Spend time at an international wine fair, and you'll never see Pierre behind a booth. You'll instead find him in the shadows, with awkwardly loose black jeans and a crumpled Carrefour bag hanging at his waist. When you consider the mathematics, his approach makes sense: A booth at Prowein costs upwards of $50,000, while a grocery bag costs $0.05.
Add to the fact that Pierre knows EVERYONE in Burgundy, the Loire Valley, the Jura, and the Rhone, and you have a nice, creative, one-man business model. Pierre is discreet. This means minimal risk for him in terms of an approach that clearly skirts the regulations at Prowein, Vinexpo, and all other fairs. The setup works incredibly well, and no, you'll never get to meet him. Pierre is not his real name (we protect him).
...Most of you unknowingly love his "work" (remember that $18 Champagne in 2020 or that $15 Chateauneuf in 2019? You can thank "Pierre"). Imagine how excited we were, for all of YOU, when Pierre pulled out six unlabeled bottles of 2019 and 2020 Burgundy from the Carrefour bag this year. The domaines from which they originated would also stay confidential, they'd invoice through "Rochebin," and we would "bring our own label," as is the usual arrangement with him.
As referenced earlier, today's Tour du Bois is a bit darker in color than we normally see in the Bourgogne Rouge category, and it offers up notes of blue fruits, rose, and spice box, with powdery tannins. A classic example of that BTG staple that you see in bistros throughout Paris.