Beautiful Burgundy

Meursault and Beaune (Burgundy) - July 24 and 25

After breakfast and packing up, we rolled our suitcases along the sidewalk out of our hotel in Lyon and toward the parking garage, where we tossed our things into the back of our rental car and set our GPS for the town of Cluny, which was on the way to our next stop: Meursault, a tiny wine village just ten minutes south of Beaune, which is a larger town in Burgundy. Cluny is known for being the site of a massive abbey that at one point was as powerful as the Vatican. Most of the abbey unfortunately was destroyed during the French Revolution, but parts of it still remain. 

The drive to Cluny was incredible as we meandered through quaint little villages full of charming stone houses where if you blink, you miss the village and are back driving through sprawling vineyards, rows and rows of perfectly spaced lush grapevines, sprawling fields lined with lazy, cylindrical bales of hay, and green fields dotted with white Burgundian cattle (called Charolais), peacefully munching on the grass. 

We arrived in Cluny, and parked in a public lot at the edge of town. We headed towards the town center and found a lovely little Brasserie where we lunched on fresh and tasty salads and finished with more tasty desserts (the French do an amazing job of sweets).

We decided we didn’t have time to invest in exploring the remains of the abbey and the museum, but instead we chose to climb the “Cheese Tower” (apparently they once stored cheese here) for a nice view and an overview of the town. At the first level they had a large, color-coded 3D model of the original abbey. The parts of the building that had been destroyed were painted blue, and existing remains were painted reddish brown, matching the color they still are today. It was very cool to compare the model with the view from the tower window, as it really helped us to visualize what it must have looked like in it’s heyday, and imagine the gargantuan size of it. 

From Cluny, we set our course for Meursault. We drove through more gorgeous Burgundian countryside and were excited by all of the signs for wine tasting, but it was a late on a Sunday afternoon and we figured most places were closed, plus we knew we had a rendezvous with a local winemaker the next day, so we didn’t bother investigating. We arrived at our hotel and were warmly greeted by hotel owner Pascale, who gave us the lay of the land, and offered to make us a dinner reservation at one of the two open restaurants. 

We relaxed for a while before walking a few blocks up to the tiny town’s main square, presided over by a lovely stone church and fountain. Dinner was unremarkable, except that we finally decided to take the opportunity to allow Ewan to try escargots, as they were the least expensive that we had seen thus far. We shared a plate of six, and the most fun was grasping them with the plier-like tool and plucking the meat from the shell with the small, curved two-pronged fork. 

As for the taste, he thought they were OK when washed down with bread and Orangina, but wasn’t a huge fan. I had to agree, and washed mine down with a fruity glass of local Beaujolais, rather than Orangina of course. After dinner we enjoyed a walk around the tranquil town, enjoying the plentiful views of the surrounding vineyards of this wine growing village.

The next day we headed north to the larger town of Beaune. Only ten minutes away by car, we parked in a lot along the town’s ring road, just outside the original town walls. It took us another ten minutes to walk to the town center where we poked around a few shops before finding the entrance to Hotel Dieu, the town’s most remarkable landmark. It was built in the 1400s as a hospital, or rather place of hospice for the poor. It was actually still a functioning hospital well into the 20th century, but it is now an absolutely fascinating museum. The building itself is exceptional, particularly for its colorful tiled roof and abundance of weather vanes. 

The exhibits were all fascinating, including the impressive great hall, with its ceiling built like the hull of a ship, its cross beams supported on each end in the mouths of fancifully carved monsters. 

This hall housed 30 beds (sometimes patients were stacked two to a bed) and was connected to the chapel so the patients would spend their last days connected to God.

It was also fascinating to see many of the medical tools they used, such as saws for amputating limbs, and collection bowls for blood letting (medicine has clearly advanced since then). After a quick peruse of the gift shop, we headed towards the main square where we picked up sandwiches and ate on a park bench facing the town carousel, which, by the way, is ubiquitous. EVERY little town seems to have one. 

We next popped into a wine shop where we shared a tasting from an automated machine dispensing local wines, while Ewan read his Kindle. 

We purchased a local bottle and headed to the car, as we had an appointment we needed to keep. We were lucky enough to have a special connection through a friend from France, who was kind enough to arrange a couple of tastings for us. As luck would have it, she knows a winemaker in Meursault, Marc Rougeot, who happened to live just around the corner from our hotel. From Beaune, we drove back to our hotel to drop our stuff off, and then walked over to his house. We found the doors to a small warehouse on his property where we encountered Marthe, one of his employees who introduced herself and invited us in. We walked out to see some of the vines growing on his property, and she explained that unfortunately there were not a lot of grapes on the vine due to frost and bad weather in April, but at least the grapes that were there looked good. 

She then took us to see his cellars, first the red, and then the white, which is where we would do our tasting. The cellars were very cool, both in temperature and atmosphere. The walls were covered in furry, black and white mold, and there was a wonderful, dank smell of oak mixed with fermenting grapes coming from the plump barrels, all lined up in neat rows. 

This region in known for growing both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes, and we tasted three whites and two reds. We had a lesson about French wines and learned that everything is about the “terroir” or where the grapes come from. Certain vineyards are know as “Grand Cru” which are the best of the best. Wines made from these grapes are the most sought after and expensive because the grapes come from a particular plot that is designated as Grand Cru. Next down the line is “Premier Cru” (wines made from grapes coming from a group of designated vineyards), then there is wine called “Village” which means the grapes come from a specific village, and then the most basic is the regional wine, where the grapes can come from anywhere in the region, i.e. “Bourgogne” wine would come from grapes grown anywhere in Burgundy. 

We loved all of Marc’s wines, and wished we could take home a case, but our packing space was limited and so we only purchased four bottles. We figured we would give a couple of bottles to friends that we would see later in the trip, and then take a couple home. Toward the end of our tasting, Marc himself came down into the cellar to say hello, and ask he he could offer Ewan a glass of lemonade. Wonderful experience overall.

After our tasting, we went back to our charming little hotel and relaxed in the park-like property behind the building and allowed Ewan the chance for a dip in the pool. Having had a rather mediocre meal the night before, we were determined to improve upon our choice of eating establishment and therefore consulted the Michelin guide and found a recommended restaurant right up the street called “Le Chevreuil.” We sat on the back deck overlooking lovely trees and hills and watched hot air balloons float by in the low evening sun. The food was superb, and artfully prepared and presented. A splendid ending to our stay in the gastronomic paradise that is Burgundy.