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Beaune, Capital of Burgundy

December 9, 2001

(Written January 15, 2002 -- we're still behind.)

Dear Families and Friends,

Our guidebook says Beaune, pronounced "bone", is the commercial capital of the burgundy wine business. Reportedly its medieval walls are filled with wine, aging in perfect slumber. Streets are narrow and lined with homes, shops and wine-offices almost as old as the walls. I think the Latin for "Beaune" must be "Quaintus Maximus".

Based on a guidebook description, we opted for the Hotel Remparts, an establishment that has been a stop for travelers since the 17th century. Maybe some of the wear of hundreds of years showed, but it served as a wonderful patina on an elegant antique.

This would be a "long" stay -- two days instead of one! First, we had chores to do, starting with laundry. Back home this is no big deal, but on the road it becomes an event. We found a completely modern coin laundry just outside the walls of the old city. Understanding the French instructions gave us our daily language lesson but eventually our clothes were clean and ready for another travel stage.

The next chore was to learn something about the wines of Burgundy. A very friendly clerk from a basement cellar gave us the Reader's Digest wine "tour". We learned that Burgundy wines are made from pinot noir grapes and are called "Clarets" by the British. The grapes have been grown on the surrounding hills, maybe since the times of the Roman Empire. The French have a long-established grading or "appellation" system for wines of a given type, such as for these burgundies. At the top are the Grand Cru wines, each named after the field where the best grapes were grown. These are the 100-dollar bottles that pay for those wonderful chateaus shown in movies. Below this are Premier Cru, again named after specific fields and, yet lower, are Village wines named after mini-regions of Burgundy (Bourgnone in French). That totals about 20% of the Burgundy wine. The rest are simply "Burgundy". I suspect these are the ones shipped to England to become Claret or to Ukraine.

Other than wine and general charm, Beaune's most important attraction is the 15th Century hospital. The Duke of Burgundy created it as a model for humane treatment of the poor. The main ward is perfectly preserved with curtained beds for the sick lining the walls. While the hospital is large and plain from the outside, the interior is filled with color and light from the ornate roof to the huge tapestries covering many of the walls. The hospital remained in service until 1971, more than 500 years after it's construction.

Thankfully, over that half-millennium, medical practices changed. The museum contained particularly graphic displays of tools and instruments for early surgery. The lined chest for trepanning instruments was accompanied by illustrated instructions. It was hard to imagine cutting holes in heads and other brutal cures within the magnificent halls and wards, but I suppose it was caring treatment at the time.

Shortly after the sobering tour of the house of care, we set out in search of the perfect hillside restaurant. The good news is that we did find a couple such places. The bad news is that, even in the off-season, getting seated requires reservations as each of the perfectly charming places was filled to the brim. We were reminded that the French take eating very seriously and not to be done without some planning.

Oh well, the driving was great. The vineyards were in winter order, waiting to sprout in the spring sun. The tiny villages were even better, each one with centuries-old buildings in perfect repair and town squares bordered by perfect brooks. With perfect ducks and geese, squawking in perfect French. Satisfied, we returned to our hotel and shared a bottle of Premier Cru Burgundy and remembered that there will be many other times for meals and perfect ducks, streams, villages, vineyards and roads which are what this whole trip is about.

The next morning, we packed and headed to Lyon, France's second largest city. Marianne drove and I navigated. The drive was completely uneventful, from the speedy toll road through the winding entrance to the city center. We even managed to go find the right parking garage and start our search for accommodations. But that's the next story.

Stay healthy. Medical cures may not be all they're cut out to be.

John and Marianne.

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Page finished January 21, 2002

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