What’s in a Village?
“Village” is a term commonly used when talking about Burgundy wine:
Villages Appellations
Côte de Nuits-Villages
Côte de Beaune-Villages
Mâcon-Villages
Beaujolais-Villages
So what does this word mean when used in the terms above?
Village Appellations
In the world of wine, an appellation is a legally defined and protected wine region, and in Burgundy, there are 84 official Appellations d’Origine Contrôlée (AOCs), which comprise:
7 regional appellations (including 13 Dénominations Géographiques Complémentaires (DGCs)) (e.g., Bourgogne AOC)
44 village appellations (e.g., Chambolle-Musigny AOC)
33 Grand Cru appellations (e.g., Musigny AOC)
In Burgundy, “village appellation” (also called “communal appellation”) refers to an appellation whose name is derived from one of the villages and surrounding areas covered by the appellation. Examples include Vougeot AOC and Beaune AOC.
Note: Village appellations can include land associated with multiple villages or hamlets (tiny villages), and multiple appellations can share parts of one village. For example, 12% of the village-level wines of Gevrey-Chambertin come from the commune of Brochon, while Brochon’s only Premier Cru vineyard, Queue de Hareng, is part of Fixin AOC.
Côte de Nuits-Villages
Côte de Nuits-Villages AOC wine is produced from the vineyards of five different communes in the Côte de Nuits: (1) Fixin, (2) Brochon, (3) Comblanchien, (4) Premeaux and (5) Corgoloin.
Fixin and Brochon are located in the northern portion of the Côte de Nuits, while Comblanchien, Premeaux and Corgoloin are located at the southern tip of the Côte de Nuits. As a result, the styles of Côte de Nuits-Villages AOC wines can vary enormously depending on the origin and blend of the grapes, with the northern appellations displaying more structured wines representative of the appellations of Fixin and Gevrey-Chambertin and the wines primarily sourced from Comblanchien, Premeaux and Corgoloin being more similar to those in the south.
Côte de Nuits-Villages wines can be either red (Pinot Noir) or white (Chardonnay), but they are predominantly red (over 90%).
Note: Premeaux wines can be included in Nuit-Saint-Georges wines, and Fixin has its own AOC, so the wines of Premeaux and Fixin can each be labeled either Côte de Nuits-Villages AOC or under their respective alternate appellations.
Côte de Beaune-Villages
Côte de Beaune-Villages are red wines (Pinot Noir) sourced from 14 communes running down the Côte de Beaune sub-region. Similar to Côte de Nuits-Villages wines, the extensive geographical area of Côte de Beaune-Villages results in a wide range of expressions in the wines depending on the source of the grapes used. These communes run from Ladoix-Serrigny in the north down to Cheilly-Lès-Maranges in the south, but this appellation specifically excludes grapes sourced from Aloxe-Corton, Beaune, Pommard and Volnay.
Note: Côte de Beaune-Villages AOC is not the same as Côte de Beaune AOC, which is not the same as Côte de Beaune, the sub-region of the Côte d’Or. Nor is it the same as Beaune AOC!
Côte de Beaune AOC wine is a wine derived from higher elevation vineyards that are distinct from the Beaune AOC vineyards. Both Beaune AOC wines and Côte de Beaune AOC wines can be red or white wines, but as noted above, Côte de Beaune-Villages wines can only be red, and the area under vine does not encompass the commune of Beaune.
Confusing, right? It’s Burgundy!
Mâcon-Villages
Unlike Côte de Nuits-Villages AOC and Côte de Beaune-Villages AOC, which are centered mainly around geography, Mâcon-Villages AOC has a quality component to the appellation.
Mâcon-Villages AOC wines are white wines sourced from the southern region of Mâcon, which have stricter production standards than Mâcon AOC wines. The grapes for Mâcon-Villages AOC wine are sourced from 83 communes, require lower yields and have a higher minimum alcohol requirement than Mâcon AOC wines. As a result, Mâcon-Villages AOC is one step up the quality pyramid from Mâcon AOC.
Beaujolais-Villages
Bonus: According to the Wine Scholar Guild, the Bourgogne wine region does not include Beaujolais, but the “Burgundy wine district” (La Bourgogne Viticole), which is “the set of vineyards in Burgundy producing Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée” wines, includes the Beaujolais vineyards.
Beaujolais-Villages AOC wines are red, white and rosé wines sourced from the northern half of Beaujolais outside of the Cru appellations. The appellation reflects better conditions for ripening the grapes due to the northerly location above the Beaujolais AOC vineyards and require more stringent production standards than Beaujolais AOC. Similar to Mâcon-Villages AOC in relation to Mâcon AOC, it is considered a step up from the basic Beaujolais AOC.
