Burgundy Wine

About

Burgundy is name given to various types of wine, that are produced in the Burgundy region of France. Burgundy wines can be red, white, sparkling or rosé.

The most popular red wines are made from Pinot Noir and Garnay grapes, and the white wines are made from Chardonnay or Aligoté grapes.

Burgundy wines are classified as Grand Cru, Premier Cru, Village or Regional.

Information

Other names: Burgundy

Translations: Burgundietis, Burgundija, Burgundia, Burgundac, Burgundia, Bourgogne, बुरगुंदी, Borgonha, Бургундия, Βουργουνδία, عنابي اللون, 부르고뉴, Burgundské, 勃艮第, Borgonya, Burgundija, Burgundské, Borgogna, בורגונדי, Бургоња, ブルゴーニュ, Bourgogne, Burgund, Bourgogne, Burgunder, Borgoña, Бургундія, Bourgogne, Бургундия

Physical Description

The most famous wines commonly referred to as Burgundies - are red wines made from Pinot Noir grapes or white wines made from Chardonnay grapes. Red and white wines are also made from other grape varieties, such as Gamay and Aligoté respectively

Colors: purplish red

Tasting Notes

Flavors: sour and sweet

Mouthfeel: Astringent

Wine complements: White wine and red wine

Selecting and Buying

Choosing: For the white grapes, Chardonnay is the most common. Another grape found in the region is Aligoté, which tends to produce cheaper wines which are higher in acidity. Aligoté from Burgundy is the wine traditionally used for the Kir drink, where it is mixed with black currant liqueur. Sauvignon Blanc is also grown in the Saint Bris appellation. Chablis, Mâcon wines and the Côte d'Or whites are all produced from 100% Chardonnay grapes.

For the red grapes, all production in the Côte d'Or is focused on the Pinot noir grape while the Gamay grape is grown in Beaujolais. In the Côte de Nuits region, 90% of the production is red grapes.

Buying: The Côte de Nuits (which together with the Côte de Beaune are known as the Côte d'Or, or "Golden Slopes") is the home of the great red Burgundies and the vast majority of Grands and Premiers Crus. Here too are some of Burgundy's most famous villages such as Gevrey-Chambertin and Vosne-Romanée.

Any wine from this region will be expensive but all should be of good quality. The wines from each village area have their own character: sturdy, tannic and long-lived from around Nuits-St-Georges, aristocratic, rich and complex from Vosne-Romanée for example.

Further south the Côte de Beaune is most famous for its whites, but there are very good, reliable, sturdy Pinots Noirs. They might lack the finesse of the best Côte de Nuits, but they are also a little cheaper. Corton is the only red Grand Cru of the Côte de Beaune, whilst Pommard is probably the most widely known red of the region, made just south of the city of Beaune.

Procuring: The Pinot Noir seems happiest on the cool limestone slopes of Burgundy, finding only limited success when planted elsewhere in the world. The area lies on the edge of the quality wine-making zone.

Social/Political

Burgundy wine (French: Bourgogne or Vin de Bourgogne) is wine made in the Burgundy region in eastern France.[1] The most famous wines produced here - those commonly referred to as Burgundies - are red wines made from Pinot Noir grapes or white wines made from Chardonnay grapes. Red and white wines are also made from other grape varieties, such as Gamay and Aligoté respectively. Small amounts of rosé and sparkling wine are also produced in the region. Chardonnay-dominated Chablis and Gamay-dominated Beaujolais are formally part of Burgundy wine region, but wines from those subregions are usually referred to by their own names rather than as "Burgundy wines".

History: • 312: Eumenes’ Discourses: oldest known documented reference.

• 1115: Clos de Vougeot Château built by monks from Cîteaux.

• August 6, 1395: Duke Philip the Bold (1342-1404) publishes ordinance governing wine quality in Bourgogne.

• 1416: Edict of King Charles VI setting the boundaries of Bourgogne as a wine producing area (from Sens to Mâcon).

• November 11, 1719: Creation of the oldest mutual assistance organisation, the "Société de Saint Vincent" in Volnay.

• 1720: Champy, Bourgogne's oldest merchant company was founded in Beaune and is still in business today.

• 1728: The first book devoted to the wines from Bourgogne, written by Father Claude Arnoux, is published in London.

• July 18, 1760: Prince Conti (1717-1776) acquires the "Domaine de La Romanée", which now bears his name.

• 1789: French Revolution. Church-owned vineyards confiscated and auctioned off as national property.

• October 17, 1847: King Louis-Philippe grants the village of Gevrey the right to add its name to its most famous cru – Chambertin. Other villages were quick to follow suit.

• 1851: First auction of wines grown on the Hospices de Beaune estate.

• 1861: First classification of wines (of the Côte d'Or) by Beaune's Agricultural Committee.

• June 15, 1875: Phylloxera first detected in Bourgogne (at Mancey, Saône-et-Loire).

• 1900: Creation of the Beaune Oenological Station. April 30, 1923: Founding of La Chablisienne, Bourgogne's first cooperative winery.

• April 29, 1930: A ruling handed down by the Dijon civil courts legally defines to the boundaries of wine-growing Bourgogne (administrative regions of Yonne, Côte-d’Or, and Saône-et-Loire, plus the Villefranche-sur-Saône area in the Rhône).

• December 8, 1936: Morey-Saint-Denis becomes the first AOC in Bourgogne.

• October 14, 1943: Creation of Premier Cru appellation category.

• October 17, 1975: Crémant de Bourgogne attains AOC status.

• Jully 17, 2006: Creation of Bourgogne's 100th appellation: “Bourgogne Tonnerre”.