Burgundy: Richer for days spent in the red

St Vincent has smiled benignly on wine growers, for whom he is patron saint, throughout France this year. Out in the vineyards of Louis Latour's Aloxe-Corton in Burgundy last week, the sun shone on the world famous Cote d'Or, so-called because the leaves of the vines turn gold in autumn.

Beneath an azure sky, the setting could hardly have been lovelier. Nor, it seems, could the 2009 vintage, widely expected to be one of the best in decades after a sun-filled summer, have been better.

Touring any area of vines around harvest time is a unique experience. But the whole of Burgundy seems to take on a particular allure. Whether it is following the farm cart, crawling along the narrow lanes pulling a container laden with grapes, or sitting in the sunshine with the locals outside a cafe beside Dijon's fabulous market on a Saturday morning, a visit to this part of France at this time of year is a rare treat.

I started in Beaune, where the wealth generated by the business of making Burgundy wines is obvious. Luxury hotels such as the Hostellerie Le Cedre offer a level of comfort to make even those used to pampering feel at home. And given the warm autumn sunshine, breakfast or drinks on the terrace were perfectly possible. The four-star abode offered a double at €179 ($366), decent value for a good-sized room.

Beaune is an intriguing amalgam of old French architecture, spectacular clocks and shops crammed with every artifice associated with the business of winemaking. Some of the wines made in the fields outside this town are renowned the world over. French kings spoonfed their new children tiny droplets of red Burgundies, convinced of the life-giving value of the pinot noir grape which flourishes in the region.

In a splendid setting of understated French historical architecture, Louis Latour's offices can be found in Rue des Tonneliers. Here, after a tour of the vineyards with Anne Charpin, Latour's PR lady, we tasted 12 wines of the company's 2007 vintage.

Whites, ranging from the very drinkable Macon-Lugny Les Genievres 2008 at €7.80 a bottle up to the spectacularly elegant 2006 red, Chateau Corton Grancey at €51.20 a bottle (which will keep for 10 years or more), offer different pleasures at differing price levels.

From Beaune, Dijon is just a short hop to the north, past Nuits Saint Georges. You can whiz up the motorway in no time at all, but it is so much nicer just tootling along the old Route des Vins, the pre-motorway D974 road which links Dijon to the south. You go through villages like Vosne Romanee, Gevrey Chambertin and Chambolle-Musigny, where the smell of wine hangs like perfume in the air.

Grapes are being picked, stored, crushed and fermented. Little sugar is necessary this year, though, for nature has provided virtually all the sweetness required. Outside Nuits, a cafe was bursting at the seams with swarthy locals, their red-stained hands a giveaway as to their profession.

At Vosne Romanee, try stopping off at one of the smaller growers such as Jacky Confuron-Cotetidot in Rue de la Fontaine. He makes all the fine wines of the area and will happily offer tastings and on-site sales.

But once you leave Marsannay on the northern tip of the Cote d'Or, you are close to Dijon, where other pleasures await. The architecture all over this ancient town is sumptuous: great palaces of the old Burgundy kings dazzle the onlooker.

The cuisine here is also superb. Around the market are numerous restaurants, all vying to lure the customer with a variety of styles and dishes. If any is better than Le Bistro des Halles, I would be surprised.

I enjoyed pate en croute followed by pave d'agneau, while my partner tucked into sanglier (wild boar), which was supreme. Dinner for two, including two desserts, plus a bottle of wine, was €81 - exceptional value. If you go to Dijon, head straight there for lunch or dinner.

Saturdays in most provincial French towns witness a special buzz, a unique atmosphere. Dijon is of course famous for mustard, but its market must offer one of the widest choices of fresh produce anywhere outside Paris. Needless to say, the quality was superb.

But if you have a car and freedom, there really is nothing better than buying some fresh bread and cheese (or slices of jambon), a half-bottle of Burgundy red and heading out into the country for a picnic lunch. Pull off on a minor road, perhaps beside a vineyard, and drink in this glorious scene, as well as a glass of the liquid that has hallmarked this area for centuries.

Mind you, only a glass. The French have cracked down hugely on drink-driving in recent years and frequently make spot checks, especially at motorway peage booths.

CHECKLIST

Getting there: Air New Zealand flies daily to London, via both Hong Kong and Los Angeles, with connections to the rest of Europe through its Star Alliance partners.

What to do: Hostellerie Le Cedre is at 12 Boulevard du Marechal Foch, Beaune.

Louis Latour is at 18 Rue des Tonneliers, Beaune 21204.

Le Bistrot des Halles is at 10 Rue Bannelier. Email bistrotdeshalles@club-internet.fr

Further information: burgundy-tourism.com