schiller-wine: Dining with Owner/ Winemaker Blair Pethel of Domaine Dublère, Bourgogne, at Woodward Table in Washington DC, USA

Picture: Blair Pethel of Domaine Dublère in Savigny-lès-Beaune, Bourgogne, and Christian Schiller at Woodward Table in Washington DC

Blair Pethel of Domaine Dublère in Savigny-lès-Beaune, the former American political journalist who became a famous Bourgogne winemaker, was in town (Washington DC) and I had the opportunity to taste his ultra-premium Bourgogne wines at Woodward Table in downtown with him, organized by Schneider's of Capitol Hill.

The wines were spectacular and brought back memories of the visit in 2016, when we spent a couple of hours with Blair during the Burgundy and Champagne 2016 Tour by ombiasy WineTours. See here for the whole tour: Burgundy (and Champagne) 2016 Tour by ombiasy WineTours: From Lyon to Reims - Wine, Food, Culture and History

Picture: Winemaker Dinner with Blair Pethel at Woodward Table in Washington DC

Domaine Dublère in Savigny lès Beaune

Domaine Dublère in Savigny lès Beaune is owned by native North Carolina and longtime resident of Washington DC Blair Pethel. For 25 years he worked in Washington DC as political journalist. In 2003 he gave in to his inner callings and followed his love – Burgundy wines – to Beaune. He interned with top Burgundian winegrowers and winemakers to learn everything possible about the unique terroir and winemaking process. He eventually established his own domaine and was able to purchase parcels in top vineyard sites in the Côte de Beaune and in the Côte de Nuits, and in addition he purchases fruit from a handful of superb growers across the Côte D’Or. I quote Allen Meadows (Burghound.com Issue 42, 2011): “Pethel clearly has a gifted touch because the wines are almost too good to have been made by someone with so little practical experience (he employs no consultants).

Menu

Reception

A selection of Chef’s hors d’oeuvres

2013 Domaine Dublere Savigny-les-Beaune 1er Cru Aux Vergelesses

First Course

Maryland Jumbo Lump Crabcake apple kohlrabi slaw, chardonnay butter sauce

2013 Domaine Dublere Nuits-St.-Georges 1er Cru Terres Blanches Blanc
2013 Domaine Dublere Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Chenevottes
2013 Domaine Dublere Chablis Valmur Grand Cru

Entree

Grilled filet mignon with roasted wild mushrooms, smash fried potato
Served with cauliflower gratin

2014 Domaine Dublere Savigny-les-Beaune Village Les Planchots du Nord
2013 Domaine Dublere Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Les Blanchards
2013 Domaine Dublere Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds
2012 Domaine Dublere Nuits-St.-Georges 1er Cru Aux Bousselots

Three Cheese Course

Visiting Blair Pethel at Domaine Dublère in Savigny-lès-Beaune

In 2016, we spent several hours with Blair during the Burgundy and Champagne 2016 Tour by ombiasy WineTours. See here for the visit: An American Making Ultra-Premium Wines in Burgundy: Visit and Tasting at Domaine Dublère in Savigny lès Beaune, with Owner/ Winemaker Blair Pethel - Bourgogne (and Champagne) Tour 2016 by ombiasy WineTours

Pictures: An American Making Ultra-Premium Wines in Burgundy: Visit and Tasting at Domaine Dublère in Savigny lès Beaune, with Owner/ Winemaker Blair Pethel - Bourgogne (and Champagne) Tour 2016 by ombiasy WineTours

Lou Marmon: An American Winemaker in Burgundy Feels the Squeeze in Economic Downturn

By Lou Marmon
Special to The Washington Post
Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Blair Pethel, who moved from Potomac to France in 2003, learned to speak French and endured hostility toward Americans in his efforts to become a Burgundian winemaker. His Domaine Dublere has received critical acclaim.

These are tough times to be a winemaker. Consumers are buying but overall sales are down, and the demand for the higher-priced wines has nearly evaporated. The larger producers are better positioned to withstand the economic downturn, but even the giant wine conglomerates are laying off employees. For smaller producers who make limited amounts of the world's finest wines, these conditions are potentially disastrous.

Pictures: Blair Pethel of Domaine Dublère in Savigny-lès-Beaune at Woodward Table in Washington DC

This is not what Blair Pethel bargained for when he uprooted his wife and two young sons from Washington in 2003 to fulfill his dreams in the Burgundian vineyards. Making wine is a perilous, capital-intensive enterprise completely at the mercy of capricious weather, global economic upheavals and unpredictable consumer preferences. It is especially difficult for an American within the heavily regulated French wine industry, with its layers of bureaucracy and inherent prejudices against outsiders.

There are nearly 4,300 producers in Burgundy, and these "domaines" are mostly small, family-run affairs. The region's emphasis on quality and the rural lifestyle are among the factors that prompted Pethel to give up his career and a house in Potomac to move his family to France and become a winemaker, even though he didn't speak French at the time.

The financial environment has hit Pethel hard. The Burgundy Wine Board reported that exports, a mainstay of the region's economy, were down by nearly 30 percent in the last quarter of 2008. Almost the entire decline is attributed to decreased demand in the United States and the United Kingdom, two of Pethel's primary markets. Combined with a less than stellar 2007 growing season in Burgundy and despite critical acclaim for his Domaine Dublere wines, the current release is selling at a snail's pace.

