The Route des Grands Crus runs from Dijon down to Santenay, some sixty kilometres, and Beaune sits exactly halfway. That is a rare advantage: you can head north or south and still be back for dinner. Here is how to approach it, depending on the time you have.
Understanding the Côte before you set off
The Côte-d’Or is a long spine of east-south-east facing slopes, and it splits in two. North of Beaune lies the Côte de Nuits, pinot noir country — Gevrey-Chambertin, Vosne-Romanée, Nuits-Saint-Georges. South lies the Côte de Beaune, where chardonnay produces its greatest whites — Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet — without giving up the reds of Pommard and Volnay.
What makes this place unique are the climats: individual plots, sometimes tiny, whose boundaries in places date back to the Middle Ages, each producing a different wine. They have been UNESCO World Heritage since 2015. A dry stone wall can separate two wines that share neither name, nor price, nor taste.
Half a day: the southern loop
The prettiest if you only do one. Leave Beaune through Pommard, continue to Volnay — stop at the church, the view over the plain is superb — then Meursault and its square, Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet, before dropping down to Santenay. Around 25 kilometres, two hours without stopping, half a day with one tasting and a coffee.
A full day: heading north
Take the road towards Savigny-lès-Beaune, then Aloxe-Corton and its wooded hilltop — Corton, one of the few red grands crus of the Côte de Beaune. Carry on to Nuits-Saint-Georges and Vosne-Romanée, where a plain stone cross in the middle of the vines marks the Romanée-Conti, then the Château du Clos de Vougeot and Gevrey-Chambertin. You reach Dijon by early evening.
Without a car: by bike
The voie des vignes leaves Beaune and reaches Santenay on an almost flat path, away from traffic. It is the most enjoyable way to cross the climats, and the most sensible if you intend to taste. Our two detailed routes are here.
Five rules for tasting well
- Make an appointment. Family estates do not receive visitors who simply push the door open. A message the day before is usually enough — and the welcome is a different thing entirely.
- Two estates a day, not five. A proper visit takes an hour. Beyond two, you stop tasting and start swallowing.
- Agree on a driver. This is not politeness: the police do run checks along the Route des Grands Crus.
- Avoid the harvest if you want to meet the growers. In late August and September they are out in the vines.
- Buy what you will not find at home. The famous names are everywhere; the smaller appellations — Saint-Romain, Auxey-Duresses, Monthelie — are found almost only at the estate, and offer the best pleasure-to-price ratio on the whole Côte.
A gentle way in
If the appellations make your head spin, start with the Cité des Climats et Vins de Bourgogne, in Beaune itself. An hour there and the map of the Côte becomes readable — the rest of your stay benefits.
We know the growers around here and we are glad to make your appointments with you. Tell us what you like to drink and we will know where to send you. For the rest of the trip, see our guide to Beaune.
