Burgundy: Blackcurrants and history
Burgundy is known for grapes - but don't forget its blackcurrants!
As anyone who has been on our Burgundy Wine Explorer Cycle Tour knows, if there's one thing that Burgundy is known for, it is its prized wines; its deep velvet Pinot Noir reds and those subtle, buttery and flinty Chardonnay whites.
But while Burgundy is most famous for its grapes, did you know it also has a proud history of blackcurrants, and the famed liqueur made from them - crème de cassis?
Blackcurrant bushes were planted on the edges of vineyards for homemade liqueur. Development in the growth and production of blackcurrant ('cassis') liqueur was developed during the industrial revolution, and its importance as a crop increased dramatically in the mid 19th Century as many vineyards were wiped out by the phylloxera infestation. By 1875, 350 hectares of blackcurrants were growing in the Côte-d'Or .
These days, Cassis de Dijon and Crème de cassis de Bourgogne are protected by IGP (indications géographiques protégées) status.
Félix Kir, a mayor on a mission!
A diplomatic coctkail: kir
Though cassis liqueur has a long history in Burgundy, it was given new life when Félix Kir, mayor of the Burgundy city of Dijon, popularised the "blanc-cassis" cocktail - crème de cassis topped up with white wine - by offering it to delegations from other countries.
Kir was a pioneer of the sister city movement in the aftermath of the Second World War, and thanks to him, Dijon is twinned with Mainz in Germany, York in Britain, and Dallas in the USA.
Following Mayor Kir's revival of the cocktail, local producers of crème de cassis asked him for the right to use his name, and so what was previously known as "blanc-cassis" became known as a kir cocktail.
Switch the white wine in your kir cocktail for Champagne, and you have a 'kir royal'. Top your creme de cassis up with a light red wine, eg. a gamay/Beaujolais, and you're drinking a 'communard'. The most unusual cassis cocktail, however, is probably the 'fond de culotte', in which cassis is topped up with the gentiane liqueur, Suze. Try it if you dare!
Our Burgundy cycle tour: the cassis tasting!
Burgundy's pride in their blackcurrants is such that they even have a museum dedicated to it! Le Cassissium not only walks visitors through the history of the "Super Cassis", but also gives them a guided tour of the Védrenne liqueur factory - and, of course, the trip wouldn't be complete without the chance to sample the product...
If all of that sounds as enticing to you as it does to us, you can visit Le Cassissium on the last day of our Burgundy cycling tour (see header image). The cycling ranges from easy on some days to moderate on others, but should be comfortably achievable for anyone of reasonable fitness.
Other Burgundy tour highlights include:
- The majestic Abbey of Cluny and the 12th Century Château de Sercy
- Sweeping landscapes of vineyards, forests and hills
- Cycling and wine tasting in the prestigious Cote d'Or
- Medieval masterpieces in Tournus and Beaune
Travel to: Mâcon, France for Day 1 of the tour.
Contact us in the office to find out if the cycle tour will suit you and your group.
The stunning Château d’Igé in Burgundy, France