The Burgundy region offers the wine of a few grape varieties.
The wines of Burgundy, France, can be traced to sixth-century monastic vintners. Tom Cannavan of Wine Pages, an online magazine, explains that in Burgundy, thousands of growers produce small yields on tiny land parcels. The carefully managed vineyards produce great varieties of red and white wines. The wines may be produced by the growers or by purchasers who blend and bottle under their own labels. Two kinds of grapes are used most often in burgundy wines: chardonnay and pinot noir.
Chablis
Chablis is in northwestern Burgundy. Its white wine is one of the most famous in the world. Vineyards are located on the slopes of the River Serein. The monks from the ancient Abbey of Pontigny planted the chardonnay grapes. They found advantage in the springtime cold of Chablis. They learned it would help yield the dry white wine.
Côte de Beaune
The Côte de Beaune boasts 5,000 hectares of vineyards. The wines vary from "full, harmonious reds to great complex whites," Burgundy Today reports. Both pinot noir and chardonnay grapes are planted. Here, wineries depend upon grapes raised hot summers and cold winters. Chardonnay in this district is aged in oak barrels to give it a rounder taste.
Côte Chalonnaise
This wine-growing area offers wines from both chardonnay and pinot noir grapes. There are 4,400 hectares of vineyards in the district. Chris Kissack, writing for the Wine Doctor, says that the region offers both red and white wines and produces them in a climate that is a microcosm of the whole of Burgundy.
Mâconnais
Mâconnais is the most southerly area of Burgundy. The wines are made to drink when they are still young. The chardonnay whites here are the best-known. The wines are less pricey than those from other areas of Burgundy. According to the website Burgundy Today, the Mâconnais wines there are fresh and sappy with honeysuckle aromas.
Côte de Nuits
This area of Burgundy is long and very narrow, at some points as wide as 200 to 300 meters. The vineyards, too, are long and narrow. The wines are red. They are deeply colored wines and have intense flavors. Three thousand hectares of pinot noir are planted in walled vineyards called clos. These are as old as 10th century. Here also are the 550 hectares of vines planted on the slopes of the Hautes-Côte de Nuits.
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