Taste Burgundy wines in the cellars and chapels of a medieval Franciscan church facing the Hôtel-Dieu.
€290for a half-day wine tour starting here, up to 4 guests
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The Marché aux Vins, opposite the Hôtel-Dieu, is one of Beaune's classic tasting stops. It occupies the former church of the Cordeliers, the Franciscan friars of Beaune. You taste your way through vaulted cellars where old vintages rest, then through three surviving chapels hung with large maps of the Côte d'Or.
Visits start in the cellars beneath the old church, where you taste as you walk, then continue upstairs through the chapels of Saint-François, Saint-Antoine and Saint-Sébastien. Signs explain the grape varieties, the classification of Burgundy and the history of the site. Depending on the formula, you taste between three and seven wines, and guided and private tastings are also offered. A large shop sells Burgundy wines.
According to the house, a Franciscan friar fell ill in Beaune in 1239 while escorting the Crown of Thorns to Paris, and settled here. Pope Innocent IV approved a Franciscan convent in 1246. The friars, called Cordeliers after the knotted cord at their waist, built a tall church. When Nicolas Rolin founded the Hôtel-Dieu, they gave up part of their land in exchange for a room for sick friars.
The order declined in the 18th century and its property was seized at the Revolution. When the rue de l'Hôtel-Dieu was opened in 1803, the nave was destroyed. The rest was used for many purposes before being rediscovered in the early 1970s. Tastings began in the cellars in 1976, and in 2014 the old church itself was opened to visitors.
The five-wine self-guided tasting costs €25 when booked online and €29 at the door.
Checked on on the official site.
Allow about an hour for a self-guided tasting, longer for a guided one. Booking online is wise at weekends and in autumn. It sits directly across from the Hôtel-Dieu, so the two combine easily in one visit.
What to combine with Marché aux Vins on the same day, nearest first.
For the visit, allow 1 to 1.5 hours.
Did you know? Before it became a tasting venue in 1976, the old Franciscan church served as a grain hall, a stable, a warehouse, a tinsmith's workshop and even a car garage.
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Half-day wine tour from Beaune: €290 for the car, up to 4 guests
