I really should write something about the mayoral runoff. Lots of news. Important news even. But I can’t bring myself to do it. This race between the Construction Magnate and the Trinity Tollroad Cheerleader depresses me — or, as my old Times Herald pal Jim Schutze has phrased it, "The Leppert of Two Evils." (Which is Jim being clever, and not me endorsing anyone.)

So I tasted wine this afternoon — a big deal Burgundy tasting with all sorts of important people there. And the wine was very good, as most Burgundy usually is. Some of it was even kind of affordable, which most Burgundy usually isn’t. Burgundy, and especially white Burgundy, is my guilty pleasure, what with me being the Emperor of $10 wine. More on what I liked after I sort through these notes.

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Update: I’m not a huge follower of vintages, which I find are often an excuse for wine geeks to run around and act snotty. But it looks like the 2005 Burgundy vintage will be just as good as the wine geeks are predicting. (They have already pushed prices for 2005 Bordeaux, which is also supposed to be fantastic, past the point that most people can afford.) The 2005 Burgundies, red and white, are full of fruit and taste like they will still be wonderful in 10 or 15 years. If you want to buy to drink now and don’t want to spend ridiculous amounts, look for what’s called AC Burgundy — the basic wines made with grapes from the entire region. The California equivalent would be wine that says Napa Valley on the label. If you want to spend a bit more, look for the least expensive wines from specific regions in Burgundy, like Chablis. I tasted a $20 2005 Chablis from Domaine Louis Moreau that was close to spectactular.