|
|
 |
Located between Paris and Lyon, Burgundy is a historic region of France, inhabited in turn by Pre-Indo European poeple, Celts Romans and various Germanic peoples, most importantly the Franks and the Burgundians, who later gave their name to the region.
HISTORY
From the early 11th century until the late 1400’s, Burgundy was France's most powerful rival, with an empire stretching from Switzerland to the North Sea. It was during this period that the province grew tremendous wealth and power and Dijon, the capital of Burgundy, became one of the great European centres of art, learning and science. Given this illustrious past, Burgundy has a surprisingly large number of architectural delights, including palaces, churches and cathedrals such as the Ducal Palace, St. Benigne, Notre-Dame, St. Etienne, and St. Michel. It is noteworthy that the crypt of the magnificent Cathédrale Saint-Bégnine in Dijon dates from 1000 years ago, and the city has retained many architectural charms from many of the main periods from the past millenium - Gothic, Renaissance, Capetian... even many of the still-inhabited houses in the city's central district date from before the 18th century.
FOOD AND WINE
Today, perhaps, the most important of all of Burgundy’s attractions are its world-renowned wines. Burgundy produces some of the best wines in the world. Many superb vineyards producing vins d'appellation contrôlée, such as Vosne-Romanée and Gevrey-Chambertin, are found within this province. Dijon, itself, boasts a renowned oenology institute. The drive from Santenay to Dijon, known as the route des Grands Crus, is a wine-lover's dream, passing through an idyllic countryside of exquisite vineyards, rivers, villages, forests, and twelfth-century churches. The region's architecture is distinguished by, among other things, toits bourguignons (similar to Flemish roofs) made of tiles glazed in terra cotta, green, yellow and black and arranged in eye-catching geometric patterns.
Dijon, Burgundy’s capital is perhaps better known for its mustard, even though nowadays around 90% of all mustard seeds used are imported, mainly from Canada. The term Dijon mustard (moutarde de Dijon) designates a method for the making of mustard. Traditional Dijon mustard is particularly strong. Most Dijon mustard (brands such as Amora or Maille) is produced industrially, but the town also specializes in exotic or unusually-flavored mustard, often sold in decorative hand-painted faïence (china) pots. In non-European markets such as the United States the name "Dijon mustard" is not trademarked, so the only way to be sure you are getting real Dijon mustard is to buy a jar that was imported from France; however, true Dijon mustard in exotic flavors can be difficult to find outside France. Amongst the most interesting of Dijon’s museums is a wonderful museum dedicated to the art of making mustard !
Although renowned for its mustard it must not be forgotten that Burgundy is also considered the gastronomic capital of France. There are a plethora of restaurants in the province, ranging from brasseries to michelin-starred restaurants. The cuisine of Burgundy is known for its richness, due in large part to two factors: the region's heavy red wines and its possession of one of the world's finest breeds of beef cattle, the Charolais. The wines are used in the preparation of the sauces which earn a dish the designation of à la bourguignonne. Essentially, this means cooked in a red wine sauce to which baby onions, mushrooms and lardons (pieces of bacon) are added. The classic Burgundy dishes cooked in this manner are boeuf bourguignon and coq au vin and œufs en meurette.
DON’T MISS
1. The Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction, the famous wine auction held in Beaune on the 17th, 18th and 19th of November.
|
|
 |
|
