At a Glance
- Duration: Five-day stay
- Home Base: Beaune, France
- Top Day Trip: Bike ride along the Route des Grands Crus
- Memorable Moment: The Path of Lights tour our first night, seeing the seven most important monuments lit up to tell their story and history.
- Overall Vibe: Tranquil, historic, intensely wine-focused, a bit pretentious, and beautifully set in the autumn colors of the Côte de Beaune.
This Town is Special Because...
Beaune truly is the undisputed "Capital of Burgundy Wines". It’s an ancient walled city where the pace slows down, and every stone seems to whisper the names of famous vineyards. We visited in the fall, which turned out to be less than the perfect season. It was hard to get appointments with some producers due to harvest and the weather can vary with higher rainfall. However, it is never a bad time to go to Beaune. The vineyards were turning brilliant shades of gold, orange, and red, making the landscape spectacular.
Our Home Base: Beaune
We stayed in an apartment right downtown, across from the cathedral, in a building with thick old stone walls and steep, narrow, winding stairs. We felt like we were actually living inside one of the charming, centuries-old buildings.
Unfortunately, our plans were impacted by poor planning and some drama with the weather. We arrived just in time for an abrupt temperature drop, and a relentless forecast of rain. We had planned to walk or bike to many of the wine villages and visit some key producers. I had not reached out to make appointments at wineries prior to arriving and found, due to harvest season, it was hard to get appointments. Additionally, there is little public transportation which also led to us not being able to fulfill our wine visit mission of tasting wine in many of the villages along the Route du Gran Vins. This forced us into a cozy, "inside-out" existence, where we ended up ordering Peacock to watch the Ryder Cup, after visiting the wineries located in Beaune.
Our Beaune Experience: The Day-to-Day
The Path of Lights & Hospices
Our first night, however, offered a spectacular welcome: we caught the very last evening of the city’s summer Path of Lights show. Seven different historical buildings, including the cathedral and the beautiful Hôtel-Dieu, were illuminated with a minute-and-a-half long story.
The Hospices de Beaune (or Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune) was one of the most impactful parts of our stay.
- The History: Founded in 1443 to provide free care for the poor, the museum was magnificent, especially the audio tour narrated by the founders, giving a fascinating glimpse into the 1400s hospital. It continued to be used as a hospital until 1971.
- The Roof: The roof is incredibly famous, covered in colorful, glazed Burgundy tiles (red, brown, green, and yellow) arranged in geometric patterns.
- The Great Hall: Inside, the most striking thing was the level of dignity provided to the patients—they were often two to a bed (instead of four to six found in other hospitals) and had curtained nooks for more privacy. The chapel was positioned so the sickest patients could attend Mass from their beds.
Conquering the Climate (The Bike Ride)
Our greatest triumph was securing bikes for the one single sunny afternoon during our stay. This half-day ride took us straight onto the trail that ran through the hallowed vineyards. Our route took us south from Beaune through the famous villages: Pommard, Volnay, Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, and Chassagne-Montrachet. It was an immensely satisfying way to see the famous Climats (the designated vineyard plots, which are on the UNESCO List). The fall timing was perfect; the vines were already starting to change color, and the vineyard roads were not overly crowded.
Wine: From Grand Cru to the Grinders
Our wine education was immersive and varied, showing us the two distinct faces of Burgundy:
- Joseph Drouhin: We visited their tasting room around the corner from our apartment, which was a great opportunity to sample and purchase two unique wines that are unavailable labels in the US.
- Château de Pommard: This was a high-end experience that required a taxi booking both ways because of the driving rain. The educational value, especially the vertical tasting of six wines, was exceptional. It is important to note that this is a very popular tasting so book in advance and understand that the tasting and wines may be more expensive than other Chateaus.
- Domaine Baptiste Guyot: This tasting offered a wonderful story of ambition and entrepreneurial spirit, as the founders started with just two hectares and ran a bike rental business to generate necessary cash flow.
- Patriarche Père et Fils: We did a self-guided tour of these incredible, historic cellars, which offered ample opportunity for great photos.
- The Quest for Pataille: A personal victory was successfully tracking down a bottle of Domaine Sylvain Pataille wine, which I was able to get in Chicago, but cannot in North Carolina. After striking out with a Google search and a retailer suggestion, we spotted the purple label in the window of a small shop. We felt lucky to finally secured a bottle from the renowned consultant-turned-winemaker.
Culinary Discoveries & Cozy Evenings
The dining scene in Beaune was a step up from Colmar, proving itself to be a true foodie town. However, nicer meals and Michelin stars do mean higher prices. We focused on one amazing meal out a day and then often retreated back to our spacious apartment for wine, cheese, and games. It is so easy to do picnics or nice casual meals at home in Beaune. There are so many wine, cheese and specialty take away shops, as well as pastry and bread shops; that made creating your own charcuterie a dream.
- Michelin & Wingspan: One of our top three favorite days was a perfect mix of high and low culture: enjoying a lovely lunch at La Table Du Square (a Michelin star highlight), followed by wine, snacks, our favorite board game, Wingspan, and watching the Ryder Cup back at the apartment.
- Escargot Triumph: We tried our first authentic escargot de Bourgogne at Au Coq Bleu. Which was just one of the amazing dishes at welcoming restaurant.
- Other Noteworthy Spots: We enjoyed Soul Kitchen, a great one-man show that managed an intimate, 14-seat dining room with impeccable calm. We also had a fabulous dinner at the inventive tapas spot, L’Alentour.
- Local Shops: We really liked Alan Hess, a cheese shop and wine store that was deceptively large with a vast downstairs collection. Our favorite place for breads was Marie’s, where we bought baguettes and the only place we could find focaccia, which we used to make our own pizzas one night.
What We Loved (and Didn't)
The highs were exceptionally high. The unexpected joy of the Path of Lights, the profound history of the Hospices, and the immense satisfaction of cycling the Route des Grands Crus on our lucky sunny day all shone through.
However, the constant rain and cold, made us wish we had chosen a better time to explore Beaune, since so much of the joy is being outside.
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