Tuesday was going to be cold. 47 degrees (feels like temp of 42) when we were scheduled to hit the road at 8am. I apparently packed without looking at the weather forecast or double-checking what I brought. I have no long sleeves. One pair of long leggings. No full-finger gloves. And I have to admit (Luke, queue up the “I told you so”), no packable jacket. So I am not at all prepared for cold weather.
Thankfully, it was sunny and the wind from the night before died down, so it was actually quite comfortable in my t-shirt and long-sleeved windbreaker jacket. And my single pair of long leggings. 🙂
We set out for the first half of the day: 25.4 mi/991 ft gain ride to Beaune. The scenery along the way was so spectacular that it simply looked like an AI-generated landscape.
We arrived in the town of Beaune around noon. After exploring for a bit, we set off on our own for lunch and maybe some shopping and/or a beer. Some quick baguette sandwiches from a boulengerie, a stroll through town, and then a light and cold beer at an outside patio made for a perfect midday break.
I enjoyed most of the morning ride, but one segment of uphill was just too much for my lungs given their current post-Covid depleted state. I managed to complete the ride segment, but didn’t have it in me to do the afternoon ride which had the same elevation but in half the distance so I opted to ride in the van to the next stop – wine tasting. My fellow riders rolled in tired and sweaty and did nothing to convince me that I would’ve enjoyed that second ride of the day.
At this winery, we tried 3 white wines (all Chardonnay) and 3 red wines (all Pinot noir). They do what’s called a horizontal tasting in which you try wines that are the same type and year but that vary by geographical location. I never would’ve thought that wines from just down the road or just up the same hill could taste so different, but they really, really do. After trying the Grand Cru (best), the other wines suddenly are clearly inferior.
Burgundy wines have reputations for being some of the best in the world, and ai can see why. These are truly exceptional!
After enjoying our wine, we headed back to the hotel, enjoying one last dinner at the hotel restaurant. Mother Nature put on quite the farewell show for us!
Vacation Days 