Block Break Away: Strolling the Rich Terroirs of Burgundy, a Feast for the Senses July 3–9, 2018
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Block Break Away: Strolling the Rich Terroirs of Burgundy, a Feast for the Senses July 3–9, 2018 Please note that your final itinerary may vary slightly from this one as we continuously research and develop each trip, customizing your experience to match your interests and tastes. Inclement weather—though we’d like to think there won’t be any—may also necessitate minor alterations. ©2017 Butterfield & Robinson Inc. 1-800-387-1147 | www.butterfield.com Côte d’Or Day 1 – July 3, 2018 – Paris to Beaune Welcome to France! We begin our journey with a deluxe motorcoach transfer from the Paris-CDG airport to Beaune, an historic capital of Burgundy, and the heart of the famed Côte d’Or wine region. En route, we’ll either enjoy a gourmet boxed lunch, or stop for a quaint bistro lunch. Mid to late afternoon we’ll arrive at Hotel Le Cep. You’ll have free time to unpack and get settled in, or take an exploratory stroll around the heart of Beaune from our hotel. This evening starts with a wonderful welcome cocktail and canapes in the historic courtyard of our hotel, hosted by Le Cep’s director Jean-Claude Bernard. From the hotel it’s a short stroll to the Club 1243, an exclusive venue beside the Hotel Dieu, or Hospices de Beaune. Tonight’s gourmet meal with select wines will get our exploration of Burgundy off to a special start. Hotel: Hotel Le Cep Meals: Lunch, Cocktails, and Dinner HOTEL | Le Cep A collection of noble townhouses dating from the Middle Ages, Hôtel Le Cep is ideally located within the historic center of Beaune. The courtyard is an historic monument, and a great spot to unwind with a glass of wine, or enjoy a copious breakfast each morning. The tower staircase leads to an incredible view over the city’s medieval rooftops. Colorado College Docent: Eric Perramond Eric Perramond grew up in a bicultural, bilingual family (English/French). He is an environmental geographer with interests in water, land, climate, and livelihoods. His interest in wine reflects a devotion to understanding the connections between culture, place, landscape, and terroir. Perramond also has a minor wine collection in his basement cellar. He has been teaching for the Environmental and the Southwest Studies Programs at Colorado College since the fall of 2005. Eric will be sharing his insight throughout the program. Sights Along the Way Beaune With a population of about 25,000 inhabitants, Beaune is not a large city but rather a large village. Since the Middle Ages, Beaune has been the commercial pulse of the Burgundian wine trade. Its vineyards, the most extensive of the Côte de Beaune, cover 1,111 acres between Savigny-lès-Beaune, to the north, and Pommard, to the south. There are no grand cru vineyards in the commune of Beaune, yet its 36 premier cru vineyards occupy 795 acres, more than double the 317 acres under the Beaune village appellation. The Beaune village and Beaune Premier Cru vineyards are ranked as such for both red and white wines, yet the latter account for only 4.5 percent of the average annual production. History estimates that Beaune was colonized in 52 B.C. on the site of one of Julius Caesar's military camps. Speculation on the original name varies: from "belna," a small villa; to "Belen," a Gallic deity; to a corruption of "Belisana," alias of the goddess Minerva. Beaune's importance grew after the destruction of the nearby city of Autun in the 6th century, and Gregory of Tours' history of France, written in 570, documented its significance in the culture of the vine. Formally chartered as a city in 1203, Beaune remained the residence of the dukes of Burgundy until supplanted by Dijon in the late 1300s. During the bloody period that followed Beaune's destruction by fire in 1401, under Louis XI and Charles XIII, massive fortified walls and pentangular castle, which still stand today, were built. BURGUNDY WINE Burgundy is, we believe and argue, the most fascinating and complex wine region in the world, largely because it is also the most personal and individualistic. Nowhere else does wine produce such an expression of the soil and of the person who made it. It is wine at its peak but also at its most artisanale. The Côte d’Or is a narrow ribbon of land on which the most renowned Burgundy growths are cultivated. Literally, the name means “Golden Coast.” People say this refers to the hue of the vines in the late autumn. Or that the “coast” serves to remind that this was once the shoreline of an ancient sea. In fact, although both these impressions are correct, the word “côte” refers to any slope and the “Or” refers to the fact that these slopes face east toward the Orient. The wine growing zone is a strip of land never more than a kilometre wide, with