France, Part 5-Wining and Dinning in Beune and Nuit Saint Georges

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Note: All events described in this entry occurred in October 2006. For more updated entries and trips, please refer back to this blog at a later date. Entries that take place in the present day will NOT include this note at the top. Thanks!

My life upon my return to France was not 100% pleasant. The relationship between my host mother and I was beginning to deteriorate quickly and my needs were just not being met in my foreign exchange program. I decided to yet schedule more trips within France. I decided that I would spend a weekend touring both of the most famous cities for wine within the Cote d'Or department of Burgundy: Beaune and Nuit Saint Georges.

I go down to the SNCF office and book both of these trips (by now I was in there often enough that they knew me on a first name basis). I chose Beaune because I was told by my host mother that it had some great historical sites and also was a great place to try Burgundian wine. Since my first taste of wine the previous month (refer to the blog entry with "My First Taste of Wine" in the subtitle), I was willing to get used to the flavors, but also take the time to learn about Burgundy and why its is considered to be one of the most important wine regions in France. Let's face it, I had the chance of a lifetime to learn about wine in a famous wine region-I felt that I would be a dumb ass for not taking the chance to actually try more wine and learn about it. I wanted to return to Nuit Saint Georges after my accidental descent from my train from Lyon to Dijon there when I first arrived back in August (please refer to blog entry with "The Arrival" in the subtitle). I became intrigued with more details about the small town after spending an hour at the train station and my chance conversation with that woman in the wine/creme du cassis business, made me think I should see what else is there.

Friday came and I was off to Beaune. Beaune is located 30 minutes south of Dijon (and probably about 15 minutes away from Nuit Saint Georges). After getting off the station, I first headed over to the visitor center in order to get a map and some brochures regarding where to visit first. After leaving the visitor center, I decide to visit the edifice across the street, known as the Hotel-Dieu (House of God). This has a lovely, free museum that details this building's transformation from a convent, to one of the first hospitals in Europe to also the site of one of the greatest wines in the region, Beaune (a red wine made from pinot noir grapes I believe-more on Burgundian wine later in this entry). You will see little exhibits with plaques that describe the significance of rooms, how patients were cared for and also how the nuns lived and worshiped in this complex. It's worth seeing really for the beautiful, Burgundian architecture and tiled roof but also for its unique history. After touring the museum I decided to take a break by going to the main town square and I ate a crepe filled with nutella (my favorite snack during my 9 months in France-yum!)

My next stop is to visit the local Cathedral du Notre Dame (most cities in France have one with this name), which looks rather plain from the exterior, however was quite large and sunny inside, with actual figured sculpted into the sides of some of the columns-the most memorable for me was one of a knight with his sword in hand ready to attack.

I then go into the Wine Museum, which is a must because it is very informative, more so than the one I found in Nuit Saint Georges. The Museum went into detail about the history of wine making in the region, methods used and an overview of the wines produced in the Burgundy region. I will warn you, Burgundy is a very complex region to learn and here's why: the region is divided up into departments or like little counties within the province-I believe there are five but the two I remember most distinctly are Chablis and Cote d'Or. Cote d'Or is the heart within the Burgundy wine production realm and has existed within the region because it's the most productive. Within Cote d'Or, there are a bunch (so many I don't remember the exact number) of "Cotes" or vineyard hot spots is the best way I can describe it, which is divided according to each city within Cote d'Or. The ones to remember are Cote du Beaune, Cote du Nuit Saint Georges, Cote du Macon Ville I think is another and Cote du Chalone sur Saone. The best wines from the region are reported to come from here. Since the 13th, 14th centuries, one of the dukes declared by law that wines would be produced from either pinot noir grapes (for red wines) and chardonnay for white which still persists. I don't remember much else, and I will admit I'm still continuing the learning process about Burgundian wines 5 years later! Therefore I suggest that you buy a book on the subject (most vineyards and wine stores in the region will have one) and/or do a wine tasting like I did after seeing the wine museum.

I did mine at "les vins du Beaune" or the Wines of Beaune. You pay 10 euro in order to try the 37+ wines that are produced within Cote du Beaune area, and I think also in Cote d'Or in general. I came out happy and drunk, but with a firmer understanding of local wine and more acclimated to the taste! I even had my favorites-which were 1)Cote du Nuit Villages (red wine), 2) Pouilly-Fuisee (white wine) 3) Pinot Noir Bourgogne (red) 4) Chardonney Bourgogne (white) 5) Aligote (white) and 6) Beaune (red wine). After my wine tasting I decided to have dinner at a local restaurant, where I had the best coq au vin ever for 12 euro (it was in a restaurant near the major square). Before heading home, I bought some traditional wine glasses for myself and for a friend's wedding gift, and then I also got a half bottle of Cote du Nuit Villages and a bottle opener for the road.

The next day, I head on the train yet again for Nuit Saint Georges. The city is very small; all there really is to see and do is visit vineyards, eat great Burgundian traditional cuisine and to admire the lovely local architecture. I went to see one vineyard a short walk out from centre ville as recommended by a local wine seller. On my way, I went to a local restaurant where I ate a 3 course meal for 15 euros, in which I ate salad I think, boef bourgogne and mousse au chocolat (one of the best meals I had during my trip). I then head to the Museum of Nuit Saint Georges/ Wine Museum. It's a very small museum, kind of similar to the wine museum in Beaune, however it was great to learn about how Nuit Saint Georges developed. It started as a Roman camp like most French cities and then developed in one of the wine Meccas of Burgundy. I then go to the vineyard where I get to tour the aging rooms, learn how the wine goes from vine to bottle, and then I get to taste 5 wines.

I go back to Nuit Saint Georges next Saturday because there were two places I didn't see during my first visit. I first go back to see the factory where Creme du Bourgogne is made. Creme du Bourgogne is Burgundy's only sparkling wine. I forget the name of the factory sadly but it was a joy visiting because there was an interactive museum that showed how the wine was made, how it compares to champagne (which comes from the region Champagne, however this is the closest to champagne because it was brought over by a young man in the 18th century who had stolen the recipe from the Champagne region). Then after, you get to try all the different sparkling wines they make: a rose, and four differently aged wines, with a brut which was aged and used the same exact grapes as a fine champagne (and tasted pretty close to it) and three younger sparkling wines (which I don't remember the distinctions because I got too drunk during the tasting). There was a very friendly bar tender from the UK there of whom I began to talk to about my travels, wine and compared our experiences living in France. He poured me copious samples of all the sparkling wines they had. I liked the wines so much that I decided to buy a bottle of the rose (about 7 euros). I then make my way to the creme de cassis (black current liquor), which was five minutes from closing, so all I had time for was the tasting and gift shop, where I bought a small bottle of creme de cassis to take home.

So I go home feeling happy and drunk. I actually don't get to enjoy my bottle of Cote de Nuit Villages for another two weeks, as well as my creme de cassis because I end up moving from my host mother's apartment to a dorm in the Residence International pour Etudients which was connected to my program and the University of Burgundy. My creme de bourgogne would not be enjoyed until New Years.

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