This itinerary is based on the criteria that define the geo-sensory tasting method (the descriptors) as well as on the soil characteristics from which the different terroirs are expressed. But it is also the place for a more general reflection on the wines of yesterday and today without which all practice is in vain.

Program

Welcome day and passage of the Burgundy Permit

Key A1 Theoretical and practical method

Key A2 Role of the soil in the expression of the terroir

Key A3 Wines of yesterday and wines of today

Key A1: Theoretical and practical method

Key A1: Theoretical and practical method

Head Instructors : Jacky Rigaux and Cyrille Tota

Potential speakers according to availability : Cyrille Tota (trainer), Florian Mourey (trainer), Patrice Chamblin (trainer), Patrick Arnaud (trainer), Stephane Derenoncourt (winemaker and consultant, Bordeaux),…

Overview of the program:
Sensory analysis and geo-sensory tasting
The gourmet, expert in geo-sensory tasting
Geo-sensory tasting: reading the message of the place, appreciating the taste of the place
Mineral chemistry and minerality of the terroir wine
Primacy of the mouth in geo-sensory tasting
The touch of the mouth, major vector of the appreciation of the taste of place
Touch of the mouth, sense of taste and olfactory feedback
The place of aromas in geo-sensory tasting
The main descriptors of geo-sensory tasting:
– Consistency
– Flexibility (flexibility of consistency)
– The viscosity
– The vivacity
– The texture
– Length in the mouth
– Aromatic persistence
– Practice of geo-sensory tasting

Présentation of Cyrille TOTA :
After studying oenology, Cyrille TOTA clearly turned towards the world of tasting. Holder of the university diplomas “Tasting practice through knowledge of the terroirs” and “Wine, culture, wine tourism”, he was initiated into geo-sensory tasting by Jacky Rigaux. He is the designer of “L’étoffe des Terroirs” which he has chaired for 10 years. This association brings together several tasting clubs and offers highly original geo-sensory courses for companies. It introduces the “art of tasting differently”, by combining knowledge of the place where the wine is born with the practice of tasting. In 2011, he met Patrick Arnaud at the University of Burgundy (IUVV), with whom he decided to create, with the help of Jacky Rigaux, the association VITAE (Vins de Terroir et Amateurs Eclairés), of which he is the vice-president. Since 2016, he has been working on the creation of a portable tool designed to appreciate the texture of a wine: “Le toucher du vin”, and has given numerous tasting conferences on the subject.

Clé A2 Rôle du sol dans l’expression du terroir

Key A2: Role of the soil in the expression of the terroir
Head of Key: Lydia Bourguignon Director of the LAMS soil microbiological analysis laboratory and Claude Bourguignon consultant

Educational speakers : Lydia Bourguignon, Claude Bourguignon, Emmanuel Bourguignon, Winegrowers to be decided

Intervenants pédagogiques: Lydia Bourguignon, Claude Bourguignon, Emmanuel Bourguignon, Vignerons à définir

OBJECTIVES
Understand pedogenesis, with a focus on the role of soil fauna.
– To know the main parameters necessary for the proper functioning of a wine-growing soil, and their involvement in the soil dimension of the terroir.
– To discover the complexity of interactions among soil/fauna/microbes/vine.
– Understand the role of soil microorganisms in feeding the vine and the impact of the vine’s genetic material (grape varieties, clones, rootstocks).
– To know the different agricultural practices that improve or degrade wine-growing soils (organic amendments, tillage, pruning and grafting, fertilization, etc….) .
– Possibility to combine the soil texture with the texture of the tannins.

TEACHING METHODS
Participatory courses :
– Definition of the main concepts related to soil science and soil biology
– Presentation of fauna/soil microbes with microscopic and video support.
– Description of the vine’s root system and its ability to explore its terroir, photo support of concrete examples of terrain in different vineyards around the world
– Description of the main soil-friendly cultivation techniques
– Example of a concrete case study of the expression of the type of a soil in a wine in the company of a winegrower
– Use of PowerPoint, video, microscopes and other media.

THEMES
Role of soil biology in feeding the vine
– Cultivation practices that respect the wine-growing soil
– Hypothesis on biological processes leading to the synthesis of wine aromas
– Geosensory workshop: tasting of several wines from different terroirs, analysed by LAMS and vinified by the same winegrower.

Clef A3 : Vins d’hier et vins d’aujourd’hui

Clef A3 : Vins d’hier et vins d’aujourd’hui. Responsables de la Clef : Jean-Robert Pitte et Christophe Lucand

I/ The wine of the origins

Wine places in the Stone Age
The location of the first wines
The wine of the origins of history
The wine of the Pharaohs
Wine in Greek civilization
Classification and hierarchy in Roman times

II/ The origin of wines from the medieval world and the modern era

The Church’s influence on the origin of vintages
The best and worst wines of the kingdom of France
Wines of power and prestigious wines
Great wines and their origins
The doctors’ wine
The wine of the nation

III/ The long 19th century and the time of great upheavals

Above-ground practices and free trade
The advent of historical rankings
In Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne
The industrialization of wines
The funny wines of the fraud era
The fight against bad wines
International regulations and special laws

IV/ Origin and quality

The war on fraud
Social revolts and demarcations
The judicial process
The wine of the sacred soil
The wine of origin
Peace treaties and the new world order
A nostalgic product

V/ Challenge and triumph of appellations

Weaknesses and inadequacies of the law
Destabilized trading
Soil and uses
The origin and the terroir
A world in transition
Extension and limits