After
Lyon, Beaune is the next destination on the new tour. There, we discover some of the most famous
wines that France has on offer and we indulge in some of the finest regional
foods including the renowned “Poulet de Bresse”, The AOC of poultry.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Famous Poulet de Bresse, France |
Beaune is a walled town with about half of the battlements, ramparts, and the moat, having
survived and in good condition. It is
situated at
the centre of the Burgundy winemaking region in France.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Part of the Remaining Wall in Beaune |
With a rich historical and architectural
heritage, Beaune is considered the Capital of Burgundy wines. It is located 44km south of Dijon. It is an ancient and historic town with
features remaining from the pre-Roman and Roman eras, through the medieval and Renaissance
periods and up to recent history and modern times. It was already a prosperous wine-growing
region in the 13th century. Historically,
Beaune is intimately connected with the Dukes of Burgundy.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Centre of Beaune |
Beautiful Beaune's main street...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Main Street Looking from the Railway Station Beaune, France |
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: One of the Parks in Beaune, France |
Tranquil...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: A tranquil place in the Beaune Park, France |
The town's main activity is wine: making it,
tasting it, selling it, but most of all, drinking it. Consequently Beaune is one of the best places
in all of France for wine tasting. The town is surrounded by some of the world's
most famous wine villages, while the facilities and cellars of many producers,
large and small, are situated right in the heart of Beaune itself.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: One of the region's Domaine, Beaune, France |
The vineyard,
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Domaine Delagrange Garden, Beaune, France |
The Domaine Delagrange Garden...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Domaine Delagrange Garden, Beaune, France |
To taste...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Domaine Delagrange Degustation Room, Beaune France |
Boxed ready to distribute...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Domaine Delagrange Wine |
To sample the best of the region’s wine, visit
the Marché aux Vins opposite the Hospice. The ‘degustation takes place in an ancient
church, with its stone pillars and arches forming the perfect backdrop. There, you can taste the famous wines of the
region – with the best reds coming at the end.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Caveau Clavelier and its beautiful Burgundy-style Roof |
Another impressive cave to visit is that Bouchard Aîné & Fils'. Its headquarters are in the Hôtel du Conseiller du Roy on the ring road around Beaune.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Bouchard Aine et Fils Headquarters, Beaune, France |
the distinguished signage...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Some of the Wines at Bouchard Aine et Fils Beaune, France |
Wine display...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Bouchard Aine et Fils Wines, Beaune, France |
Beaune is also
renowned for an annual wine auction held at the Hôtel-Dieu, an unmistakable
building easily recognisable by its colourful, geometric-patterned tile roof. This 15th-century former hospital called the Hospices
de Beaune with its
inner courtyard and colourful tiled roof now holds the Hôtel-Dieu Museum.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The inside courtyard of the hotel Dieu, Bequne, France |
You could be forgiven for passing
by the exterior of the Hôtel-Dieu thinking it’s just another imposing and rather
austere building. The jewel however is
within. The two wings of this ancient
hospital have been built around a central courtyard with deep roofs covered in
glazed multicoloured tiles arranged in geometric patterns. Inset in the roofs are gable windows with
carvings and decoration which are an art form in themselves.
The
Hôtel-Dieu was built in the golden age of Burgundy in 1443 by Nicholas Rolin,
the Chancellor of the Duke Philippe le Bon. Beaune at the time was suffering from poverty
and famine after the Hundred Years’ War and so as a sweetener, Rolin and his
wife, founded the Hospice for the Poor, giving it an annual income, and its own
resources in the form of vines and salt works.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Sisters preparing meals for the sick and poor |
Right up until the 20th
century, the sick were cared for by the Sisters of the Hospices de Beaune in this
magnificent building. Its reputation
spread far and wide and it became known as the ‘Palace of the Poor’.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Room where the Sick were Cared for. |
Donations were received, new
rooms added with works of art included. Hospitals in other communes, Pommard, Volnay
and Meursault joined forces to make up the Hospices, bringing with them
donations of vineyards, which today total 53 hectares. The famous wine auction, a charity sale, held
each November at the Hospices is still reaping the rewards.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Hospice Wine |
Beaune has a major fine food
market on Saturdays, with a large number of stall holders supplying a broad
selection of products and specialties from Burgundy and the surrounding
regions. There, you will find Bresse
chickens, Jura cheeses, smallgoods, spices, produce of every variety as well as
seasonal specialties such as truffles. Although Beaune is not primarily a tourist
town but one centred on the wine industry, it however attracts a large amount
of tourism.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: A fine selection of Pumpkins |
Can you smell the Bread...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Bread, Glorious Bread |
Truffles, Look at these Truffles...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Local Truffles |
Beaune has a semi-continental
climate characterised by cold winters with frequent snowfall, and hot summers
with violent storms. It is this perfect climate
which creates the unique environment for which the Côte d'Or wines are so well
known.
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Chateau de Pommard Entrance Gate |
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Interior Courtyard at the Chateau de Pommard |
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Chateau de Pommard Barrels |
The signature emblem...
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| Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Curvee Simone at Chateau de Pommard, Beaune, France |
What a wonderful place!
