Ladoix-Serrigny
The northernmost village of the Côte de Beaune wraps around the eastern side of the Hill of Corton, sharing Grand Cru parcels with Aloxe-Corton and Pernand-Vergelesses. Its soils of iron-rich limestone, Kimmeridgian marl, and red clay produce wines of structured, earthy character — the same Corton terroir at significantly lower prices. Chronically undervalued by the market, Ladoix rewards those willing to look beyond the famous names on the hill. With only three Premier Crus and a handful of dedicated growers, it remains one of Burgundy's most honest value propositions.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Grand Crus (shared with Aloxe-Corton & Pernand-Vergelesses)
- Corton (portions)
- Corton-Charlemagne (portions)
Premier Crus (3 Premiers Crus Climats)
- La Corvée
- Les Buis
- Les Joyeuses
Top Producers
- Domaine Prince Florent de Mérode
- Domaine Cachat-Ocquidant
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Chevalier
- Domaine Nudant
"Corton iron and structure at village prices — the Côte de Beaune's best-kept secret."
Aloxe-Corton
The powerhouse of the northern Côte de Beaune, Aloxe-Corton is home to Corton — the only red Grand Cru on the entire Côte de Beaune — and the majestic Corton-Charlemagne for white. The Hill of Corton dominates the landscape, its soils shifting dramatically from iron-heavy clay on the lower slopes to lighter Pernand marl on the upper reaches. The result is a spectrum of Pinot Noir ranging from dense, licorice-laden iron wines to more perfumed limestone-mineral expressions. Grand Cru character here is defined by terroir position: know your lieu-dit and you know your wine's soul.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Grand Crus (2 Grands Crus — multiple lieux-dits)
- Corton — Bressandes
- Corton — Clos du Roi
- Corton — Renardes
- Corton — Pougets
- Corton — Perrières
- Corton — Grèves
- Corton — Rognet
- Corton — Fiètres
- Corton — Charlemagne lieu-dit
- Corton-Charlemagne ★ white only
Premier Crus (14 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Clos des Maréchaudes ★
- Clos du Chapitre
- La Coutière
- La Maréchaude
- La Toppe au Vert
- Les Chaillots
- Les Fournières
- Les Guérets
- Les Maréchaudes
- Les Moutottes
- Les Paulands
- Les Petites Lolières
- Les Valozières
- Les Vercots
Top Producers
- Domaine Bonneau du Martray
- Domaine Chandon de Briailles
- Domaine Louis Latour
- Domaine Michel Gay
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Daniel Senard
- Domaine Tollot-Beaut
- Domaine Follin-Arbelet
"The most muscular red on the Côte de Beaune — Corton demands patience and rewards it magnificently."
Pernand-Vergelesses
Tucked into a cool side valley behind the Hill of Corton, Pernand-Vergelesses is one of Burgundy's most underappreciated dual-color appellations. Its north and east-facing slopes — cooled further by the valley's microclimate — produce white wines of piercing, vertical minerality that can rival Puligny-Montrachet at a fraction of the price. Bonneau du Martray, the largest single holder of Corton-Charlemagne with 9.5 hectares, has called Pernand home for generations. The reds, while less famous, show an elegant cool-toned character that rewards extended cellaring.
Tasting Profile — White
Soils & Geology
Grand Crus (shared with Aloxe-Corton & Ladoix)
- Corton (portions incl. Corton-Vergennes)
- Corton-Charlemagne ★ Bonneau du Martray: 9.5ha — largest single holder
Premier Crus (8 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Île des Vergelesses ★
- Clos Berthet
- Creux de la Net
- En Caradeux
- Les Fichots
- Sous Frétille
- Vergelesses
- Village de Pernand
Top Producers
- Bonneau du Martray
- Domaine Rollin Père et Fils
- Domaine Chandon de Briailles
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Rapet Père et Fils
- Domaine Denis Père et Fils
"Cool, vertical, mineral — Pernand's whites rival Puligny and cost half as much."
