Back to the wines page

Burgundy Vineyards

Chablis Vineyard

Located near the city of Auxerre in the Yonne department, the vineyard of Chablis is one of the oldest vineyards of France. The Chablis vineyard extends on "Kimmeridgian" soils composed of chalky hills which play an important role in defining Chablis' distinctive characteristics : mineral and crisp. Chablis only produces whites.

Côte-de-Nuits Vineyard

The Côte de Nuits vineyard has contributed for nearly two thousand years to the reputation of Burgundy wines and continues today to be one of the world benchmarks for great red wines. The richness and fame of its appellations are such that some authors, when talking of the Côte de Nuits, call it the Burgundy Champs Elysées. The notions of terroir, climate and clos, highlighted since the 10th century by the monks of the great abbeys, here assume their full dimension. The Côte de Nuits is in the Northern part of the Cote d'Or department. It extends from Dijon to the southern part of Nuits-Saint-Georges on a narrow strip of slopes which extends over 13 miles. Soils are mainly composed of limestone ridge. The rock appears at the top of the hillsides which shelters some of the world greatest red wines as Gevrey Chambertin, Chambolle Musigny, Clos de Vougeot, Vosne Romanée or Nuits-Saint-Georges.

Côte de Beaune Vineyard

The Côte de Beaune extends from Ladoix Serrigny in Côte d'Or up to the hillsides of Maranges in Saône-et-Loire which represent a distance of 13 miles. On this often narrow slope (barely a few hundred metres wide), magnificently exposed to the rising sun, the greatest dry white wines in the world, as Meursault, Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru, Bâtard Montrachet Grand Cru grow here alongside renowned red wines.

Côte Chalonnaise Vineyard

It extends on 15,5 miles and 4,3 miles wide between Chagny and Saint-Vallerin lying between the Côte de Beaune to the north and the hills of the Mâconnais to the south.The Côte Chalonnaise vineyard is formed of clay-limestone soils coming from a limestone rock base from the Jurassic era or older.

Rully, located in the North, produces white and light fruity red wines. This area is also well known for its production of Crémant de Bourgogne (Sparkling made according to the Methode Champenoise). Then, Montagny produces only white wines that are aromatic and crisp. Located in the center of the Côte Chalonnaise, Mercurey and Givry produce great red wines which compete with those of the Côte de Beaune.

The Mâconnais Vineyard

This vineyard forms a big inverted triangle bounded in the North by Sennecey-le-Grand and Saint-Gengoux-le-National and in the south extremity by Crèche sur Saône. The climate is milder than in North Burgundy. Chardonnay grapes take advantage of it producing white wines of exception such as Pouilly-Fouissé, Pouilly-Vinzelles, Saint-Vérand...

Beaujolais Vineyards

Beaujolais is a large and well known French wine region. A part of the vineyard is located in the eastern side of the Saône valley.

The climate is semi-continental with some temperate influences due to the proximity of the Mediterranean Sea.

The Beaujolais region is divided in two parts (North and South) based on the soils. The North offers rolling hills based of schist and granite. The South has flatter land with richer soils based of sandstone and clay.

The ten Beaujolais Crus differ in character: Brouilly, Régnié and Chirouble produce wines with a lighter body that are usually better consumed within three years based of the vintage.

Côte de Brouilly, Fleurie and Saint-Amour give medium body wines and need at least a year aging in the bottle.
The full body Crus of Beaujolais are : Chénas, Juliénas, Morgon and Moulin à Vent.

Beaujolais Nouveau history goes back to the 19th century when the first wines of the vintage were sent down to the first Bistro restaurant of Lyon. Upon their arrival, signs would be put out proclaiming "Le Beaujolais Nouveau est Arrivé!". Then, in the 1960s, this tradition became more and more popular in France and worldwide. It is still widely celebrated today - the official date for release is the third Thursday of November.

Côte du Rhone Vineyards

Located on both sides of the Rhône River, between Valence and Avignon, the Vineyard takes its personality from the surprising variety of grounds, climates and vines in this area.
The Rhône is generally divided into two sub-regions with distinct vinicultural traditions, the Northern Rhône (Rhône septentrional) and the Southern Rhône (Rhône méridional).

The northern sub-region produces red wines from the Syrah grape, sometimes blended with other grapes, and white wines from Viognier grapes. This area is characterised by a continental climate influenced by the mistral wind, which brings colder air from the Massif Central. Northern Rhône is therefore cooler than southern Rhône. Syrah is the quasi-unique red grape variety in the sub-region, also widely known as Shiraz, it has recently become very popular with consumers around the world.

The southern sub-region produces an array of red, white and rosé wines, often blends of several grapes such as in the famous Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The different terroirs, together with the rugged landscape which partly protects the valleys from the Mistral, produce microclimates which give rise to a wide diversity of wines. A feature of the cultivation of the region is the use of large pebbles around the bases of the vines to absorb the heat of the sun during the day to keep the vines warm at night.

Languedoc-Rousillon Vineyards

Languedoc-Roussillon wines include the “Vin de Pays d'Oc” or “Vin de France” denominations produced in Southern France. While "Languedoc" can refer to a specific historic region of France, this area spans from the Mediterranean coastline to the French border with Spain to the region of Provence. This region is the single biggest wine-producing region in the world representing more than one third of France's total wine production. In 2001, the region produced more wine than the entire United States.

The soil composition varies from chalk, limestone to gravel based soils inland to more alluvial soils near the coast. Some of the more highly-rated vineyards are laid on top of ancient riverbed stones similar to those of Château Neuf-du-Pape.

The Languedoc-Roussillon region shares similar soils and climate characteristics with the neighbouring regions of Southern Rhone and Provence differing by being the most arid and hot region of France.