Burgundy Grand Cru Route (122 km)

Dijon to Santenay · one way, about 122 km back to the start

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Why this ride

A one-way ride of 122 km, Dijon to Chagny - roughly 1 h 38 in the saddle. It goes by way of Gevrey Chambertin, Nuits Saint Georges, Beaune and Meursault. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.

Roadbook

1. Dijon start

   Dijon was the capital of the Dukes of Burgundy, who in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries were richer than many kings, and the city still carries the marks of that time. The Palais des Ducs, now a town hall and fine arts museum, stands on a wide, curved square, and the narrow streets of the old centre are lined with half-timbered houses and carved doorways. On the wall of the church of Notre-Dame, a small stone owl, the chouette, is worn smooth by the hands of visitors who stroke it with the left hand for luck.

   The city is also famous for mustard, which has been made here since the Middle Ages, and for crème de cassis, the blackcurrant liqueur that, mixed with white wine, makes a kir, named after a mayor of the city. You can buy both in shops around the covered market, designed with the help of Gustave Eiffel's workshop, and it is the best place for a lunch of cheese, ham and bread.

   For riders, Dijon is the northern gateway to the Route des Grands Crus, the stretch of road, mostly the D974, which runs south along the foot of the Côte d'Or through the most famous vineyards in France: Gevrey-Chambertin, Vougeot, Vosne-Romanée, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Beaune. The climats, the small named plots of vines that make Burgundy so particular, were recognised by UNESCO in 2015. The road is gentle, with stone walls, church towers and low sun on the vines, and it is at its best in September and October, when the harvest is under way and the leaves turn red and gold.

   Fuel is plentiful in the city and its suburbs, with big stations around the ring roads, and finding food is no challenge. Parking a bike in the centre is usually easy, but note that parts of the old town are pedestrian. Keep a clear head in the evening, since the same road that you ride in the morning leads past dozens of cellars, and a tasting is only polite if you leave the glass half full.

2. Gevrey Chambertin scenic

   Napoleon is said to have drunk Chambertin on campaign, and whether or not the story is true, the wine has had a reputation as a king among Burgundies for centuries. Gevrey-Chambertin is its home, a wine village of about three thousand people at the northern end of the Côte de Nuits, a few kilometres south of Dijon. The name has two parts: Gevrey is the village, and Chambertin, supposedly from the field of Bertin, is the vineyard that gave the village fame, to the point that it added the name in the nineteenth century.

   The wine route here is the Route des Grands Crus, and it follows the D974, the old main road from Dijon to Beaune. It runs along the foot of the limestone slope, with the vineyards climbing above to the right and the plain stretching away to the left, and is a pleasure at a moderate speed, with gentle curves and little gradient. Traffic can be heavy, especially at weekends and harvest, and the road passes through a series of villages with speed limits that are checked. If you prefer a quieter ride, the lanes that wind through the vineyards are narrow and slow, but they let you see the walled clos, the famous small plots, at close range.

   Gevrey has nine grand cru vineyards, among the most famous in Burgundy, all planted with Pinot Noir, the single red grape of the region. The soil is limestone and marl, and the slope faces east, catching the morning sun. The idea that a few metres of ground can change the taste of a wine is called terroir, and here it is taken very seriously: the local winegrowers have mapped and named every small parcel, which they call climats, and the Climats of the Burgundy vineyards were added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2015.

   The village also has a medieval castle, built by the monks of Cluny in the tenth century and rebuilt later, standing in the middle of the village, and a church with a Romanesque tower. The little streets are lined with cellars and tasting rooms, though the great estates are often by appointment. Burgundy food is rich and satisfying: boeuf bourguignon, eggs poached in red wine sauce, snails baked in garlic butter and, to finish, a plate of Époisses, a strong washed-rind cheese. Gougères, light cheese puffs, are the classic nibble with a glass.

