The Burgundy region continues to appeal to the imagination. Personally, I can't stop talking about it and certainly not about her great red wines based on the most unique grape in the world; the Pinot Noir.
Burgundy currently has 28,715 hectares in production and this area represents 3% of the entire French vineyards. It would be dishonorable to speak of Burgundy in general, as the area is divided into 5 major sub-regions. We therefore discuss these different “régions viticoles” separately. This also preserves the overview in our extensive but above all qualitative selection in this region.
Before starting this, it is useful to know how the quality pyramid in the region is constructed from bottom to top:
The regional AOPs: in total, these are 23 different appellations with names such as Bourgogne Aligoté, Macon Villages, Cotes d'Auxerre, Crémant de Bourgogne, etc. They account for more than half of the production of all Burgundy wines.
The municipal AOPs: these take the name of one of the 44 different municipalities such as e.g. Givry, Pommard, Vosne-Romanée, Gevrey-Chambertin etc. They allow you to discover the great diversity of Burgundy and represent about 30% of production.
The 1er Cru AOPs: these are individual plots that you can find in the heart of every municipal appellation. This is also called “climate”. Every wine from 1er Cru grounds is mentioned on the label after the name of the municipality. For example, Chablis 1er Cru “La Fourchaume” or Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Lavaux-Saint-Jacques. This approach is independent of any form of marketing as each climate is physically present in the vineyard and has its own sensory expression. In total there are 562 different 1er Crus representing about 10% of the production.
AOP Grand Cru: In total there are 33 Grands Crus in Burgundy and they represent only 1.5% of the total production. Only 12 municipalities are allowed to produce this. They express the individuality of all exceptionally located plots in a special way and enjoy a worldwide reputation. On the label, the original name of the village disappears in favor of the name of just the “climat” followed by Grand Cru. Some well-known examples are Corton, Montrachet, La Romanée, Chambertin, Musigny etc.
AOP stands for Appellation d'Origine Protégée, the former AOC where the C stood for Controlée.