Burgundy and its Wines

Your guide will meet you at your hotel at 9:30 am. After a short transfer, we arrive in the centre of the village of Gevrey Chambertin, in the heart of the northern half of the Cote d'Or, the Cote de Nuits.

This part of the wine region is known for its hearty, "masculine" tannic red wines, As you make your way with many stops, slowly southwards, your guide will help demystify Burgundian wines, with fun, easy explanations for the sometimes confusing appellation system.

We'll be great examples in front of us to help the explanation: amongst others, Grand Cru vineyards such as Le Chambertin, and the more feminine, Le Musigny of the village Chambolle-Musigny, the famous monopoly the Clos de Tart in Morey-St-Denis, and so forth... with the famous vineyards right in front of you, your guide will explain and answer all your questions.

We'll see the famous Chateau de Clos Vougeot, a massive and beautiful 12th century building, built by the Cistercian monks when they needed a cuverie to make their excellent wines for mass. If you wish to go in for a look you may take a short tour - the monumental and unique wine presses (it took the strength of 8 monks just to turn them!) are worth the stop just in and of themselves.

After a taste of some of these wines, our explorations continues to the most renowned vineyards of them all: the Vineyard of the Grand Cru Romanee Conti. Surrounded by almost equally impressive Grand Cru brothers and sisters, your guide will help you understand what the fame is based on, before you continue to Nuits St. Georges and lunch.

After your lunch (your guide will help you decide if you prefer simple bistrot or cafe, gourmet restaurant, or even a fun wine tasting lunch in a Domain) we'll have the strength to continue our explorations. To start, we have a break in Beaune itself, with a private tour of the Hospices de Beaune - a medieval hospital built by Nicolas Rolin, the Chancellor of the Duke of Burgundy, for the poor, to secure himself a spot in heaven. The beautiful Hospices has an incredibly rich history and is inextricably linked with the region's wines, as you'll see.

To finish the day, we'll drive down to the Cote de Beaune, to see Pommard and then the famous Chardonnay - white wines - of Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet, before returning to your hotel for the end of the day.

With many stops along the way for explanations of wines, the work in the vineyards, and the vineyard villages, as well as some tasting, we guarantee that you'll not only feel like an expert by the end of the day, but have even a greater appreciation and passion for these renowned wines than before!