Climats, terroirs of Burgundy

Burgundy wine (French: Bourgogne or vin de Bourgogne) is made in the Burgundy region of eastern France, in the valleys and slopes west of the Saône, a tributary of the Rhône. The most famous wines produced here, and those commonly referred to as "Burgundies," are dry red wines made from pinot noir grapes and white wines made from chardonnay grapes. Red and white wines are also made from other grape varieties, such as gamay and aligoté, respectively. Small amounts of rosé and sparkling wines are also produced in the region. Chardonnay-dominated Chablis and gamay-dominated Beaujolais are recognised as part of the Burgundy wine region, but wines from those subregions are usually referred to by their own names rather than as "Burgundy wines". Burgundy has a higher number of appellations d'origine contrôlée (AOCs) than any other French region, and is often seen as the most terroir-conscious of the French wine regions. The various Burgundy AOCs are classified from carefully delineated grand cru vineyards down to more non-specific regional appellations. The practice of delineating vineyards by their terroir in Burgundy goes back to medieval times, when various monasteries played a key role in developing the Burgundy wine industry. The historical importance of the Burgundy wine region and its unique climats system led to sites in the region being inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List as part of the Climats, terroirs of Burgundy site.

Aloxe-Corton (French pronunciation: ​[alɔs kɔʁtɔ̃]) is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of eastern France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as Aloxois or Aloxoises

Chorey-les-Beaune (French pronunciation: ​[ʃɔʁɛ le bɔn], literally Chorey near Beaune) is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France. It lies northeast of the city of Beaune on the plain of the Saône just to the east of the A31 autoroute.

The Route des Grands Crus (roughly, "road of the great wines") is the name of a tourist route situated in Burgundy, France. The approximately 60-kilometre route runs along the foot of the Côte d'Or escarpment, from Dijon in the north to Santenay in the south. Thus it runs through many of the great appellations of Burgundy wine, hence the name of the route. It takes the visitor through the vineyards of the Côte de Nuits and the Côte de Beaune and the back hills (Hautes-Côtes) behind and above the wine slopes. It is punctuated by 33 villages or little towns, including Beaune, many of which have picturesque churches.

The Côte d'Or is a limestone escarpment in Burgundy, France of the same name of the department which was formed around it. It stretches from Dijon in the north to the river Dheune to the south, overlooking the valley of the Saône to the east. The east-facing slope of the Côte d'Or is home to some of the greatest names of Burgundy wine, such as Gevrey-Chambertin, Clos de Vougeot, Meursault and Montrachet. The northern half, the Côte de Nuits, produces red wine almost exclusively. The Côte de Beaune, around Beaune in the south, produces a mix of white wine and red wine. The Route des Grands Crus (Route Nationale 74) runs along the foot of the ridge and is popular with tourists. Scientists have not yet conclusively determined what factors cause the few small parcels of land on the Côte d'Or to produce superlative wines.

Corton is an Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) and Grand Cru vineyard for red and white wine in Côte de Beaune subregion of Burgundy. It is located on a hill shared between the three villages of Aloxe-Corton, Pernand-Vergelesses and Ladoix in the Côte de Beaune, Burgundy. The appellation covers the lower parts of the Corton hill and includes several subordinate vineyard names, or climats, within the AOC. Because of the size of the AOC and the variability of these climats, it is the rule rather than the exception that the name of the climat is indicated together with that of the Corton AOC, leading to designations such as Corton Clos du Roi and Corton Les Bressandes. Corton is rare in this aspect, as the 'climat' is seldom used for other Grand Cru appellations in Côte d'Or. The AOC was created in 1937. Corton wines are mostly red (around 95 per cent of the total production in the AOC) and made from the Pinot noir grape, however a smaller quantity of white Corton from Chardonnay is also produced. Around 500,000 bottles a year are produced from the vines.The Corton appellation itself is the Côte de Beaune's only Grand Cru appellation for red wine, and is the largest Grand Cru of Burgundy.

Corton-Charlemagne is an Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) and Grand Cru vineyard for white wine in Côte de Beaune subregion of Burgundy. It is located in the communes of Aloxe-Corton, Pernand-Vergelesses and Ladoix-Serrigny with Chardonnay, and Pinot Blanc being the only permitted grape varieties. Around 300,000 bottles of white wine are produced each year in the appellation.Corton-Charlemagne is named after the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne, who once owned the hill of Corton on which the vineyards now rest. The first mention of a Clos de Charlemagne dates to 1375, in a lease of the 'Clos le Charlemagne' by the Chapitre de Saint-Androche-de- Saulieu. According to later legend, the vineyards are dedicated to white grape varieties because the emperor's wife preferred white wines as they did not stain his beard. The AOC was created in 1937.The vines are located on the higher ground of a hilltop that stretches between the Burgundian villages of Ladoix-Serrigny and Pernand-Vergelesses. The slopes planted with the most valuable vineyards face south-east on the hilltop, with the land gradually sloping downwards towards the major French highway Route 74. The red wine appellation of Corton covers the lower part of the hill with the areas for Corton and Corton-Charlemagne partially overlapping. Furthermore, there is a third Grand Cru appellation on the Corton hill, Charlemagne, that may be used for white wine produced from the En Charlemagne lieu-dit. However, as En Charlemagne is only 0.28 hectares in size, production is limited and usually blended with grapes from the other lieu-dits of Corton-Charlemagne.As of 2012, the Corton-Charlemagne AOC was producing an average of 2,280 hectoliters of wine a year (around 304,000 bottles of wine) representing more than 2 out of every 3 bottles of all the Grand Cru class white wine produced throughout the Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune. Bonneau du Martray is the largest single owner of vines within the Corton-Charlemagne vineyard with 9.5 hectares.

The canton of Ladoix-Serrigny is an administrative division of the Côte-d'Or department, eastern France. It was created at the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015. Its seat is in Ladoix-Serrigny.It consists of the following communes:

Ladoix-Serrigny (French pronunciation: ​[ladwa sɛʁiɲi]) is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France.

Pernand-Vergelesses (French pronunciation: ​[pɛʁnɑ̃ vɛʁʒəlɛs]) is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France.

Vignoles (French pronunciation: ​[viɲɔl]) is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France.

The arrondissement of Beaune is an arrondissement of France in the Côte-d'Or department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region. It has 222 communes. Its population is 111,295 (2016), and its area is 2,359.1 km2 (910.9 sq mi).