Pommard
A red-wine village between Beaune and Volnay, known for deep, firm Pinot Noir.
- Wine village
- 8 min from Beaune
- Red wine
- 28 premiers crus
€290for a half-day wine tour from Beaune, up to 4 guests
At a glance
- Appellations
- Pommard
- Grapes
- Pinot Noir
Getting there
Private driver from Beaune: 8 min by road (5 km), €60 one way for the whole car.
Coming by train or plane? Transfers from stations and airports →
About Pommard
Pommard is the first village on the Route des Grands Crus as you head south from Beaune towards Santenay. It makes only red wine, from Pinot Noir, and its name has stood for classic red Burgundy for centuries. The village gathers around a church with a tall square bell tower.
The wines
Pommard has 28 premier crus, the best known being Les Rugiens and Les Épenots. Ancient alluvium lies at the foot of the slope. Mid-slope clay-limestone soils drain well through rocky debris, and higher up come Oxfordian marls, sometimes reddened by iron oxide. Vines face east and south between 250 and 330 metres. The wine is always red Pinot Noir: deep ruby, with blackberry, cherry and plum, firm tannins, and notes of leather and chocolate with age.
History
In the Middle Ages Pommard was already called the flower of the wines of the Beaune country. Its land belonged to the Dukes of Burgundy, to religious houses such as the abbey of Cîteaux, and to old families like the Marey-Monge. The wine became so celebrated in the 19th century that it gained an image of a powerful, masculine red, a portrait that the wines themselves often soften.
The village church was rebuilt between 1754 and 1757, replacing a 14th-century building demolished in 1753. Its first bell tower, badly built, was taken down, and in 1778 the engineer Émiland Gauthey raised the present square tower against the apse. Today Pommard is a stop on the Voie des Vignes, the cycle route that runs through the vineyards from Beaune to Santenay.
Well-known premiers crusLes Rugiens Bas · Les Rugiens Hauts · Les Grands Épenots · Les Petits Épenots · Clos de la Commaraine · Les Pézerolles
What to see
The church and its bell tower
Rebuilt in the 1750s, the village church has a tall square tower added in 1778 by the engineer Émiland Gauthey. It stands at the centre of the village.
La Voie des Vignes
This cycle route between Beaune and Santenay runs through Pommard on small vineyard lanes. It is an easy way to see the village and its neighbours at a gentle pace.
The Balade Papillon
The local walking circuit starts from the church and covers about 11 kilometres in three hours, through vineyards and along woodland paths with wide views.
Around here
What to combine with Pommard on the same day, nearest first.
- Wine festival
Les Festives de Meloisey
Every two years, in odd-numbered years, over a weekend in mid to late JulyMeloisey
Questions
Pommard is about 8 min from Beaune by road (5 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €60 for the whole car, up to 4 guests.
Did you know? Pommard and Beaune received their appellations on the same day, 11 September 1936. According to the Burgundy wine board, Pommard was among the very first appellations to be recognised.
Sources
Pommard with a private driver
Half-day wine tour from Beaune: €290 for the car, up to 4 guests