Burgundy
Burgundy is a wine region in eastern France where the taste is connected to the soil in which the grapes grow, right down to the individual patch of land. What appears on the label reveals the level: this is how the hierarchy works.
Wine by type
Burgundy is connected to a substantial part of the wine selection. Here, you can read more about the grapes and neighbouring regions.
Chardonnay
The white grape that originated here, ranging from fresh and mineral to full-bodied and creamy when aged in oak.
About Chardonnay →Crémant
The French sparkling wine from outside Champagne, including a crémant de bourgogne made from chardonnay, pinot noir, gamay and aligoté.
About Crémant →
Red wine
The entire red wine selection at a glance, from the grapes to the serving temperature and the glass.
About Red wine →
White wine
The white wine selection, from bone-dry to dessert-sweet, with what to expect in the glass from each grape.
About White wine →An old region where the soil determines the taste
Burgundy is a wine region in eastern France, between Dijon and Lyon, with approximately 29,000 hectares of vineyards and annual production of around 1.5 million hectolitres, almost all still red and white wine. The climate is temperate continental, with cold winters and warm summers, and the region is susceptible to frost and hail. Wine has been made here since Roman times, but Burgundy became truly famous in the Middle Ages through the influence of the monasteries. It is one of France's oldest and most prestigious wine regions, and what makes its wines special is that their flavour is connected to the soil: this varies from one patch of land to another due to different soil types and climates.
Officially, there are four grape varieties: pinot noir, chardonnay, aligoté and gamay. Attention focuses mainly on the first two: chardonnay for white and pinot noir for red Burgundy wines. Chardonnay originally comes from this region and grows optimally in the area's limestone soil; aligoté has been cultivated here since the seventeenth century and produces a light, fresh wine with citrus, green apple and pear. The region consists of subregions such as Chablis, the Côte d'Or, the Côte Chalonnaise, the Mâconnais and Beaujolais. The name on the label also says something about the level: from broad regional Burgundy to a single vineyard known as a grand cru.
In brief
Six bottles, from regional to premier cru
The quality pyramid runs from broad regional Burgundy through villages and premier cru to grand cru. These six bottles climb that ladder from bottom to top, with Chablis separate because that area has its own ladder.
Joseph Drouhin Bourgogne Chardonnay
If the label only says Bourgogne, the wine comes from the wider region. This is the lowest level, where the quality can still be very good: round on the palate yet fresh, with peach, apple and citrus fruit.
JC Boisset Bourgogne Pinot Noir
The same level, but red. Deliciously fresh with light red fruit such as raspberry and strawberry, underpinned by earthy notes of mushrooms.
JC Boisset Mâcon-Igé
This label does not show the entire region but a name from the Mâconnais, the subregion known for affordable and approachable chardonnay. Rich, full and ripe in character, but with lively fruit.
Joseph Drouhin Mercurey
Villages wines come from one specific village within Burgundy; this label says Mercurey, from the Côte Chalonnaise in southern Burgundy. A firm, solid pinot noir that can age well, layered with raspberry, cassis, spices, leather and tobacco.
Joseph Drouhin Maranges Premier Cru
Premier cru is the second-highest classification in Burgundy: wine from exceptional vineyards, often more complex and intense than a villages wine. Intensely fruity with an earthy undertone, full-bodied and structured.
La Chablisienne Chablis la Pierrelée
Chablis is located around the town of the same name and has its own hierarchy: Petit Chablis, Chablis, premier cru and grand cru. Chardonnay is the only permitted grape there, and this bottle is known for its minerality, with lemon, green apple and white blossom.
Grand cru is the highest classification within Burgundy, reserved for wine from the best vineyards. A house such as Laroche owns ninety hectares in Chablis, including twelve premier cru and four grand cru.
Elegant red fruit, white ranging from mineral to creamy
From Chablis to the Côte de Beaune
White Burgundy ranges from fresh and mineral, as in Chablis, to full and creamy, as in the Côte de Beaune. If the chardonnay is matured in oak, vanilla, butter, toast and sometimes a slight nutty flavor are added.
Light, fruity and earthy
Pinot noir produces a light to medium-bodied red wine with a refined, elegant style. The flavor is often fruity, with strawberry, raspberry and cherry, underpinned by the earthy notes found in a Burgundy.
You can taste the soil
The region's flavor profile is refined and complex, and it changes with the patch of land where the grapes grow. Different soil types and climates within Burgundy mean that the flavor varies from vineyard to vineyard.
Flavor profile of a red Burgundy made from pinot noir. A Chablis scores higher on freshness and lower on fruitiness; a full-bodied white from the Côte de Beaune scores higher on power.
How to serve Burgundy
White chilled but not ice-cold, red a few degrees below room temperature. And a young red bottle benefits from some air.
White at 8 to 12 degrees
Chardonnay is usually served at 8 to 12 degrees. A fresh, fruity bottle such as Chablis sits at the lower end of that range and can spend about three hours in the refrigerator; a fuller, aromatic white Burgundy is better at 10 to 12 degrees and needs only one and a half to two hours.
The right glass →Red at 14 to 16 degrees
Pinot noir is a light to medium-bodied red wine and belongs to the fruity red wines that you usually serve at 14 to 16 degrees. Half an hour in the refrigerator is enough for that. Only with truly powerful, full-bodied wines do you go toward 18 degrees.
The six bottles →Decanting young red bottles
Decanting gives the wine more oxygen, allowing its flavor compounds and aromas to emerge. Young, tight red wines really need this air; older, refined wines do not, as they are already full of aroma and flavor. Allow half an hour to three hours before serving.
Decanters →Cocktails related to Burgundy
Cocktails made with Burgundy do not exist; these wines are served neat. The only classic blend from the region is kir: aligoté with a splash of blackcurrant liqueur. These four come closest, two with still red wine and two with bubbles.
Kir Royal
Blackcurrant liqueur at the bottom of the glass, topped up with bubbles. With still white wine, it is simply called kir.
Sangria
Red wine with pieces of fruit and plenty of ice, intended to be served in a pitcher for everyone at the table.
Tinto de Verano
Red wine topped up with sparkling lemonade, over plenty of ice.
Bellini
Peach purée at the bottom of the glass, then slowly top up with a dry sparkling wine.The right glass for Burgundy
Red wine benefits from a little extra oxygen, so the glass is larger and wider than one for white wine, with a bowl wide enough for swirling. We call this type of glass a Burgundy glass. White wine goes in a spacious white wine glass, giving the aromas of fruit, butter, and vanilla room to develop. These are the glasses we recommend ourselves.
Everything you still wanted to know about Burgundy
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