   Fuel and supermarkets are best found at Marsannay-la-Côte, about five kilometres to the north, or in Dijon. There are cafés and restaurants in the village, but as always in France, many close between lunch and dinner and on Mondays.

3. Nuits Saint Georges scenic

   Nuits-Saint-Georges is the working capital of the Côte de Nuits, a town of about five thousand people that has made its living from wine for centuries, and it feels less like a museum than the pretty villages around it. Behind the main street, the old streets are full of cellars, wine merchants and négociants, the firms that buy grapes and ferment, blend and bottle them. The wines are mostly red, made from Pinot Noir, and are known for being structured, earthy and long-lived, with a firm backbone that rewards patience. There are no grands crus in the appellation, but there are many outstanding premiers crus, such as Les Saint-Georges, regarded by many as the equal of a grand cru.

   The town also holds a charity auction of its wines every spring, the Hospices de Nuits sale, a smaller sibling of the famous Hospices de Beaune event in November. The proceeds fund the care of the sick, as they have since the eighteenth century. In a more modern turn, Nuits is also the centre of the Burgundy blackcurrant trade, and a visitor centre called the Cassissium explains how the fruit is turned into crème de cassis, the liqueur that, mixed with white wine, gives the drink called kir.

   The Route des Grands Crus runs through the town on the D974, and on a bike it is a calm, scenic ride rather than a technical one. The road follows the slope of the Côte, with vineyards rising to the west and the plain of the Saône to the east, and the traffic in summer can be heavy and slow. Early mornings in May, June, September and October are the best times, with soft light and cool air. In the harvest, from September, tractors and trailers fill the lanes, and the smell of fermenting must hangs in the air.

   Vineyard tracks lead up into the combes, the little valleys that cut into the limestone escarpment, where oak and box woods give way to scrub and rocky outcrops. Above the vines, the plateau is mostly forest and farmland, and the hills are riddled with caves.

   As a proper town, Nuits-Saint-Georges has everything a rider needs: fuel stations, supermarkets, banks, bakeries, and a good range of restaurants and cafés. It is also a convenient overnight stop, with a selection of small hotels and guesthouses. Try local specialities such as jambon persillé, ham in parsley jelly, and a glass of Aligoté or a local Crémant de Bourgogne.

4. Beaune scenic

   Beaune is a walled city that has turned itself into a wine cellar. The ramparts survive almost all the way round, and behind them the streets are a mixture of cobbles, courtyards, shopfronts and tasting rooms, with the great Burgundy houses sharing alleys with cheese shops and mustard sellers. At the south end of the Côte d'Or, it is where the grand cru road begins, and for a rider it is as much a pause in history as it is a stop for fuel and food.

   The Hospices de Beaune is the thing to see, even if only from the outside. The hospital was founded in the fifteenth century by Nicolas Rolin, chancellor of the Duke of Burgundy, and its roof of coloured glazed tiles in diamond patterns has become the emblem of Burgundy. Inside, the old wards and the great hall are open to visitors, and the hospice still owns vineyards whose wine is sold at a famous charity auction every November. If you arrive on that weekend, the city will be heaving and rooms will be impossible, so plan accordingly.

   North of town, the Route des Grands Crus runs along the foot of the slope through villages whose names are on wine lists around the world: Pommard and Volnay just to the south, Savigny-lès-Beaune to the north-west, and on toward Nuits-Saint-Georges and Dijon. The road is more a scenic drift than a sports ride, with low walls, small plots and the vines turning gold in October. Early morning light on the slope is the best time, and weekdays are quieter than weekends.

   Beaune has twenty-four thousand people and all the services you could want. Fuel is easy at the stations on the ring road, and there are plenty of cafés in the central squares. Parking for motorcycles is usually manageable at the edge of the old town, though a boulevard slot fills early on a fine day. Burgundy lunches run long, so decide before you sit down if you are riding on afterwards, and choose the glass accordingly.

