The Climats of Burgundy are, in plain terms, the vineyard plots of the Côte d'Or, each one with its own name and character, worked and described by monks and growers for nearly a thousand years. The word means little parcels of land with a specific soil, slope and exposure, and the idea is that two vines a few metres apart can yield wines that taste different. Near Ladoix-Serrigny and Beaune the slope faces east and south-east, and the great hill of Corton rises above the villages, covered in vines and crowned with woods.
History is soaked into these slopes. The Cistercians at Cîteaux and the Benedictines at Cluny began mapping the best ground in the Middle Ages, and the dukes of Burgundy later regulated and protected the wines. In Beaune the Hospices, a hospital with a brightly tiled roof founded in 1443, still owns vineyards and holds a famous charity auction every November. The patterns on the roof are glazed tiles in green, red, yellow and black.
For a rider, this is gentle, civilised country. The Route des Grands Crus, which runs along the foot of the slope from Dijon to Santenay, is a fine road for an easy day: smooth, lightly curved and lined with stone walls, village after village with famous names on the signs. Speeds are modest, the villages have speed bumps and cameras, and in the autumn harvest tractors and grape-laden trailers share the road, so patience is part of the deal. Wet leaves and mud from the vineyards can make the surface slick.
Beaune, four kilometres away and a town of about twenty-four thousand, has fuel, restaurants and a lively centre inside its old walls. Burgundy cooking is rich: beef bourguignon, eggs in red wine sauce, gougères and, in the season, fresh snails. Late September brings the colours; May has the vines in fresh green. A tasting is pleasant, but remember that you are riding.