Savigny-lès-Beaune
One of Burgundy's finest value appellations, Savigny-lès-Beaune splits across two geological personalities divided by a river valley. The north-facing Serpentières side produces silky, oolitic-limestone wines of seductive early appeal; the south-facing Marconnets side yields firmer, clay-limestone wines built for the medium term. Wild red fruits, violet, and forest floor are the signatures. La Dominode, with its century-old vines tended by Bruno Clair, is among the most compelling Premier Cru stories in all of Burgundy — priced a fraction of what equivalent Beaune or Volnay would command.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Premier Crus (22 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Aux Vergelesses ★
- La Dominode ★ 100-year-old vines
- Aux Fourneaux
- Aux Gravains
- Aux Guettes
- Aux Serpentières
- Basses Vergelesses
- Bataillère
- Champ Chevrey
- Les Charnières
- Les Hauts Jarrons
- Les Hauts Marconnets
- Les Jarrons
- Les Lavières
- Les Marconnets
- Les Narbantons
- Les Peuillets
- Les Rouvrettes
- Les Talmettes
- Les Vergelesses
- Petits Godeaux
- Redrescul
Top Producers
- Domaine Simon Bize ★
- Domaine Chandon de Briailles
- Domaine Bruno Clair (La Dominode)
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Jean-Marc Pavelot
- Domaine Tollot-Beaut
- Domaine Girard
"Savigny proves you don't need a Grand Cru to produce unforgettable Pinot Noir — just old vines and great soils."
Chorey-lès-Beaune
Chorey-lès-Beaune sits on the flat alluvial plain east of the Route Nationale — technically outside the classic Côte slope — making it the only Côte de Beaune appellation without a single Premier Cru. Yet within these clay and alluvial soils lies some of Burgundy's most charming, accessible Pinot Noir. Light, cherry-fruited, soft-tannined, and priced for everyday pleasure, Chorey is the wine you open while waiting for the more serious bottles to age. Tollot-Beaut's Chorey is the benchmark: honest, generous, and beautiful at three to seven years.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Top Producers
- Domaine Tollot-Beaut ★ benchmark Chorey
- Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Jacques Germain
- Domaine Maillard Père et Fils
"The best value in the Côte de Beaune — open it young and drink it with joy."
Beaune
Beaune is the commercial and cultural capital of Burgundy — and yet uniquely in a major village of the Côte, it has no Grand Crus. Three-quarters of all Beaune vineyards are classified Premier Cru, a concentration of quality unmatched anywhere. The limestone and marl slope and stony caillottes of the mid-section host 42 Premier Crus producing the quintessential balanced Burgundy: wild strawberry, rose petal, soft integrated tannins. The Hôtel-Dieu and its annual charity auction (the Hospices de Beaune) is the most famous wine event on earth, held each November to fund the historic hospital.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Premier Crus (42 total — select highlights)
- Les Grèves ★★
- Clos des Mouches ★★ Drouhin
- Les Bressandes ★
- Les Teurons ★
- Les Fèves ★
- La Vigne de l'Enfant Jésus ★ Bouchard monopole
- Clos des Ursules ★ Jadot monopole
- Les Cent Vignes
- Clos du Roi
- Les Avaux
- Les Reversées
- Les Aigrots
- Les Épenotes
- Les Chouacheux
- Les Boucherottes
- Clos de la Mousse
- Clos Saint-Landry
- En Genêt
- La Mignotte
- Les Cras
- Les Marconnets
- Les Sizies
- Montée Rouge
- Sur les Grèves
- Clos des Couchereux
- Les Blanches Fleurs
- Les Tuvilains
- Belissand
- Champs Pimonts
- Clos de l'Écu
- Pertuisots
- Clos des Avaux
Top Producers
- Domaine Joseph Drouhin ★ Clos des Mouches
- Bouchard Père et Fils ★
- Domaine Louis Jadot
- Domaine Albert Morot
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Chanson Père et Fils
- Domaine du Château de Chorey
- Domaine Benjamin Leroux
"No Grand Cru — and yet no village produces more Premier Cru quality across such a breadth of terroir."
Pommard
The most powerful, tannic, and uncompromisingly masculine red wine village on the Côte de Beaune. Pommard's iron-heavy clay over limestone bedrock produces wines of exceptional density, deep colour, and tannic grip — a character unlike anything else on a slope more celebrated for elegance. Les Rugiens, whose iron-oxide-rich soils stain hands orange at harvest, and the Comte Armand monopole Clos des Épeneaux are the summit expressions. These wines need a decade to soften; the greatest Premier Crus can age thirty years and more, emerging as profound, leathery, iron-tinged masterworks.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Premier Crus (28 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Les Rugiens Bas ★★
- Les Rugiens Hauts ★★
- Clos des Épeneaux ★★ Comte Armand monopole
- Les Épenots ★
- Clos de la Commaraine ★
- Les Pézerolles ★
- Les Bertins
- Clos Blanc
- Clos de Verger
- Clos Micot
- Derrière Saint-Jean
- En Largillière
- La Chanière
- La Platière
- La Refène
- Le Village
- Les Arvelets
- Les Chanlins Bas
- Les Chanlins Hauts
- Les Chaponnières
- Les Fremiers
- Les Jarollières
- Les Noizons
- Les Petits Épenots
- Les Poutures
- Les Sausilles
- Village Blanc
- Clos des Ursulines
Top Producers
- Domaine Comte Armand ★ Clos des Épeneaux
- Domaine de Courcel ★
- Domaine Lejeune
- Domaine Michel Gaunoux
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Parent
- Domaine Billard-Gonnet
- Domaine Jessiaume
"The most masculine red on the Côte — iron, grip, and the kind of density that demands a decade's patience."
