Côte de Nuits; Côte de Nuits AC [koht duh NWEE]
The Côte de Nuits makes up the northern half of Burgundy’s famous Côte d’Or and contains the grand cru, premier cru, and village vineyards responsible for many of the renowned red Burgundy wines. Pinot Noir is the grape of choice in this region, although minute amounts of white wine are produced from Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, and Pinot Gris. The Côte de Nuits, which takes its name from the village of nuits saint-georges, is made up of numerous villages, including eight that have their own appellations—Chambolle-Musigny, Fixin, Gevrey-Chambertin, Marsannay, Morey-Saint-Denis, Nuits Saint-Georges, Vosne-Romanée, and Vougeot. The villages of Brochon, Comblanchien, Corgoloin, Prémeaux, and Fixin can bottle their wines under the designation côte de Nuits-Villages AC. The quality of the red wines from the seven village appellations and from the côte de Nuits-Villages AC is generally quite high. However, the grand cru and premier cru vineyards have created this area’s esteemed reputation. The grands crus include famous names like Bonnes Mares, Chambertin, chabertin-clos de bèze, clos de roche, Clos de Vougeot, grands échezeaux, Musigny, Richebourg, Romanée-Conti, and lâ tache. Most wine lovers agree that these vineyards produce some of the very best red wines in the world. See also Hautes-Côtes de Nuits.
The New Wine Lovers Companion, 2nd Edition, by Ron Herbst and Sharon Tyler Herbst. Copyright © (1) 2003, 1995 by Ron Herbst and Sharon Tyler Herbst. Reprinted by arrangement with Barron's Educational Series, Inc.