Crémant, cassis and marc:the other drinks of the Côte-d'Or

In Côte-d’Or, the drinks list does not stop at still wines. Four families share the aperitif and the end of the meal: Crémant de Bourgogne, kir, crème de cassis, and the regional eaux-de-vie, marc and fine. Each answers to a precise product specification, with its own grapes, ageing periods and history.

Crémant de Bourgogne: the traditional method applied to the region

The AOC Crémant de Bourgogne was recognised by decree on 17 October 1975. It covers white and rosé sparkling wines made by the traditional method: a second fermentation in bottle, triggered by the addition of a liqueur de tirage (yeasts and sugar), followed by riddling and disgorgement.

The specification allows, for white wines, Chardonnay, Aligoté, Melon, Pinot Blanc and Sacy; for reds, Gamay, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir. In practice, production relies mainly on Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Gamay and Aligoté. After the secondary fermentation, the rules require a minimum of nine months’ ageing on lees before sale. That prolonged contact with spent yeasts gives crémant its texture and brioche aromas, distinct from a simple sparkling wine.

An appellation in full expansion

An appellation in full expansion, in more detail

The vineyard dedicated to crémant now approaches 4,000 hectares, for a 2025 harvest of 231,000 hectolitres: one of the largest in its history. Crémant now accounts for 15% of all wine volumes produced in Burgundy, up from 13% two years earlier, making it the third regional appellation by volume. More than half of production now goes for export, a first for the appellation.

Kir, the aperitif born in the City Hall salons

The mix of white wine and crème de cassis, then called blanc-cassis, became the official drink of receptions at Dijon City Hall from 1904, long before it took the name we know today. It was Félix Kir, canon, Resistance fighter, then mayor of Dijon from 1945 until his death in 1968, who made it universal: every delegation received at the town hall was offered the mix, and the people of Dijon eventually gave it their mayor’s name.

In 1952, Kir authorised the house of Lejay-Lagoute to use his name to commercialise the drink, which gave rise to the registered trademark “kir”. The common noun today simply means any mix of white wine and crème de cassis, whoever bottles it.

Dijon crème de cassis, an 1841 recipe

The crème de cassis to which Dijon owes its name dates back to 1841: it was Auguste-Denis Lagoute, café owner of the Café des Milles Colonnes, who developed the cold maceration of whole blackcurrant berries in agricultural alcohol, a process later perfected by the distiller Claude Jolly, the café owner’s partner, and which quickly overtook traditional ratafias. The resulting liqueur, an intense garnet with violet reflections, owes its silkiness and length on the palate to that slow maceration.

Production today answers to a geographical indication (GI) that reserves the name “Cassis de Dijon” for the commune of Dijon itself, a restriction already confirmed by a ruling of the Dijon Court of Appeal in 1923, in the face of counterfeits. The method remains the same in principle: cold maceration of the berries, without heat, to preserve the aroma of the fresh fruit.

Burgundy marc and fine, the region’s two eaux-de-vie

Marc and fine both start from Burgundy grapes, but not from the same stage of winemaking, and each AOC’s specification sets different ageing rules.

Marc, distilled from the press residue

Marc de Bourgogne is distilled from what remains after pressing: skins, seeds and stems. Distillation must take place before 31 March following the harvest, in traditional copper stills: a maximum of three distillation pots (630 litres each) fitted with three concentration columns in series. The eau-de-vie must leave the still at an alcohol strength of no more than 72%, with no enrichment or preservative.

The appellation, recognised by decree since 23 February 1942, then requires a minimum of two years’ ageing in oak barrels (or large oak casks), for a final strength of at least 40% vol. Marc may claim the mention vieux after three years in wood, très vieux after six years, and hors d’âge after ten years.

Fine, distilled from the wine or the lees

Fine de Bourgogne, by contrast, is distilled from the wine itself or from its fine lees drawn off after racking, not from the solid residue. Recognised as an AOC by decree of 17 March 2011 (succeeding the former “eaux-de-vie de vin de Bourgogne” appellation of 1946), it covers 388 communes across four departments: Côte-d’Or, Rhône, Saône-et-Loire and Yonne. Its minimum ageing is three years in oak, longer than marc’s, which explains a generally rounder profile, leaning towards ripe fruit and spice rather than marc’s raw power.

How to tell them apart in the glass

Marc, more robust, is served neat as a classic digestif, at room temperature. Fine, finer by name and nature, is traditionally taken after coffee, in a glass gently warmed in the hand, sometimes with a piece of gingerbread to bring out its candied-fruit notes.