A Luxury Barge Cruise in Burgundy by Johanna Castro: Part Two

Wednesday Day 4 - Rully to Chagny to Remigny

After all the gourmet fare we’ve been enjoying I felt so full this morning that I had to say no to brekkie, as well as no to Arnie’s offer of a tasty cheesy omelette. This felt like ABSOLUTE sacrilege!

However, the only thing my tummy craved was a cup of tea followed by a walk along the tow path (to make room for today’s gourmandise! Is that even a word? It should be!)

At 10am prompt Will drove us along country roads and through pretty villages towards Beaune.

I gazed longingly at the quaint brick houses, their windows framed by wooden shutters. Right now they’re surrounded by colourful gardens resplendent with wisteria and spring flowers. Beyond, we could see Canola and wheat fields merging with vineyards that stretched all the way up limestone hills until they reached the wooded summits.

We were heading to the oldest winery in Burgundy, Maison Champy.

Founded by Edme Champy in 1720, this winery is situated in a narrow cobbled street and has witnessed over 300 years of turbulent history.

Its dark, dank warren of Caves that lie beneath the building, date back to the 15th century. They once belonged to a convent and can actually store more than 1000 bottles of wine, maturing in a peaceful chill, without murmur, in big oak barrels.

The oldest barrel apparently dates back to 1942. The oldest bottle of wine still stored – 1858.

The Maison Champy building itself is infused with history and the echoes of famous names.

Louise Pasteur had his own lab here. He pioneered and patented a type of pasteurisation to stabilise wine in its fermentation process. These days the stabilisation process has changed, but his pasteurisation equipment is still viewable in the entrance hall.

Another famous name associated with the winery is Gustav Eiffel the architect who built the Eiffel Tower. He was born in Dijon and came to the Beaune winery in 1891. Daniel told us that he built more than 10 metres of support columns in La Cuverie (the vat room).

5 Fun Facts about Maison Champy

1. Maison Champy won its first medal at the Paris World Fair in 1889
2. Maison Champy is in the Cote de Beaune. There are around 800 plots or climats in this region all with different names
3. The oldest vintage stored in the cellar dates back to1858. There’s just one bottle left. During the 2nd WW it was hidden from the occupying German army in secret spots in the underground caves (along with other bottles of note)
4. Beaune is the wine capital of Burgundy
5. Maison Champy produces 500,000 bottles of wine per year

After a super informative wine tasting with Daniel, who explained the intricacies, rules and methods of wine making in Burgundy, we were shown to an enormous vat and told that it once was capable of holding 20,000 litres of wine.

Daniel opened the door with a grand flourish.

“And here, in Cuve 17, we shall enjoy lunch,” he said.

And what a fabulous lunch we had! Sitting in an enormous wine barrel!

We could hardly stand after the wonderful four course lunch paired with vintage wines (Premier and Grand Crus).

Then we were whisked off to the Hotel Dieu Hospices of Beaune which is the most beautiful building, occupied until as recently as 1984 by infirm and elderly patients.
However, as a former charitable almshouse, it dates back to 1441 when Nicolas Rolin and his wife Guigone de Salins built a hospital to care for the poor and sick.
This large Gothic architectural creation, with its vivid interior courtyard, half-timbered gallery, turrets and multi-coloured roof tiles, is incredibly beautiful.

Originally the hospital had 30 beds, 15 on each side each with a curtain for privacy. One bed would accommodate 2 patients. The first patient was admitted in 1452, and the medical implements on view in the museum made me cringe!

In the afternoon, Dave and I walked along the tow path for a couple of hours as Finesse cruised gracefully along the canal to Remigny. And then we had a long soak in the hot tub on deck. Bliss! Then it was cocktail hour, aperol spritz for me, and a fabulous dinner of Arnie’s amazing creations. Plus he gave us a little cooking demo! Of course, we’ll all be cordon bleu cooks at the end of the week!

Thursday Day 5 - Remigny to Saint Leger

Thursday on Finesse somewhere in deepest Burgundy! Today we’ll be cruising between Remigny and Saint Leger, a distance of about 11 km, taking about 4 hours. It was raining cats and dogs when we woke up so we decided not to explore Remigny but rather to laze in the warmth of the barge drinking coffee and having a lazy breakfast.

Captain Mathias started cruising early and we passed small villages, and many vineyards synonymous with the Chalonnaise region. We were slowly transported through emerald green countryside spotted with Burgundy’s distinctive white Charolais cows. Along the canal bank big chestnut trees in creamy bloom towered above the barge while other trees looked as if they had been invaded by mistletoe.

Everything looked sylvan, even in the rain. Shuttered houses drifted past, villages and church steeples came into view in the distance. It was all very relaxing and pretty despite inclement weather.

After another superlative 3 course lunch, including generously sized freshly cooked lobster tails, it was time for our excursion to Chanzy wine estate.

Will drove us along tightly woven country lanes with high hedgerows. Every now and then we were afforded a fabulous far reaching view and it was like emerging from a maze.

Chanzy was interesting for different wine making reasons, not least that they use more grapes in their wines (including Aligote and Gamay). Burgundian wineries mostly use Chardonnay and Pinot noir grapes almost exclusively.

Soon it was back to the barge for aperitifs and canapes (don’t hate me!) How will we ever get back to normal I ask myself?

