes Premier Crus from parcels in Beaune, Maranges, Volnay, Savigny and Vosne-Romanee, as well as villages wines. Clive Coates calls the Camille Giroud “the most exciting of the smaller negociants in Burgundy.

Aux Cras is a 12.5-acre Premier Cru vineyard in the commune of Beaune, in Burgundy’s Cote d’Or. Beaune is the Cote d’Or’s third largest commune. Beaune has no Grand Crus but has 44 vineyards that are either entirely or partly Premier Cru. Aux Cras is located in the center of the appellation, adjacent to Les Teurons and Aux Coucherias, and is higher up the slope than its neighbors. Writer Clive Coates has written that this central area of Beaune, including Aux Cras, “is where you will find the finest examples of premier cru in Beaune.”

This red wine is relatively light and can pair with a wide variety of foods. The grape prefers cooler climates and the wine is most often associated with Burgundy, Champagne and the U.S. west coast. Regional differences make it nearly as fickle as it is flexible.