Wine with Leslie: Burgundy has become unaffordable, here are three alternatives

Some French vineyards are reporting up to a 80% damage to the vines due to recent hailstorms

Chardonnay and pinot noir from other regions are the obvious suggestions

I’ve been thinking about Burgundy again. Thinking about it rather than drinking it because I mostly can’t afford it anymore. And things are not about to change on that front with reports of a major hailstorm hitting Beaune earlier this month causing a “corridor of destruction” (as Wine-Searcher.com put it) from Pernand-Vergelesses north of Beaune to Chassagne-Montrachet in the southern Côte d’Or.

Hailstones in France can be the size of golf balls so damage was severe. Some vineyards are reporting 80% damage to the vines, which are at a delicate point in their development, and expect yields to be severely reduced. Demand will still be there for these wines so prices will, of course, rise.