ridges and valleys cutting through it, and rocky difficult soil. Faults in the land make the soil change drastically from one vineyard to the next, creating that unique situation known as terroir. Burgundy vineyards are based on the concept of terroir rather than on who owns the land although this is critically important too. Terroir is literally translated as land or soil but it really defies direct translation. Perhaps terroir would be better translated as “environment,” as it means not only the soil, but the slope, the drainage, the microclimate; the history of winemaking practice, and the number of vines, basically all the factors affecting a particular plot of ground. Terroir is of vital importance in Burgundy because the Pinot Noir grape, and to a somewhat lesser extent the Chardonnay, reflect even the slightest changes of their environment in their wines. Classification and Appellations All the Burgundy vineyards are classified into four different levels of quality based on terroir. The lowest appellation level in Burgundy is the regional appellation. A wine from this appellation may come from any vineyard in Burgundy. At the village, Premier Cru and Grand Cru level (the three upper appellations), only red and white wines are found, but some of the regional appellations also allow the production of rosé and sparkling wines, as well as wines dominated by other grape varieties than Pinot Noir or Chardonnay. The Regional appellation, representing 41 percent of the wines of Burgundy, can be divided into three groups: • AOC Bourgogne, the standard or "generic" appellation for red or white wines made anywhere throughout the region, and represent simpler wines, which are still similar to the village. These wines may be produced at 55 hectoliters/hectare. These wines are typically intended for immediate consumption, within three years after the vintage date. • Subregional (sous-régional) appellations cover a part of Burgundy larger than a village. Examples include Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Beaune, Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits, and Mâcon-Villages. Typically, those communes that do not have a village appellation, do have access to at least one subregional appellation. This level is sometimes described as intermediate between AOC Bourgogne and the village level. • Wines of specific styles or other grape varieties include white Bourgogne Aligoté (which is primarily made with the Aligoté grape), red Bourgogne Passe-Tout-Grains (which can contain up to two thirds Gamay), and sparkling Crémant de Bourgogne. The second level in the appellation system is known as the Villages appellation. These are wines that come from vineyards located within defined boundaries around the villages on the main Côte d’Or slope. The grapes can be a blend from more than one vineyard, as long as all the vineyards are from the same village and rated Villages classification or better. The label shows only the village name, for example Puligny-Montrachet or Gevrey-Chambertin. Villages appellation wines account for 36 percent of Burgundian wine production.* The third level is Premier Cru. The grapes in this classification come from better terroir. The vineyard name is added to the village name, for example Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru “Les Combettes.” All the grapes must come from this vineyard. The grapes can come from more than one vineyard as long as all the vineyards are from the same village and rated Premier Cru classification or better. In that case the wine is labelled as 1er cru but without a specific vineyard name (Beaune 1er Cru, for example). Premier cru wines make up 18 percent of the annual Burgundian wine production.* Finally, and at the top level, is the Grand Cru appellation, comprising the finest terroir. The wines must be from a specific vineyard and the label shows only the vineyard name, for example “Bâtard-Montrachet.” There are only 32 Grand cru vineyards in the Côte d’Or. This represents 5 percent of all the wines of Burgundy.* *The percentages quoted do not include the wines of Beaujolais. The wine in your glass is the product of many variables, which, in most wine regions, are more or less constant factors. Most wine districts have weather conditions that are uniform throughout the region in a given year. Winemakers own large tracts of land, grape varietals are specific to that appellation, and similar soil conditions extend over relatively large areas. In the Côte d’Or however, there are no real constants. True, almost all red wines are produced from Pinot Noir grapes and almost all white wines from the Chardonnay, but there are many different clones of each with varying characteristics. The region is cut up into tiny parcels of land controlled by numerous winemakers, all of whom have their own ideas about how to make good wine.