Volnay
Volnay is the Chambolle-Musigny of the Côte de Beaune: all silk and perfume, light-footed yet profound. Its high active chalk content — visible as white limestone fragments in the topsoil — strips away tannin and replaces it with gossamer texture. The result is Pinot Noir of translucent delicacy: violets, rose petal, wild raspberry, and spice balanced on the most slender of frames. Yet the best Premier Crus — Cailleret, Champans, Taillepieds, Clos des Chênes — are structures of extraordinary precision and longevity, unfolding over fifteen years into something ineffably fine. The Marquis d'Angerville estate remains the quintessential Volnay address.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Premier Crus (29 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Clos des Chênes ★★
- Cailleret ★★
- Taillepieds ★★
- Champans ★★
- Clos du Château des Ducs ★ d'Angerville monopole
- Clos des Ducs ★ monopole
- Bousse d'Or ★ Pousse d'Or
- Les Santenots ★ sold as Meursault
- Les Aussy
- Les Angles
- Carelle sous la Chapelle
- Clos de la Cave des Ducs
- Clos de la Barre
- En Chevret
- Frémiets
- La Barre
- Les Brouillards
- Les Lurets
- Les Mitans
- Les Pétures
- Les Pitures Dessus
- Les Points d'Angles
- Les Robardelles
- Les Verseuils
- Carelle Dessus
- Chanlin
- En L'Ormeau
- Fremiet
- Pitures
Top Producers
- Domaine Marquis d'Angerville ★★
- Domaine Michel Lafarge ★★
- Domaine de la Pousse d'Or
- Domaine Comte Lafon
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Henri Boillot
- Domaine Nicolas Rossignol
- Domaine Joseph Voillot
"Volnay is silk and violets — the most feminine wine on the Côte, and among the most deeply moving."
Monthélie
Perched on the hillside between Meursault and Volnay, Monthélie is the perpetually overlooked neighbour of two more famous villages. Its soils — limestone and marl similar to Volnay, with some stony caillottes — produce reds with Volnay-like elegance but firmer grip, and whites that offer a crisp, almond-accented alternative to Meursault at significantly lower prices. North-facing aspects lend freshness and restraint. The village's relative obscurity is a blessing for the value-conscious: Premier Crus here trade at a fraction of their Volnay equivalents despite sharing similar geological foundations.
Tasting Profile — Red
Soils & Geology
Premier Crus (15 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Les Duresses ★
- Les Champs Fulliot ★
- Clos Gauthey
- Sur la Velle
- La Taupine
- Le Meix Bataille
- Le Cas Rougeot
- Le Château Gaillard
- Le Clou des Chênes
- Le Village
- Les Barbières
- Les Hauts Brins
- Les Riottes
- Les Vignes Rondes
- Clos des Toisières
Top Producers
- Domaine Garaudet ★
- Domaine Monthélie-Douhairet
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Éric de Suremain
- Domaine Paul Garaudet
- Domaine Annick Parent
"Volnay's quiet sibling — the same soils, half the price, all the elegance."
Auxey-Duresses
Tucked into a narrow side valley off the main Côte, Auxey-Duresses benefits from a cool microclimate created by its north-south orientation. White limestone and grey marl soils produce white wines of crisp, mineral-driven character — a compelling Meursault alternative at significantly lower cost, particularly in the hands of Domaine Comte Lafon. The reds are high-toned, fresh, and cherry-scented, with good natural acidity lending them a lighter frame than their neighbours. Domaine Leroy maintains a rare holding here, lending the appellation unexpected prestige among informed collectors.
