Welcome back to “When Wine Calls” as we drive through the magnificent French countryside on route to Burgundy.
Driving through France the first observation you get is that the scenery is so different from that in Italy. Apart from the Alps the land is so flat with country roads that are so straight and head off into the horizon through amazing farmland that you think you are never going to get to the next town.
For our accommodation in Burgundy, we had chosen a Chateau in the centre of the Burgundy region in a little village called Balleure. We knew little more than that other than the Chateau looked great in the photos and that it had a small kitchenette and washing facilities that we would need by the time we arrived, having not washed since our stop in Verona almost 10 days previously.
When we turned up at Chateau de Balleure, we were taken back at how beautiful and unique the building was dating back to the 14th century as shown in this old picture of the village.
It was owned by Raoul and his wife and there were only two rooms in the Chateau for guests with the other being more of a family room.
To access your room, you needed to walk up an original spiral staircase inside one of the chateau’s turrets which was simply amazing although challenged your fitness after transporting the luggage and touring each day.
The Chateau had been renovated over recent years by the owners and was in a lovely, quiet village where in the past workers supporting the chateau would have lived.
Raoul and his wife put on dinner the first night with just the two of us staying at the Chateau and what an amazing dinner it was, sitting outside under the starry night with the Chateau all illuminated.
Central to the meal were vegetables and herbs from their own garden with some of these plants being of medieval origin. It was so good to taste the freshness in the food with the wine being local from a winery that Raoul assists in part-time with only 600 bottles produced each year.
We ended up drinking several of these numbered bottles during our stay.
On our first day in Burgundy, we took a drive through all the local villages and were amazed that hardly any shops or sign of habitation existed in these quaint places. Our first stop was a little bakery Boulangerie L’Authentique in Etrigny, a small village a few kilometres away from the Chateau. It was the only shop open in the village and was run by a young couple who had recently taken over the bakery.
We ended up going back there each morning to get our locally made croissants and coffee for breakfast but since there was no seating at the bakery, we would then drive a short distance down the road to another village where we could park and have them while overlooking a playing field with the wine growing hills in the background and make our regular calls to family back in Australia.
After coffee we drove to the old feudal castle ruins of Le Logis de Beaufort dating back to between the 11th and 14thcentury in the medieval hilltop village of Brancion. We went on a self-guided tour of the remains of the castle, the old marketplace and houses in the medieval village overlooking the surrounding countryside which are still occupied today or operating as restaurants or gift shops.
It was amazing to absorb the history of this area and how the village worked behind the castle walls all those years ago while protecting themselves from invasion – the history of this place was worth the effort to visit alone. The castle was located high on a hill with them most amazing views of the surrounding countryside and small villages below.
We then headed for the Chateau de Cormatin, a 17th Century chateau surrounded by a wide moat and with magnificent gardens. When we arrived, we decided to have lunch over the road in this French style restaurant while we waited for 2pm to come around. There I finallygot the opportunity to have local Beef Bourguignon and the most amazing creme brulee with a large glass of fresh whipped cream on the side – just delicious. Throughout Burgundy we discovered most shops close between 12-2pm like Italy which can really cut into your day if you do not carefully plan.
As part of our entry ticket to the Chateau was a guided tour of around seventeen of the spectacular rooms each with its unique architectural style and secret doors – quite amazing to visit with the most incredible gardens surrounding the Chateau.
That night we decided to just have some local meats and cheeses with wine for dinner and sit outside in the garden and soak up the wonderful ambience of the Chateau.
The next day provided us the opportunity to drive up to a little village just south of Beaune on the River Saone, Chalon-sur-Saone. It had a beautiful Old Town to walk around with wine tasting shops scattered throughout and wine barrels outside the shop with wine for tasting, a common site throughout the towns of Burgundy.
What was interesting is that even during the time when they are closed in the middle of the day, they leave the wine outside on the barrels.
The other observation was the large river cruise boats moored near the town suggesting you can do cruises down the river to explore the region. After some research I discovered that these river cruise boats start from Chalon-sur-Saone and cruise down the Saone and into the Rhone River ending up in Arles in Provence on a 7-day tour if you do not feel inclined to explore the region solo.
Following a traditional Japanese lunch, which was too much to finish, we travelled on back down the river to Tournus, a town not far from our Chateau to have a walk through the medieval centre and renowned Abbey of Saint-Philibert de Tournus.
The most striking aspect to the town was the proliferation of flowers throughout including on the Pont Roger Gautheron bridge where they were flowering spectacularly on both sides.
After a full day of touring, we headed back for dinner at the Chateau where we were joined by a couple that had arrived from Geneva to stay for a few days. It was lovely catching up with them over dinner and listening to their life stories and travels while enjoying another fantastic meal from our wonderful hosts.
On our last day we headed south through the town of Cluny as I wanted to visit the historic Chateau de Pierreclos for a tour and wine tasting. The Chateau dates to around the 10th century and stands on a hill known as the rock of Piereclos and commands a magnificent position overlooking the surrounding countryside and vineyards.
The unbelievable gates to the Chateau date back to the 18th century when it was owned by the Michon family and is decorated with their coat of arms. Unfortunately, when we arrived, we found that we were a few days late as the tours finished at the end of August, so we had to settle for walking around the grounds including the vineyards attached as part of the estate and associated wine shop which was so disappointing after then lengthy drive to get there – next time though!
t was time to head off to our last stop on our French adventure, so we said goodbye to our wonderful hosts who gave us a tour of their magnificent vegetable and herb garden, called in to the tiny bakery for our last croissants and farewell in faulty French and then headed for the motorway to head further north. Burgundy had been a delight to visit and full of surprises with the highlight certainly having the opportunity of staying in such a unique Chateau in the countryside.
Join us shortly for our last blog from France as we enjoy the champagne at its finest from its region of origin – see you then.
Bruce and Pauline
When Wine Calls 
Leave a comment