Wines from the Burgundy region in France are some of the most expensive and confusing to understand. So I thought I would do an article on the basics of Burgundy wines.
Burgundy is a wine region in eastern France. The closest notable cities around that region would be Beaune and Lyon. French wines are considered “Old World” wines and as such, the grape varietal used to make the wine is generally not shown on the label. But for Burgundy, figuring out the grape varietal used to make the wine is relatively easy. For white wines, the grape varietal used is Chardonnay and for red wines, the grape varietal used is mostly Pinot Noir.
What distinguishes a decent Burgundy wine from a spectacular one is the terroir. Terroir is a term that not only encompasses where the vineyard is located but also the type of soil, the climatic conditions and elevation/slope of the vineyard.
There was a Burgundy classification system created that divided all vineyards into four categories based on the quality of their terroir. As you go higher up in the hierarchy, the area where grapes make the wine becomes smaller. Thus, wines that are higher in the hierarchy are rarer and have more specific characteristics. This hierarchy applies to both red and white wines.
The most basic level in the hierarchy is "regional wines." These are normally labelled “Bourgogne” and will be under $40. Wines under this category can use grapes from various places in the Burgundy region and sometimes, contrary to most Burgundy wines, the grape varietal will be shown on the label. These wines account for about 51 per cent of the wines produced in the Burgundy region.
Next up in the hierarchy are "village wines." The grapes that produce these wines come from specific regions located in Burgundy. Instead of just saying “Bourgogne” on their labels, these wines also include their village on their labels. This would include villages like Pommard and Savigny Les Beaune. These wines account for about 37% of all Burgundy wines produced, and generally, these wines are in the range of $50 to $150.
The next level up in the hierarchy is 1er or Premier Cru wines. These wines are from specific sites within a village which are judged to have exceptional characteristics that are recognized with a higher status. As an example, in the village of Pommard, there is a particular vineyard named Les Grands Epenots, which is a Premier Cru wine. The label of this wine will have the words Pommard, Les Grands Epenots and Premier Cru on the bottle. Premier Cru wines account for only 10 per cent of all wines produced from Burgundy. These wines have a wide range of prices anywhere from $150 to several thousand dollars.
The highest level in this system is Grand Cru wines, which are produced from grapes from the best plots of land. Think of these wines as all star Premier Crus. They are specific vineyards within a village that are superior to even Premier Cru vineyards. Grand Cru wines account for less than 2% of all Burgundy wines produced. Some of the most famous Grand Cru vineyards are La Tache, Richebourg and Corton Charlemagne. There is a wide discrepancy in prices of these wines but in general, these wines are the most expensive Burgundy wines.
All of this information is interesting but not if you don’t try the wines. Try a bottle of these regional wines: Louis Latour Bourgogne Chardonnay (on sale this month for $26.99) or Bourgogne Pinot Noir (on sale this month for $33.99) and see if you enjoy Burgundy wines. Until next time, happy drinking!
