Pinot Noir is responsible for some of the world’s finest wines. Famed for producing the red wines of Burgundy and the Côte d’Or in particular, it is now widely grown in cool climates across Califonia and Oregon, and with increasing success in New Zealand. Although typically used to produce varietal wines, Pinot Noir makes a significant contribution in the wines of Champagne, where it is vinified as a white wine and blended with Cardonnay and Pinot Meunier. On the whole, fresh summer fruit of strawberries, raspberries and red cherries tend to be the identifying qualities, however richer versions express darker fruit including black cherries (kirsch), cherry cola, leather and violets to name a few.
Two hundred miles south east of Paris lies the famous and historic wine region, known in French as Bourgogne. The Cote d'Or, the heartland of the region, consists of two distinct sub-regions split on either side of the town of Beaune.The Côte de Nuits to the north, includes the famous villages of Vosne-Romanee, Gevrey-Chambertin, and Nuits-Saint-Georges and are known primarily for making red wine from Pinot Noir.Although The Côte de Beaune to the south still makes some magnificent reds (see Volnay and Pommard), white wine made from Chardonnay is the main focus. The most famous villages are Puligny-Montrachet and Meursault. Burgundy has three other important regions. The village of Chablis (exclusively Chardonnay) encompassing the region's most northerly vineyards. The Côte Chalonnaise and Mâconnais to south are quantitatively speaking more important. Agriculture is more diverse with a significant portion of the land devoted to livestock and arable farming.
Vougeot is a small village in the Cote de Nuits. It is famous for the walled vineyard, Clos de Vougeot, planted by Citeaux monks in 1336. It is one of the largest grand crus in the Cote totaling just over 50 hectares and spans from Musingy, at the top, all the way down to the RN74 road which connects Beaune with Dijon. With varying soil structure, differing aspect and drainage, and a crowded 56 growers vinifying small plots, it's produce can be highly variable. It is no wonder, with the grand cru's size and fame, that the four premier crus: Les Cras, La Vigne Blanche, Clos de la Periere, and Les Petits Vougeots, and the even smaller 4.83 hectares of village wine, gets overlooked. Generally speaking the wines are more voluptuous and spicier but less robust and well defined as the wines of Chambolle-Musigny and Echezeaux next door.