5. Meursault scenic

   Meursault makes white wine of a style that is hard to describe except to say that people who love Chardonnay often name it as the finest. The wines are rich and round, with hazelnut, butter and a mineral spine, and they are made from grapes grown on the lower slopes of the Côte de Beaune, south of the town of Beaune. There are no grands crus here, but premiers crus such as Perrières and Genevrières have a reputation that equals many of the grands crus of other villages.

   Every November, the village hosts La Paulée de Meursault, a huge lunch held on the Monday after the Hospices de Beaune auction, to which growers bring their own bottles to share with friends and guests. It is the third of the Trois Glorieuses, the three great days of Burgundy wine, and the atmosphere is one of boisterous celebration, with toasts, songs and the pouring of rare vintages. Visitors may not be invited, but the village comes alive that weekend.

   The village itself is attractive without being showy. Its town hall, with a roof of glazed multicoloured tiles in the Burgundian style, stands on the main square, and the church has a tall Gothic spire that can be seen from the vineyards. A château and cellars of local growers line the lanes, and in summer, cafés set tables outside under the trees. Many of the lanes are narrow, and tourist traffic is heavy at times, so take your time.

   For a rider, the Route des Grands Crus here is a gentle, undulating road, with the D974 running along the base of the slope and smaller lanes climbing between the vineyards. Surfaces are good, and the bends are easy, but the real attraction is the setting, with rows of vines in orderly stripes, limestone walls and the pale stone of the villages. In autumn the leaves turn gold and red, in spring the vines flush bright green, and in July the heat can be intense, so early morning rides are best. Cycling is popular here, and you will share the road with groups of riders on the quieter lanes. Park for tastings and keep the bike for the road. Many estates offer tastings by appointment, so ask at the local tourist office or at the cellar doors, and be prepared to buy a bottle in return.

   Beaune, about seven kilometres to the north, is the nearest big town, and it has fuel, supermarkets and the famous Hôtel-Dieu, the Hospices de Beaune, a medieval almshouse with a spectacular tiled roof. Meursault itself is small but has a few restaurants and wine shops.

6. Santenay finish

   Santenay is the last stop on a very famous road. The Route des Grands Crus runs south from Dijon through the Côte d'Or, a thin strip of limestone hills facing east, and passes through villages whose names are on wine lists across the world: Gevrey-Chambertin, Vosne-Romanée, Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet. By the time it reaches Santenay, the great names have mostly fallen behind, but the vineyards are still lovely, with neat rows of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and the wines here, less expensive and less grand, are often fine value. The village is small, with a pretty church, a few cellars and a thermal spa that dates back to the nineteenth century.

   The wine of Burgundy is shaped by tiny differences in soil, slope and exposure, and the vineyards are divided into plots called climats, each with its own character and history, which UNESCO listed as a World Heritage Site in 2015. Monks, especially Cistercians and Benedictines, spent centuries tending these slopes and recording which plots made the best wine, and their descendants, the family estates, still hold to the system. The names on the labels are not just brands but places, and you can walk or ride through them and see the stone walls and small huts that mark the boundaries.

   The ride is all about pace. The roads run through villages and vineyards, with stone houses, low walls and cellar signs inviting you in for a tasting, but a rider must be disciplined: sip and spit, or buy a bottle for later. Traffic can be slow, especially during the harvest in September and early October, when tractors and trailers fill the lanes, and the smell of crushed grapes hangs in the air. In spring, the vines are bright green, and in autumn the leaves turn red and gold, which is the loveliest time.

   Chagny, about four kilometres away, is the nearest town of any size, with fuel and supermarkets and a handful of excellent restaurants. Burgundian cooking is rich and slow, with beef braised in red wine, snails baked in garlic butter, the cheesy puffs called gougères and a pungent cheese called Époisses. Many cellars close at lunch and on Sundays, so telephone ahead if you want a tasting. Weather is changeable, with hail a risk in summer, and a sudden storm can ruin a vintage and a ride at once.

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