TN: Wines at the Bistro de l'Hotel and Ma Cuisine, Beaune

[John_W_Osgood]

@c fu

Question. If my wife doesn’t drink wine. Should I bother going to ma cuisine?

Absolutely YES!

[Howard_Davis]

@Dan.Gord0n

I haven’t been to Ma Cuisine in many years but recall the wine list as being full of gems that were very, very well priced for the picking… Is it still that way? Food was always good but given the great alternatives for food in Beaune, I really thought of it as a place to go for the wine.

On the other hand, recall the food at Bistro de l’Hotel as being a couple notches above, though the wine pricing was much higher.

Dan, that’s still accurate. The food at l’Hotel is definitely a couple of notches above but it and the wine are much dearer. They have an excellent wine list but don’t have the old treasures found in Pierre’s cellar. And I think his prices are very reasonable, particularly because you know your bottle will be replaced if it is not sound.

[Howard_Davis]

@Mike Grammer

I do hope you will post on your latest Burgundy visit.

Haere Ra,

Mike

Hi Mike. I plan to put up some notes from my time in both Burgundy and Piemonte but it may take a little time as I’m still on holiday with friends. I tasted quite a lot of '14 red Burgs in barrel (compared with '13s in bottle) and think it is going to be a crowd pleasing vintage (compared with the lighter, more acidic '13s).

I’ll try to type up some notes soon.

Haera Ra,

Howard

[Stuart_BeauneHead_Niemtzow]

@M.Kaplan

@c fu

Question. If my wife doesn’t drink wine. Should I bother going to ma cuisine?

I’m surely an outlier, as I’ve never understood the adoration expressed on wine boards for the food at Ma Cuisine; it’s a good bistro and a fun joint. The food is better at l’Hotel and other places mentioned in your Burgundy travel thread.

I prefer white wine with ripe Epoisses (and most cheese, for that matter).

Having said all that, Howard’s report is a very enjoyable read.

Ma Cuisine is one of those places that one should experience once, IMO, Charlie…to see for yourself. It can be fun if not too crowded and rowdy…and the wines are not all worth sweating over: ie, there is plenty of non-special stuff on the menu. The food is usually just ok/good.

I’ve been many times and think the place is overrated, too.(And “Pierre” can be grouchy, even to winemakers he knows, when his evaluation of wines on his list differs from his customers’.)

Like Mark, I prefer white wine with Epoisses…and most cheeses. My wife is the opposite on that.

Speaking of epoisses…if you’re going, as it seems, try to experience the “real” stuff, the “lait cru” (raw milk) version, and visit the factory and store for the Gaugry brand in Brochon (Gevrey). They might be the only ones still making the “lait cru” version. (They told me in 2001 , when I suited up and toured their old factory that they’d NEVER compromise by making a pasteurized milk version of their cheeses…and that they didn’t care if they were banned in the US and the EU, but…they have.