Tasting Profile — White
Soils & Geology
Premier Crus (9 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Les Duresses ★
- Clos du Val ★
- Bas des Duresses
- Climat du Val
- La Chapelle
- Les Bréterins
- Les Écusseaux
- Les Grands Champs
- Reugne
Top Producers
- Domaine Comte Lafon ★ exceptional white
- Domaine Leroy (rare holding)
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Jean-Pierre Diconne
- Domaine d'Auvenay (Leroy's négociant arm)
- Domaine Michel Prunier
"Meursault's mineral alter-ego — cool, precise, and priced for the wise buyer."
Meursault
The undisputed white wine capital of the Côte de Beaune and the most celebrated Chardonnay village on earth. Meursault has no Grand Crus — an anomaly widely considered a historical injustice given the quality of Perrières, Genevrières, and Charmes, which rival and occasionally surpass Puligny's finest. The Kimmeridgian marl and clay-limestone soils of the upper Premier Crus give wines of toasted almond, hazelnut, ripe yellow apple, and honey, while oak aging adds vanilla and butter. Coche-Dury and Comtes Lafon have elevated Meursault to cult status; their allocations are among the most sought-after in Burgundy.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Premier Crus (19 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Les Perrières ★★ closest to GC quality
- Les Genevrières ★★
- Charmes ★★
- Clos des Perrières ★ Comte Lafon monopole
- Les Gouttes d'Or ★
- Les Santenots du Milieu ★
- Blagny
- Les Caillerets
- Les Bouchères
- Les Cras
- Les Plures
- Le Porusot
- Les Santenots Blancs
- La Jeunelotte
- La Pièce sous le Bois
- Poruzots
- Sous Blagny
- Sous le Dos d'Âne
- Les Chevalières
Top Producers
- Domaine Coche-Dury ★★
- Domaine des Comtes Lafon ★★
- Domaine Pierre Morey
- Domaine Guy Roulot ★
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Jean-Marc Roulot (cult status)
- Domaine Joseph Matrot
- Domaine Thierry & Pascale Matrot
- Domaine Patrick Javillier
"Meursault defines white Burgundy's richest register — almond, honey, and a warmth that no other village quite replicates."
Puligny-Montrachet
The greatest white wine village on earth. Puligny-Montrachet's thin, stony soils over Hauterivian limestone — the most nutrient-poor Grand Cru soils anywhere — force vine roots deep and concentrate flavours to a laser-precise intensity found nowhere else. Montrachet itself, shared with Chassagne, is a wine apart: green apple, lemongrass, white blossom, chalk, and flinty minerality in perfect tensile balance, with the capacity to age and transform over three decades. Domaine Leflaive, perhaps the most revered white Burgundy address of all, has called Puligny home for five generations. These wines do not shout. They speak in whispers that echo forever.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Grand Crus (4 Grands Crus)
- Montrachet ★★ 4ha in Puligny (total 8ha)
- Chevalier-Montrachet ★★ 7.47ha
- Bâtard-Montrachet ★★ 6ha in Puligny (total 11.73ha)
- Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet ★ 3.58ha
Premier Crus (24 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Les Pucelles ★★
- Les Folatières ★★
- Les Combettes ★★
- Le Cailleret ★★
- Clavoillon ★
- Les Demoiselles ★
- La Mouchère ★ Boillot monopole
- La Garenne
- Champ Gain
- Les Referts
- Les Truffières
- Les Chalumeaux
- La Truffière
- Le Champ Canet
- En La Richarde
- La Jaqueline
- Sous le Puits
- Hameau de Blagny
- La Tour
- Les Perrières
- Au Chaniot
- Les Meix
- Corvée des Vignes
- Les Chalumaux
Top Producers
- Domaine Leflaive ★★
- Domaine Sauzet ★★
- Domaine Carillon
- Domaine Henri Boillot
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Chavy-Chouet
- Domaine Chartron et Trébuchet
- Domaine Thiébault Liger-Belair
"Montrachet is the summit — but Puligny's Premier Crus are the long, magnificent ascent."
Chassagne-Montrachet
A paradox of a village: once celebrated for its powerful reds, Chassagne-Montrachet has been transformed by reputation into Burgundy's second great white wine commune. Its complex geology — limestone and marl on the upper white wine slopes, red iron-clay below — supports both colours with equal legitimacy. The whites are broader and more opulent than Puligny's, marked by hawthorn, toasted hazelnut, acacia honey, and cream — more "masculine" in a traditional sense. Ramonet remains the benchmark address; Marc Colin and the rising Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey have brought fresh precision and energy to a village with more Premier Crus than any other on the Côte.
