Burgundy
Burgundy is a wine region in eastern France. What you taste depends on the soil beneath the grapes, sometimes down to the individual plot. The label tells you which rung of the ladder a bottle is on. Read on to find out how it works.
Wine by type
Burgundy is connected to a large part of the selection. Here’s more about the grapes and neighboring regions.
Chardonnay
The white grape that originated here, from fresh and mineral to full-bodied and creamy when aged in oak.
About Chardonnay →Crémant
French bubbles from outside Champagne, with a Crémant de Bourgogne made from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Gamay and Aligoté.
About Crémant →
Red wine
The entire red wine selection in one place, from the grapes to 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 your glass from each grape.
About white wine →An ancient region where you can taste the soil in the glass
The region lies in eastern France between Dijon and Lyon. It has approximately 29,000 hectares of vineyards and produces around 1.5 million hectoliters of wine annually, almost all of it still red and white wine. Winters are cold and summers are warm, with a temperate continental climate. Frost and hail are well-known risks here. Wine has been made in Burgundy since Roman times, but its real fame came in the Middle Ages, when monasteries held great influence. It is considered one of France’s oldest and most prestigious wine regions. What makes the wine so distinctive is the soil. It varies from one patch of land to the next, as does the microclimate, and you can taste that in the wine.
Four grape varieties are officially permitted: pinot noir, chardonnay, aligoté, and gamay. In practice, it’s all about the first two: pinot noir for red, chardonnay for white. Chardonnay originated in this region and does best on the limestone soil here. Aligoté has been grown here since the seventeenth century and produces a light, fresh white wine with citrus, green apple, and pear. The region includes areas such as Chablis, the Côte d'Or, the Côte Chalonnaise, the Mâconnais, and Beaujolais. The name on the label also tells you something about the wine’s level. At the bottom is broad regional Burgundy; at the very top, a single vineyard with grand cru status.
In brief
Six bottles, from regional to premier cru
The pyramid starts with regional Burgundy and rises through villages and premier cru to grand cru. With these six bottles, you’ll climb the ladder from bottom to top. Chablis stands apart because it has its own ladder.
Joseph Drouhin Burgundy Chardonnay
If the label only says Bourgogne, the grapes come from the entire region. That’s the lowest level. Don’t let that put you off, because the wine can be very good. This one is rounded yet fresh, with peach, apple, and citrus.
JC Boisset Bourgogne Pinot Noir
Same tier, now in red. Fresh, with light red fruit such as raspberry and strawberry. There’s an earthy note underneath, with a touch of mushroom.
JC Boisset Mâcon-Igé
The label shows a place name from the Mâconnais, not a region. This subregion is best known for affordable, easy-drinking chardonnay. This one is full and ripe, but the fruit remains lively.
Joseph Drouhin Mercurey
A villages wine comes from a single commune. In this case, Mercurey, in the Côte Chalonnaise in the south of the region. It’s a full-bodied pinot noir that can easily age for a few years. You’ll taste raspberry and cassis, followed by spices, leather and tobacco.
Joseph Drouhin Maranges Premier Cru
Premier cru is the second tier from the top. The wine comes from vineyards considered exceptional and is often more complex and intense than villages wine. This one is fruity with an earthy undertone, full-bodied and with plenty of structure.
La Chablisienne Chablis la Pierrelée
Chablis is located around the town of the same name and follows its own hierarchy: Petit Chablis, Chablis, premier cru and grand cru. Only chardonnay is allowed. This wine is known for its minerality. Think lemon, green apple and white blossom.
Grand cru is the pinnacle of Burgundy, wine from the very best vineyards. Laroche, for example, has ninety hectares in Chablis, twelve of which are 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 in the Côte de Beaune. If the chardonnay has been aged in oak, you’ll also get notes of vanilla, butter and toast, sometimes with a hint of nuttiness.
Light, fruity, and earthy
Pinot noir makes light to medium-bodied red wine with a refined, elegant style. You’ll usually taste strawberry, raspberry, and cherry. Beneath that are the earthy notes so often found in Burgundy.
You can taste the soil
The flavor is refined and often complex. And it varies from one plot to another. Soil and climate vary so much within Burgundy that two neighboring vineyards can taste different.
This is the profile of a red Burgundy made from pinot noir. Chablis scores higher on crispness and lower on fruitiness. A full-bodied white from the Côte de Beaune scores higher on power.
How to serve Burgundy
White wine chilled, but not ice-cold. Red wine a few degrees below room temperature. A young bottle of red can use a little air.
White at 8 to 12 degrees
Chardonnay is usually served between 8 and 12 degrees. A crisp, fruity bottle like Chablis is best served on the cooler side and can spend around three hours in the fridge. A fuller, aromatic white Burgundy comes into its own at 10 to 12 degrees. An hour and a half to two hours in the fridge is enough.
The right glass →Red at 14 to 16 degrees
Pinot noir is light to medium-bodied and falls into the fruity red wine category. It’s usually served at 14 to 16 degrees. Half an hour in the fridge is enough. Only truly powerful, full-bodied red wine is best served closer to 18 degrees.
The six bottles →Decanting young red wines
Decanting exposes the wine to more oxygen, bringing out its aromas and flavors. Young, firm red wine needs this. Old, refined wine doesn’t, because its aromas and flavors are already there. Pour it into the decanter half an hour to three hours before serving.
Decanters →Cocktails inspired by Burgundy
There aren’t really any classic cocktails made with Burgundy wine. You drink this wine on its own. The only classic blend from the region is kir, made with aligoté and a splash of blackcurrant liqueur. These four come closest, two with still red wine and two with sparkling wine.
Kir Royal
Blackcurrant liqueur at the bottom of the glass, topped up with sparkling wine. Made with still white wine, it’s simply called kir.
Sangria
Red wine with pieces of fruit and lots of ice, meant to be served by the pitcher.
Tinto de Verano
Red wine topped up with sparkling lemon soda, served over plenty of ice.
Bellini
Peach purée in 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. That’s why a red wine glass is larger and wider than a white wine glass, with a bowl you can gently swirl the wine in. We call this a Burgundy glass. White Burgundy goes in a roomy white wine glass, giving the fruit, butter, and vanilla room to shine. These are the glasses we recommend.
Everything else you wanted to know about Burgundy
Can’t find your question here? Browse our cocktail recipes or get in touch.
To the cocktail recipes →What makes Burgundy wine so special?
Where should you start if you want to get to know Burgundy?
What do grand cru, premier cru, and villages mean?
Which grapes are used in Burgundy?
Is Chablis also Burgundy?
At what temperature should you serve Burgundy?
Which glass should you use?
Buy Bourgogne
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Crémant de Bourgogne Brut Charles de Fère
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