Bourgogne Côte d’Or, a relatively new addition to the regional Bourgogne appellation, indicates that all the grapes came from the prestigious Côte d’Or. I find wines with this appellation made by top producers, like Domaine Michel Bouzereau, to be the place to find bargains in Burgundy.… Read more

Since there are five Meursault-based producers containing the name Bouzereau, the consumer must read the label carefully. Though I’ve not tasted wine from all of them, the wines from Domaine Michel Bouzereau, which I have tasted over many years, are so terrific that I can’t imagine there’s a better one.… Read more

In the right hands, like those of Domaine Michel Bouzereau, the wines from Les Grands Charrons, a lieu-dit, can come across as a Premier Cru. As much as I like their Clos du Moulin, Les Grands Charrons is just longer, deeper with more finesse.… Read more

Montagny, an appellation that takes its name from the eponymous town in the Côte Chalonnaise, is a consistently fine place for affordable white Burgundy. It boasts many 1er Cru vineyards as a quirk of war. Situated within the occupied zone during World War II, the Germans had to pay for classified wines, so growers rushed to get vineyards promoted.… Read more

The Mâconnais in southern Burgundy continues to be a great source for well-priced Chardonnay-based white wines, like this one. If the grapes come exclusively from one of the 26 villages recognized to produce more distinctive wine, like Pierreclos, its name can appear on the label.… Read more

Rully, a village in Burgundy’s Côte Chalonnaise just south of the more famous and expensive Côte d’Or, is a fine place to find more affordable red and white wines. Domaine Dureuil-Janthial, arguably the appellation’s best producer, is a good address at which to start to discover this appellation.… Read more

About 90 percent of holdings of Domaine Joblot, one of the top producers in Givry, are in 1er (or “Premier”) Cru vineyards, like this one. This 4th generation, still family-owned estate, farms all their vineyards organically. Although most of Givry’s production is red, that Côte Chalonnaise village does produce distinctive whites, like Joblot’s En Veau.… Read more

While $70 would not be considered an inexpensive wine for most people, this stunning white Burgundy is a bargain for what it delivers. Its lowly appellation – not even a specific village within the Côte Chalonnaise – highlights the failings of the French appellation system and reminds consumers to avoid being wedded to it.… Read more

Maison Louis Jadot, one of Burgundy’s best négociants, is a major grower, owning, through their various estates, over 300 acres of vineyards in the Côte d’Or. Clos des Ursules was the first vineyard Maison Louis Jadot acquired two hundred years ago, in 1826.… Read more

Aligoté, Burgundy’s “other” white grape, has historically been used in Kir, an aperitif because it needed a dollop of crème de cassis to balance the screeching acidity inherent to the grape. A combination of climate change and renewed focus by producers such as Sylvain Pataille has created a renaissance for Aligoté.… Read more

Santenay, a village in the Côte de Beaune abutting the southern border of Chassagne-Montrachet, makes far more red wine than white. Guillaume Marko, the winemaker at Domaine du Cellier aux Moines, explains that the sites in northern Santenay, bordering Chassagne-Montrachet where they have their small, 0.25-ha plot, are also especially well-suited for Chardonnay.… Read more

Aligoté, another white grape permitted in Burgundy, used to be planted in Grand Cru sites, like Corton Charlemagne and Montrachet, along with Chardonnay in the 19th century, but has fallen out of favor and now represents only about seven percent of Burgundy’s plantings.… Read more

Domaine du Cellier aux Moines, which owns 5-ha of prime vineyards in Givry and has their state-of-the-art gravity flow winery there, specializes in red wines from that appellation even though Givry can produce whites. For white wines, they have purchased small plots in appellations in the Côte de Beaune, and have long-term farming contracts in Montagny, the source for this wine.… Read more