Burgundy Wine Classifications

The classification structures in Burgundy differ fundamentally from those in Bordeaux
There are 4 different classifications:

Regional/District - 22 regional and district appellations which represent over 41% of total production. Examples of regional appellations: Bourgogne Blanc, Hautes Côtes de Nuits. District appellations never have Bourgogne in their names (e.g. Mâcon).

Commune - There are 53 communal appellations which represent 36% of total production.  Examples include Meursault, Puligny Montrachet, Volnay and Gevrey Chambertin. The communal or village name may be followed by the name of an individual vineyard, e,g, Meursault Clos de la Barre, Gevrey Chambertin Les Evocelles. Many villages have double barrelled names because they have hyphenated the name of their most famous vineyard: thus Gevrey has added Chambertin and Chambolle has added Musigny.

Single Vineyard Communes: Two classes of vineyards:

• Premier Cru: The name of the village the name of the vineyard classified as premier cru: e.g. Meursault Charmes 1er cru, Gevrey Chambertin Clos St Jacques 1er cru. There are 585 premier cru vineyards in the Côte d'Or and Côte Chalonnaise. They represent 18% of Burgundy's total production.
  
• Grand Cru: The name of the vineyard on its own: e.g. Chevalier-Montrachet, Corton Charlemagne (white); Richebourg, Le Musigny (red). Confusingly some of the grand cru names (Musigny, Chambertin, Montrachet) appear as part of a village name (see above).There are 32 Grand Cru vineyards in the Côte d'Or. Theyrepresent less than 5% of total production.