A Village Appellation, and Nothing Else
It must be said at once, because it is the source of every confusion: the "Côte de Beaune vineyard" refers to the southern half of the Côte-d'Or, from Ladoix-Serrigny to the Maranges, with its twenty-odd village appellations. The "Côte de Beaune" AOC, on the other hand, is a Village appellation like Volnay or Monthélie, produced exclusively within the commune of Beaune. The BIVB states it unambiguously on its official fact sheet: commune of production, Beaune; and "it must not be confused with the Côte de Beaune-Villages appellation, which is different".
The area is tiny by Burgundian standards: 13.04 hectares in red and 17.34 hectares in white in 2022, for an average harvest of about 400 hectolitres of red and 459 hectolitres of white over the 2017-2021 period. In other words, some thirty hectares in all — less than many a premier cru climat — and a confidential production rarely met with in the shops. That is precisely what makes it a curiosity for the enthusiast.
The Terroir: The Balcony of the Montagne de Beaune
The vineyard occupies the heights of the Montagne de Beaune, on the balcony just above the premiers crus of the Beaune appellation. We are between 300 and 370 metres in altitude, appreciably higher than the heart of the Côte: it is this belvedere position, above the noble belt of the slope, that explains the very existence of a separate appellation. Since the two Beaune appellations were instituted in 1936, the highest part of the town's land has been classified as Côte de Beaune, the lower and middle parts remaining Beaune and Beaune premier cru.
The soils are brown limestone and calcic soils, developed on oolitic limestones and on the Rauracian formations — the old name, still used in Burgundy, for the Upper Oxfordian limestones of the Jurassic. These terroirs are valued highly enough for one of Burgundy's experimental vineyards, devoted to vine science, to be sited at Mont Battois, one of the appellation's climats. The other lieux-dits that may appear on the label are Dessus des Marconnets, La Grande Châtelaine, Les Mondes Rondes, Les Monsnières, Les Pierres Blanches and Les Topes Bizot.
Altitude, Exposure and Climate
Altitude is the decisive factor. At 300-370 metres, the vineyard gathers a few growing degree-days fewer than the premier cru slope, which translates into slightly later ripening, better-held acidity and a fresher signature. In a warming context in which the Côte de Beaune is acquiring increasingly southern thermal characteristics, these upper slopes, long considered marginal, are gaining in interest — a phenomenon seen everywhere on Burgundy's back slopes.
The general climate is that of viticultural Burgundy: temperate oceanic with a slight continental tendency, rain spread across the year, cold winters and hot summers punctuated by storms. Spring frost remains the main threat, both pinot noir and chardonnay breaking bud early. The balance of colours has shifted too: historically described by the BIVB as producing two-thirds red to one-third white, the appellation today has more chardonnay than pinot noir in the ground — a telling swing that reflects the current appetite for the whites of the Côte.
The Style of the Wines
The red is a close cousin of the beaune, of which it is in a sense the upstairs neighbour. A clean ruby robe, lightly shot with mauve; a very straight nose, on small red fruits but also with animal, humus and undergrowth accents; a round, flattering palate carried by fine acidity that lets it take a little age. The grip is tasty rather than severe, the texture pleasant and firm. Served between 15 and 16°C, it accompanies roast pork and beef, braised veal, soumaintrain, munster or chaource.
The white plays the full Burgundian chardonnay score: a deep gold robe, bright and lively; aromas of citrus and fresh grass; a round, supple palate well supported by acidity, with a mineral touch and a finish often on hazelnut. Serve it between 12 and 13°C with poultry in white sauce, pasta and seafood risottos, poached or steamed fish, or cheeses such as comté, beaufort and goat.
Not to Be Confused: Three Different "Côte de Beaune"
First trap: the Côte de Beaune-Villages AOC. It is neither the same appellation nor the same product. Côte de Beaune-Villages is a fallback appellation, reserved for reds only, produced in sixteen communes of the Côte de Beaune — from which Beaune, Pommard, Volnay and Aloxe-Corton are notably excluded. It serves essentially to market blends of wines from several communes, something no village appellation permits. The Côte de Beaune AOC, by contrast, really is a village appellation, it exists in red and in white, and it is confined to lieux-dits in Beaune.
Second trap: the suffix. Some village appellations of the Côte de Beaune are entitled to append "Côte de Beaune" to their own name — as with red maranges, whose cahier des charges expressly provides for this complementary geographical denomination. A bottle labelled "Maranges Côte de Beaune" is therefore a maranges, not a côte-de-beaune nor a côte-de-beaune-villages. Three wordings, three realities: remembering that the Côte de Beaune AOC alone is made at Beaune and nowhere else is enough to untangle the essentials.
An Appellation Born of the 1936-1937 Delimitation
The appellation was born with the first generation of Burgundian AOCs. In 1936 the two Beaune appellations were instituted, sharing out the town's land: the highest part went to the Côte de Beaune, the rest to Beaune. The appellation decree dates from 31 July 1937 — the same regulatory wave as Santenay, Côte de Beaune-Villages and most of the villages of the Côte. It was a time when the priority was to fix geographical names in order to fight fraud, even at the cost of creating appellations whose names would then cause confusion for ninety years.
Today the appellation may be followed by the name of the climat the wine comes from, as with every village appellation of the Côte. Seven lieux-dits are listed, from Mont Battois to Les Pierres Blanches — a name that says enough about the nature of the soil. For the enthusiast, a plain "Côte de Beaune" is therefore a wine from Beaune, made on the heights, in a fresher and rarer version than the premiers crus that make the town's glory.