Tasting Profile — White
Soils & Geology
Grand Crus (3 Grands Crus)
- Montrachet ★★ 4ha in Chassagne
- Bâtard-Montrachet ★★ 5.75ha in Chassagne
- Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet ★ 1.57ha — entirely in Chassagne
Premier Crus (55 total — select highlights)
- Morgeot ★★ largest PC, exceptional red & white
- Les Ruchottes ★★
- Clos Saint-Jean ★★
- Les Caillerets ★★
- Abbaye de Morgeot ★
- En Cailleret ★
- Dent de Chien ★
- En Remilly ★
- En Virondot ★
- Les Baudines
- Les Champs Gain
- La Boudriotte
- Les Vergers
- Les Macherelles
- La Grande Montagne
- Blanchot Dessus
- Les Petites Fairendes
- Champgain
- Les Chênes
- La Romanée
- Les Grandes Ruchottes
- Clos de la Maltroie
- La Maltroie
- Les Chaumes et la Voirosse
- La Cardeuse
- Les Embazées
- Tête du Clos
- Clos du Château de la Maltroie
- La Chapelle
- Les Fairendes
Top Producers
- Domaine Ramonet ★★
- Domaine Marc Colin ★
- Domaine Jean-Noël Gagnard
- Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey ★
- Domaine Blain-Gagnard
- Domaine Bruno Colin
- Domaine Vincent Dancer
"More opulent than Puligny, more complex than its reputation — Chassagne rewards those who look beyond the Grand Cru names."
Saint-Aubin
The rising star of the Côte de Beaune. Saint-Aubin's hard white limestone and thin stony soils on steep high-altitude slopes — some reaching 340 metres — force vine stress and produce wines of concentrated, mineral intensity that punch far above their appellation's price point. En Remilly, adjacent to Montrachet, and Les Murgers des Dents de Chien produce Chardonnay that critics increasingly compare to Puligny village wines. Hubert Lamy has transformed the appellation's reputation through decades of meticulous viticulture; Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey is his natural successor in quality if not in continuity. A decade ago this was a secondary appellation; today it is one of Burgundy's most exciting.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Premier Crus (29 Premiers Crus Climats)
- En Remilly ★★ adjacent to Montrachet
- Les Murgers des Dents de Chien ★★
- La Chatenière ★
- Les Frionnes ★
- Le Bas de Gamay
- Le Charmois
- En Montceau
- Es Champs
- Les Combes
- Les Castets
- Les Champlots
- Les Cortons
- Sous Roche Dumay
- En la Ranché
- En Créot
- En Vollon
- Derrière la Tour
- Derrière Chez Edouard
- Bas de Vermarain
- Les Combes au Sud
- Le Puits
- La Princée
- Clos du Meix
- Sorbe
- Les Bas de Vermarain
- Les Travers de Marinot
- Vignes Moingeon
- En Remilly (upper)
- Les Combes
Top Producers
- Domaine Hubert Lamy ★★
- Domaine Marc Colin
- Domaine Henri Prudhon
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey ★
- Domaine Gérard Thomas
- Domaine Larue
- Domaine Roux Père et Fils
"The rising star — high altitude, mineral intensity, and Puligny-level ambition at Saint-Aubin prices."
Santenay
The final flourish of the Côte de Beaune, Santenay anchors the southern end of the great slope with a geology unlike anything found further north. Granite outcroppings — rare in Burgundy — appear near the Maranges border, while ancient Triassic sediments beneath the limestone and marl add a mineral complexity that is genuinely distinctive. The result is Pinot Noir of dark cherry, pepper, violets, and earth — firmer than Volnay but with good fruit purity and real character. The historic spa town, known for its thermal springs since Roman times, produces wines that are honest, well-priced, and regularly overlooked by buyers focused on the famous villages to the north.
Tasting Profile
Soils & Geology
Premier Crus (12 Premiers Crus Climats)
- Les Gravières ★★
- La Comme ★★
- Clos de Tavannes ★
- Clos Rousseau ★
- La Maladière ★
- Beauregard
- Beaurepaire
- Clos des Mouches
- Clos Faubard
- Grand Clos Rousseau
- Les Gravières-Clos de Tavannes
- Passetemps
Top Producers
- Domaine Lucien Muzard ★
- Domaine Louis Lequin
- Domaine de la Buissière
Hidden Gems
- Domaine Vincent Girardin
- Domaine Chapelle et Fils
- Domaine Borgeot
"Where the Côte ends, Santenay offers granite, Triassic earth, and wines of honest, mineral character at prices the north can no longer match."