I, Cor Balfoort (1958), was born in Heerlen, the Netherlands and now live in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, where I work in the staff to the central board at Nijmegen University. Almost (12th of december 1997 is the day!) married to Els Harbers. Next to a lover of wine and cooking I am a rather passionate bridge player and an amateur singer of jazz and standards.

I started liking wine around 1978, when I was still a poor student. Never having liked wine particularly so far, I was given a few bottles that I did like. So I bought another, different one and started wondering why that one tasted so different from the first. My curiosity was being born in essence then. I started reading a little about it and strolled into various wine shops in town.

One of them was managed by a man who somehow both understood my limited resources and succeeded in having me spend some of that on his wines. I started in the 5 guilder region, but was gradually offered insight into the wide variety of tastes that were offered even at that price. Within a couple of years I found 15 guilders a decent price for an interesting bottle. And that was not because that wine was more expensive, but because I was learning to taste and appreciate differences, both in style and quality.

Thinking back I realize this small yet devoted wine merchand put me on the right track. He raised me as a winelover.
During the years of graduation I still had little money to spend on wine, but after I found a job, things slowly started going out of hand. My more serious history so begins around 1985, when I seriously started to buy and drink wine.

This development was further boosted around 1989-1990 when I got into touch with another Nijmegen wine-merchant, Maarten de Jager. He and Errol Davelaar were active in "Vinteresse", a group of winelovers in Nijmegen that also provided wine tasting courses to the interested, and both shared my in between passionate curiosity for wines. With these two men I have tasted more wines than with anyone else, and much of my current experience in tasting is credit to these two fine palets. A few years later I joined Vinteresse and since a couple of years I participate in their wine-tasting seminars and do wine-tasting courses for Vinteresse. Exchanging or transferring knowledge and skill to properly judge a wine is one of the most fascinating and rewarding things to do, I think. Meanwhile, some 500 people have attended our tasting courses, and many of them have become wine lovers. In my love for wine I have a specific interest in geology and other aspects contributing to what the French call the concept of 'terroir'. These people are sometimes called 'terroiristes', and it's a name I use with pride. Not surprisingly I am thus a lover of the wines of the Cote d'Or, maybe the most famous geological extravaganza in the world. And within the Cote d'Or I look for wineries that seek to respect the individual characteristics of the vineyards where the wine originates from. But also in studying and tasting the wines of the Alsace I have found there is a good argument for the 'terroiristes'. It's an interest you will no dount find back in my tasting notes...

Other considerable experience was built up in my contacts with Pieter de Bruijn Wijnkopers. Pieter, his manager Patricia Bardet and now his son Eric have a classic wine business, and especially due to the efforts of Patricia I had the opportunity to obtain some very special wines and make a couple of special visits in the Burgundy, much adding to my understanding of these intruiguing wines.

Meanwhile I consider myself a little experienced in tasting. But I still try to remain modest, as so many wines were never tasted by me. Nevertheless I think my experience might be of interest to others, hence my efforts to construct this winepage.

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