The two Côtes
Côte de Nuits vs Côte de Beaune: the villages this tour actually visits
The tour crosses both halves of Burgundy's Côte d'Or in a single day. Here's what separates them, and where the day's stops fall on each side.
See Burgundy wine tour tickets on GetYourGuide ↗The two Côtes, compared
| Côte de Nuits | Côte de Beaune | |
|---|---|---|
| Direction from Beaune | North | South, and around Beaune itself |
| Known for | Red wine, mostly Pinot Noir | White wine, mostly Chardonnay |
| Grand crus | Holds most of Burgundy's red grand crus | Fewer grand crus, mostly white |
| Villages on this tour | Nuits-Saint-Georges, Chambolle-Musigny | Near Beaune (the opening tasting) |
| Landmark passed | Clos de Vougeot, Vosne-Romanée | Beaune's old town and ramparts |
Why Beaune sits on the border
Beaune gives its name to the southern half of the Côte d'Or, but the town itself sits close to the dividing line between the two Côtes — which is exactly why it works as a base for a tour that visits both in one day. The morning tasting, close to town, is technically Côte de Beaune territory; everything after Clos de Vougeot is Côte de Nuits.
The Côte de Nuits is where the day's grand cru comes from
Running north from around Dijon to just past Nuits-Saint-Georges, the Côte de Nuits holds the large majority of Burgundy's red grand cru vineyards, Clos de Vougeot and the vineyards around Vosne-Romanée and Gevrey-Chambertin among them. Nuits-Saint-Georges, one of this tour's two afternoon stops, gives its own name to the whole stretch of hillside.
Chambolle-Musigny closes the day on its lightest note
Wines from Chambolle-Musigny, the tour's final stop, are usually described as the most perfumed and delicate reds the Côte de Nuits produces — a deliberate change of register from the firmer, more structured wines of Nuits-Saint-Georges earlier in the afternoon. Tasting them back to back is the easiest way to hear the difference villages make, rather than reading about it.
The Côte de Beaune's reputation is built on white wine
South of the town of Beaune, through Pommard, Volnay, Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet, the Côte de Beaune is where Burgundy's most famous white wines come from, built on Chardonnay rather than Pinot Noir. This tour's route doesn't run that far south, but the contrast is worth knowing: the reds tasted on this trip belong to the Côte de Nuits' tradition, not the white-wine country just past Beaune.
One road makes the geography click
Reading about the Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune on a map is one thing; driving the Route des Grands Crus with someone naming the vineyards as they pass is another. Most travellers report that the geography — which had been an abstract list of village names — makes sense for the first time somewhere around the Clos de Vougeot stop.