Burgundy (Bourgogne) is a holy grail for wine geeks: a region impossible to master, impenetrable to the casual observer, and endlessly fascinating.
A simple premise—red Burgundy is generally Pinot Noir and white Burgundy is generally Chardonnay—belies a maze of appellations, fractured vineyards, scores of variable producers, and erratic vintage swings. Just getting the right information can be a chore: the vignerons (winegrowers) of Burgundy are an insular lot, and will not readily impart their wisdom and experience to outsiders—and even they are rarely experts beyond the walls of their own domaines or the confines of their own communes. To new students of Burgundy: keep in mind that understanding this region is a lifelong pursuit. Burgundy's modern vineyards and wines are products of 2,000 years of winemaking history. Yet while Burgundy can be a sensual pleasure unlike any other, it can also be an expensive disappointment. Despite—or perhaps due to—its mercurial nature, the wines of Burgundy enliven the imaginations of sommeliers and connoisseurs worldwide, and show great versatility at the table.
Winemaking in Burgundy is not a new phenomenon: archaeological evidence of production dates back to the late 1st century CE, following the Romans' conquest of Gaul. The first Burgundians—Germanic barbarian tribesmen—arrived in the 5th century as the Western Roman Empire was crumbling and embraced viticulture. But Europe plunged into dark ages after the fall of Rome, and the Catholic Church rose as a powerful political force, becoming a shepherd of culture—and viticulture—in such difficult times. The Benedictine Order, with its abbey at Cluny in Burgundy, became the political and cultural center of Western Europe in the 10th and 11th centuries, and promoted vine-growing throughout its network of satellite priories. The Cistercians, an offshoot of the Benedictines who rose to prominence in the 12th century, would acquire large vineyard holdings throughout Burgundy over the course of several centuries, including Clos Vougeot and other modern grand cru vineyards. In fact, most of today’s greatest vineyards in the Côte d’Or were converted to viticulture by the 14th century, and the Cistercian and Benedictine monks who toiled among the vines feature prominently in the origins of Burgundy's terroir.
By the mid-15th century, Burgundy wines had become a powerful symbol and an expensive export. The Valois Dukes, who ruled the region with near-autonomy from 1363 until it reverted to the French Crown in 1477, recognized the wines' status and attempted to enforce controls on quality. One duke, Philip the Bold, ordered Gamay grapes to be ripped up in favor of the lower-yielding (and theoretically superior) Pinot Noir; another (Philip the Good) tried to promote hillside viticulture. In 1443 Nicolas Rolin, a nobleman in the Valois Court, founded one of the wine world's most historic and recognizable charitable institutions—the Hôtel-Dieu in Beaune. This charitable hospital provided free respite to the infirm poor in a plague-ridden era, and over time became the beneficiary of many donated vineyards in and around Beaune. Today, the Hospices de Beaune wine auction is held annually every third Sunday of November, with proceeds still benefitting the sick, and the domaine of the Hospices de Beaune has become one of the largest vineyard owners in the Côte de Beaune.