Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Copy of Wine Roads

Here’s some information on wine tours that may be of interest, particularly if you're planning a fall tour. Route 74 running just south of Dijon paralleling the Route E1 autobahn and passing through Chenove, Brochon, Nuits St. Georges, Pommard, Santenay among other villages gives one an opportunity for some scenic sightseeing as well as any number of opportunities for wine tastings. In Colombey les deux Eglises, a small historical town just west of Chaumont on Route 19 there's a charming country inn, Auberge de la Montagne Rooms are 190F to 280F as of a couple of years ago. It's at Rue d'Argentolles - 52330 Colombey-les-deux-Eglises. telephone: 25.01.51.69 Fax: 25.01.53.20. It, too, has a gourmet regional restaurant. You've selected the ideal area for wine tasting! You'll see many signs for wine tasting and tours on the roads as you drive south of Dijon. Look for the word "degustation" and you'll find wine tasting opportunities. Many of the wineries require advance reservations. Below is a list of a number of them that I don't think require advanced reservations. They are all located in Dijon or in towns just south of Dijon. It's rare to find a wine bargain in Burgundy; expect to pay 40 to 50 francs for a bottle. (Perhaps you can settle for a jar or two of pate.) Here's the list: Dijon: Caves de l'Espace Grevin, 13 Avenue Albert 1er. Open daily. Tastings in the cellar beneath the city's new waxworks museum. Dijon: Caveau de la Port Guillaume, Place Darcy. Open every afternoon. Beaune: Cave des Hautes-Cotes, Route de Pommard. Open Monday - Saturday. Beaune: Cave des Cordeliers, 6 Rue de l'Hotel-Dieu. Open daily. Tastings in a Franciscan friars abbey. Beaune: Marche aux Vins, Rue Nicolas Rollin. Open daily. Wine-tasting cellar in front of the Hospices. Beaune: Patriarche Pere et Fils, 7 Rue du College. The largest cellars in Burgundy. Nuit-St-Georges: Morin Pere et Fils, 9 Quai Fleury. Open daily. An 18th century cellar. Nuit-St-Georges: Cave Moillard-Grivot, Route RN74. Open Monday to Friday. Santenay: Domain de la Buissiere Vougeot: La Grande Cave, Route RN 74. Open daily. Tasting of "grands vins" in ancient cellars. The following is rather interesting and might be a source for less expensive wine: France has 14 secondary schools that train young people how to plant, grow, ferment, age and bottle wine. There is such a school in Beaune, just south of Dijon. It is the Lycee Viticole, 16 Avenue Charles Jaffelin. From 8 AM to noon and 2PM to 5:30 (closed on Saturday afternoon and Sunday) you can taste and purchase the excellent, relatively inexpensive wines made by the students as part of their studies. Cellar visits are also possible. There are free 2 1/2 hour guided tours (in French) on certain Saturday mornings at 9:30 AM. Telephone 03 80 26 35 81 for details.