Vinistory · Encyclopedia
Français

France

Burgundy

29 500 ha under vine

Soils
Jurassic limestone and marl on a faulted, east-facing escarpment
Climate
Semi-continental — cold winters, spring frost and hail, short bright summers

On the map

Burgundy — 29 500 haLanguedoc — 220 000 haBordeaux — 110 000 haSicily — 98 000 haVeneto — 96 000 haPuglia — 87 000 haSouthern Rhône — 66 000 haRioja — 66 000 haTuscany — 60 000 haLoire Valley — 57 000 haEmilia-Romagna — 50 000 haKakheti — 48 000 haSouth-West France — 45 000 haPiedmont — 43 000 haDouro — 43 000 haChampagne — 34 000 haAbruzzo — 33 000 haUtiel-Requena — 32 000 haProvence — 27 000 haSardinia — 27 000 haFriuli — 25 000 haRibera del Duero — 25 000 haPenedès — 25 000 haPfalz — 23 000 haCampania — 23 000 haAlentejo — 22 000 haMinho — 21 000 haRueda — 20 000 haDão — 20 000 haMarche — 16 000 haAlsace — 15 600 haBeaujolais — 13 500 haBurgenland — 13 000 haUmbria — 12 000 haCalabria — 9 000 haMosel — 8 800 haDalmatia — 8 000 haJerez — 7 000 haCyprus — 7 000 haAttica — 6 500 haFranken — 6 100 haCorsica — 6 000 haTokaj — 5 800 haAlto Adige — 5 600 haValais — 4 800 haNorthern Rhône — 4 400 haRías Baixas — 4 300 haNahe — 4 200 haSussex & Kent — 4 000 haRheingau — 3 200 haBierzo — 3 000 haNemea — 3 000 haSavoie — 2 200 haJura — 2 000 haPriorat — 2 000 haWachau — 1 350 haValdeorras — 1 300 haSantorini — 1 100 haNaoussa — 700 haMadeira — 450 haColares — 20 haBurgundyLanguedocBordeauxSicilyVenetoPugliaSouthern RhôneRiojaTuscanyLoire ValleyEmilia-RomagnaKakhetiSouth-West FrancePiedmontDouroChampagneAbruzzoUtiel-RequenaProvenceSardiniaFriuliRibera del DueroPenedèsPfalzCampaniaAlentejoMinhoRuedaDãoMarcheAlsaceBeaujolaisBurgenlandUmbriaCalabriaMoselDalmatiaJerezCyprusAtticaFrankenCorsicaTokajAlto AdigeValaisNorthern RhôneRías BaixasNaheSussex & KentRheingauBierzoNemeaSavoieJuraPrioratWachauValdeorrasSantoriniNaoussaMadeiraColares
Blob size ≈ vineyard area · approximate locations · coastlines from Natural Earth

The holy land of terroir. From Cîteaux, founded in 1098, the monks walled, named and tasted the vineyards of the Côte d'Or into a map of climats — inscribed by UNESCO in 2015 — where two grapes are made to say a thousand different things. Philip the Bold banished the "disloyal" Gamay in 1395 to keep the slope for Pinot Noir.

The Revolution sold off the Church's vineyards and the Napoleonic code of equal inheritance kept dividing them, until the fifty hectares of Clos de Vougeot had some eighty owners. Burgundy is that mosaic: a narrow limestone escarpment where Chardonnay and Pinot Noir achieve, wall by wall, the most precise expression of place in wine.

The vineyard

Indicative share of plantings

The wines

Red Burgundy Red wine White Burgundy Dry white Chablis Dry white Bouzeron Dry white

Through time

Indicative presence index, 0–100Origins & Antiquity — 10The Monastic Middle Ages — 70Exploration & the Fortified Age — 45Classifications & the Golden Age — 55Phylloxera & the World Crises — 45The Modern & New World Era — 80Antiquity10500150017001875195080
Origins & Antiquity Antiquity The Monastic Middle Ages 500 Exploration & the Fortified Age 1500 Classifications & the Golden Age 1700 Phylloxera & the World Crises 1875 The Modern & New World Era 1950