"I am really struggling," he said recently. "I easily sold out all of my wines in '04, '05 and '06. But with the downturn the '07s are not selling well. Cash flow is killing me. My livelihood and that of my family are being threatened." He has the capacity to produce about 30,000 bottles annually; he filled 22,000 bottles in '07.

Three domaines are owned by Americans; Pethel is the only one who personally handles every aspect of his. Tall, trim, with silver-flecked brown hair and a wide smile, the 52-year-old is charmingly articulate. Growing up in North Carolina did not give him much exposure to wine. He pursued an acting career during college but ultimately returned home, eventually landing a position at the Greensboro News & Record and completing his journalism degree. A scholarship led to piano study and a doctorate at the Peabody Institute. He mastered polo because he got a job at the Polo Magazine. He declined a career in music or polo and returned to the News & Record. He tried out for the TV game show "Jeopardy!," which he won twice.

Pictures: Blair Pethel of Domaine Dublère in Savigny-lès-Beaune at Woodward Table in Washington DC

In 1987, Pethel followed his girlfriend to England. Three weeks later, they split up and Pethel found himself in London "with nothing, knowing no one and no prospects." He decided that "since I was in Europe, I'd try to learn about wine." After tasting some Burgundies, he started to routinely visit the region and brought back prodigious amounts of wine stashed in every conceivable crevice of his car.

He met his future wife, Fran, at a London ballet; the new couple vacationed frequently in Burgundy. They moved to Washington during the Clinton years, when Pethel worked for Knight Ridder as an economic correspondent. A timely inheritance allowed them to buy a home in Potomac. Both of their sons were born in Maryland, and the family became submerged in a life of carpools and school activities.

Despite their suburban success, or perhaps because of it, Fran and Blair continued to strive to return to France. "We suffered terrific culture shock on coming back to the U.S. in 1994," Pethel said. "We felt that the value system in the U.S., which places emphasis on work, income and consumption more than on relationships and happiness, did not agree with our own."

In 2002, they bought and renovated a 410-year-old house in Beaune, the medieval walled city that is the capital of the Burgundian wine industry. The following year was not the best time for an American to move to France. The U.S.-led invasion of Iraq began in March, and Europeans' anti-American sentiment was almost palpable. Despite the tensions between America and France, Pethel and his family were welcomed in Beaune. Fran got a job as a teacher, and their neighbors were friendly.

Pethel answered an ad for a field hand and met Burgundy producer Jean-Marc Pillot, who recalls that "a short phone interview left me somewhat suspicious of his accent, which was -- how to put it -- not typically Burgundian. You'll understand my surprise when, at the time we'd arranged for a personal interview, I heard the roar of a Mercedes convertible arriving in the courtyard. A couple of seconds later, a tall man extracted himself from the car, typically American, with an earring but with, at the same time, an air of dynamism and kindness. After several questions, I immediately saw that Pethel was passionate about Burgundy, and in this profession, it's passion that drives everything."

Pictures. Christian Schiller and Blair Pethel in in Savigny-lès-Beaune and Washington DC

He worked for other winemakers until he could buy his own vineyards and renovate a former tractor shed into a winery. Pethel had to become fluent in French in order to complete a rigorous 10-month course at the Lycee Viticole de Beaune. Known as Burgundy School, it is where the local winemaking regulations are taught along with organic chemistry and tax law, all in French. Some of his classmates were less than enthusiastic about an American joining their ranks. "Good-natured teasing I can stand," Pethel said. "This was not. I had to threaten to punch one guy to get him to back off."

Despite the hostility and other obstacles, his Domaine Dublere began to thrive. But, as it has elsewhere, the downturn has reversed Pethel's fortunes. Yet to be a winemaker is to be an optimist. While Pethel doesn't expect any financial help from what he calls "the socialist French government," the Burgundy Wine Board sees potential growth in nontraditional markets and is promoting the region's wines aggressively. There is hope that the economy will recover and that the 2009 vintage will live up to expectations.

However, Fran notes that her husband doesn't play the piano much anymore. One evening, as he waited for their kids to get settled before the couple went out for dinner, he sat at his grand piano and played a Schumann concerto. Pethel was so absorbed that he didn't hear anyone walk in the room. After a few minutes, he noticed Fran and a visitor listening in a corner.

"We should get going," he said with a grin. "I have to be back in the vineyards early in the morning."

Lou Marmon is a doctor and freelance wine writer. He can be reached through his Web site at http://www.grapelines.com.

Chef Jeffrey Buben's Woodward Table

Winner of the James Beard Foundation's "Best Chef Mid-Atlantic 1999", Jeffrey Buben is the chef and owner of three restaurants in Washington, D.C., Vidalia, Bistro Bis and Woodward Table/Woodward Takeout Food. Buben is a 1978 graduate of The Culinary Institute of America. With over 35 years in the industry, he worked as a young chef in such notable restaurants as The Sign of the Dove, Le Cygne and Le Chantilly in New York and at several distinguished hotels including The Four Seasons, The Mayflower and The Hotel Pierre.