On top of being home to some of the greatest wines and winemaking traditions in the world, Burgundy also follows one of the most helpful classification systems for wine anywhere. Outstanding cuvées are made across all four levels—from regional Bourgognes to grands crus—but for many, premier cru is the sweet spot, as it puts on display some of the most special subregions within Burgundy’s esteemed village AOCs. This sampler allows you to taste outstanding premiers crus from Burgundy and Champagne (which follows a similar system), as well as four wines that would undoubtedly be considered premiers crus if their regions used this system.
     Chotard’s Sancerre Les Coutones comes from a monopole vineyard—meaning the Chotards are its sole farmers—planted along a steep slope with perfect southern exposure. Giulia Negri affirms that the terroir—encompassing the soil, altitude, diurnal shifts, and rainfall—behind her Serradenari bottling is “completely self-balanced.” Foillard’s Eponym’ bottling, meanwhile, also comes from the highest-elevation lieu-dit in Morgon, called Les Charmes, leaving us with his most ethereal rouge. Finally, Podere Campriano crafts its Riserva bottling from grapes grown in a parcel surrounded by wild forest, a fact that is remarkably present in the wine, with its pure, natural, and woodsy personality. All these wines have one thing in common: they come from prized vineyard parcels situated in special terroirs that stand out in their region. They are among the absolute top wines these appellations have to offer.