“We have always been flattered when winemakers of the caliber you will find here in Elden Selections let us present their wines. It’s no exaggeration to say that, for many of them, their tiny production is like a child that they have reared and nourished and sent out into the world, never to return.”

— Elden Selections website

Life doesn’t usually turn out as planned — sometimes it ends up way better! I love a good story about people who risk comfortable lives to put themselves out there and soak up what the world has to offer beyond their everyday comfort zone.

And that kind of story is behind Elden Selections, an online wine retailer. It begins in the early 1980s, when Eleanor (Ellie) Garvin and Dennis Sherman, then in their 20s, ditched their jobs and left the country. They had met working in the kitchen of an Annapolis restaurant and, on a whim, decided to backpack around Europe for what they thought would be a year or so.

But as you can guess, things didn’t end up that way. When they arrived in France, Dennis and Ellie, both passionate about food and wine, needed to find a way to support their culinary escapades. They came up with the idea to purchase — of all things! — a river barge on which they would take tourists around the country and introduce them to local French cuisine and wine. And, as you can probably guess again, they never left, settling in to Burgundy, a region revered for its wines and simple, yet delicious food.

During the past 30+ years, Dennis and Ellie have befriended many small winemaking families in Burgundy — hard-working farmers, out tending their vines each day, unable to export their wines or to even welcome visitors into a tasting room. The Shermans saw the potential in the U.S. marketplace for small-production, great-value Burgundy wines. In 1996, wanting to help their community, while starting a new business venture, the Shermans founded Elden Selections, a U.S.-based wine importing company .

Elden Selections

I hadn’t heard of Elden when I got the email asking if I would like to sample wines from an online wine store that specializes in Burgundy’s little known producers. For me, the answer was an easy, “yes, please!” I don’t drink as much Burgundy as I would like to — I’ve gotten burned in the past, spending $40 or $50, only to pour a mediocre wine. Plus, I’m all about supporting unknown winemakers who continue to farm their small plots of land and produce excellent wines, despite the constant struggle to make a living as farmers.

Since the Shermans source all of their wines from producers they have known for years, the quality and value of the wine is practically guaranteed. ”We’ve spent days tromping through vineyards with winemakers, gleaning what they have learned from the generations,” says Ellie. “And evenings shivering around a barrel in quiet winter cellars, listening, tasting to see the future in a hard new wine.”

**Six wines were sampled, three whites and three reds, courtesy of Elden Selections.**

Learn More About Burgundy’s Maze of Vineyards

The Elden Selections website offers much more than just bottles of wine for purchase. You can begin a fascinating journey to Burgundy’s six main regions by simply clicking on a clearly marked map of Chablis, Côtes de Nuits, Côte de Beaune, Côte Chalonnaise, Mâconnais, and Beaujolais. Interested in getting to know the landscape? Burgundy’s extensive soils, climate, mineral resources and topography, although fascinating, can be very confusing. Click on Elden’s Geology tab to learn what the land brings to the wines.

As for purchasing wine, I found the website very easy to navigate. You can shop by price (from ‘Everyday Burgundy’ under $40 to Grand Cru $80+), or by producer, region or category (red, white, or sparkling — they carry a small amount of Champagne). As of today, the most expensive wine on the site is a $330 Domaine Pierre Naigeon Mazys Chambertin 2018, but most of the 250+ wines are in that sweet spot of $25 to $90. I also love that there is free shipping when you order a case, a great value in and of itself.

Plan a Trip to Burgundy

If a trip to this region of wine and fine dining is on your bucket list, Dennis and Ellie’s beautiful Domaine de Cromey manor house in the heart of Burgundy has six charming, en-suite accommodations that surround a quiet courtyard. On the property, you can take part in numerous wine classes (informal as well as WSET-certified), as well as participate in a hands-on cooking class.

Cooking With Ellie

Don’t miss the recipes tab on the Elden Selections website. Ellie, a cookbook author, dishes up nearly 40 superb recipes, like the one I plan to serve on Christmas Eve, Mussel Bouillon with Saffron and Butternut Squash.

Below are three favorites from my box of Elden Selections.