Up bright and early the next day, we set out along the Canal du Centre and, then, followed the “Route des Grandes Crus.” In English, this should be translated as “The Route of the Prestigious Wines.” However, we tend to make French more democratic in American English and call this “The Wine Road.”
The Burgundian Route of Prestigious Wines follows what is called the Côte d’Or (the Gold Coast). The Côte d’Or is made up of two sections. The section under Beaune is called the Côte de Beaune. Mostly white wines such as Meursault and Chassagne-Montrachet are grown here. The white wines of the Côte de Beaune come from Chardonnay grapes.
The section of the Côte d’Or between Beaune and Dijon is called the Côte de Nuits. Only red wines such as Gevrey-Chambertin and Vougeot are grown along the Côte de Nuits. The soil and climate here are better suited for pinot noir grapes.
Our destination that morning was the Clos de Vougeot, which produces the world’s most exclusive red wine along the Côte de Nuits. It is also the site of a banquet held for the “Trois Glorieuses” in November. We took pictures of the banquet hall and danced a bit in the adjacent bar before returning to our tour of the Clos.
What is interesting about Clos de Vougeot is that it was a Cistercian Abbey and continues its saintly vocation with photographs throughout the Clos showing Cistercian monks praying. One of the three wooden wine presses was also set up for mass during our visit.
The Cistercian Order also received donations of lands and homes, but they differed from the monks at Cluny. The Cistercian Order was created by monks, who wanted to return to the simplicity and poverty espoused by Saint Benedict. The first Cistercian Abbey was set up in 1098 at Cîteaux, which is several kilometers away from Clos de Vougeot. Time precluded us from visiting the site as the end of the weekend neared.
We took photos of the vineyards and set out for home, happy with our Burgundian weekend.
By Ruth Paget, Author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
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