Onto dinner we rolled, tonight a main of deliciously prepared and beautifully presented lamb rack in breadcrumbs, and another dessert to die for.

There was lots of chatter and laughter with our fellow travellers, lots of cooking tips from Chef Arnie, and then it was time for bed. Another lovely day!

Friday Day 6 - Saint Leger sur Dheune to Saint Julian sur Dheune

The elevation of the canal drops today and we have to pass through 11 locks. Although the pace is slow and gentle and there are country scenes on one side, to the other there is quite a busy road. This is our last day on Finesse with European Waterways and we are going to make the most of every minute! We wake to sunshine and birdsong in Saint Leger sur Dheune. A pigeon coos. Good smells are coming from the galley already.

We put on our walking shoes decide to take a walk through the village and along the canal tow path. It’s really atmospheric this morning – the countryside is looking lush and green – as emerald green as any fancy jewel. Long shadows fall across the water and a soft morning mist rises above it adding to the peace and serendipity.

Burgundy, we are learning, has a heritage steeped in the people, the earth, the climate, the countryside, and the traditions. You can very much feel the continuity between the past and the present in the foods and customs that still exist today, brought alive to us via the food, the wines and the excursions we’ve been experiencing.

It’s one of the biggest regions of France. Covering about 5% of French territory. It’s bigger than Belgium, but has only about 2.9% of the population of France, making it one of the least populated regions in Europe.

Everything Burgundian is naturally universal – Henri Vincent

Wine has been produced on Burgundy’s fertile hillsides for centuries with vineyards usually situated on slopes facing the rising sun or the south east, divided into thousands of Climats, which defines a plot of land with it sown specific properties, soil, subsoils, exposure etc. A parcel of land which will have been identified by the same name not for years but for centuries.

The region, I’m told, has exceptional soil and its easy to see that it’s altogether a veritable chocolate box of produce. Cereals and vegetables are grown here, meat comes from the splendid white Charolais cattle, there are gourmet mustards, spiced breads, red berries gooseberries, raspberries, strawberries, black berries and the most delicious cheeses – I especially like Epoisses de Bourgogne.

After another slap-up breakfast in the salon we clamber into the mini bus waiting close by, and Will drives us along scenic country roads to Autun.

Autun is renowned for its Roman heritage and was once upon history an active centre in Roman times.

It’s a fairly small town, listed as one of the 100 most historic in France and it’s set in a pastoral  spot with the Morvan hills behind.

Autun still has some of the original fortified walls (ramparts) around the old town and we began our visit with a look at one of the main Roman Gates to the city. It was wonderful to be transported back in time, and if you listened to the whispers on the breeze you could imagine Roman soldiers and citizens passing through right where we were standing.

Then we were taken to the well preserved remains of a Roman Amphitheatre that once seated 20,000 people.

Next door was the military college which according to Will, Napoleon once attended.

Our visit continued to a pretty courtyard and on via walkways lined with trees in spring blossom, to the impressive Cathedral of Saint-Lazare dating back to the 12th century. It was built around 1120 to take in pilgrims wanting to meditate upon the relics of Saint Lazaro.

We had a little time to explore the centre of Autun, which is mostly situated in the streets around two large squares – one dominated by Autun’s Theatre and Town Hall and the other by the imposing Lycée buildings.

There was a bustling market and some wonderful fresh veggies, fruits and olives among other mouthwatering produce for sale.

For lunch Arnie had prepared a French buffet in ‘le weekend’ style – which was varied and super delish.

After several glasses of fine wine mostly everyone was happy to relax as Mathias captained Finesse through 8 more locks (11 in all today) along the Canal du Centre.

Despite having to prepare the celebratory Captain’s dinner for tonight, Arnie made the time to give us a cooking class in the afternoon. He showed us how to prepare Gougeres which we devoured afterwards sitting in the sunshine up at the Wheelhouse with Captain, Mathias.

The sun was out, the scenery was bucolic, the pace slow and gentle, and we all variously enjoyed the last leg of the cruise until we came to our final mooring at Saint Julian sur Dheune.

Dave and I took a beautiful stroll along the tow path before it was time to get scrubbed up for the Captain’s Dinner.

And what a grand dinner it was!

5 courses of cordon bleu delights freshly prepared that day, all from scratch, by our private Chef Arnie, served with some of the very best wines of the region.

All too soon it was time for bed. Tomorrow morning after breakfast (Arnie’s promised us Eggs Benedict in addition to the normal buffet options) we depart for Dijon at 9am, sadly all to go our separate ways.

What a fabulous 6 day cruise it’s been! So many magic moments to treasure!

Looking out over Saint Julian sur Dheune from the deck of the barge on our final evening, as light drizzle softens the warming May air, I come to the conclusion that, for me, Burgundy is just dreamy. The canal cruise aboard Finesse has offered slow travel, and a deep dive into the heart of this region. I think back to what we’ve encountered in just a few days and realise this journey has been a veritable smorgasbord of sight and taste sensations.

We’ve witnessed a countryside resembling a tapestry of sweeping vistas encompassing rolling green pastures, acres of vineyards, historic wineries, picturesque medieval villages, enchanting chateaux, forests, fields of bright yellow canola, ripening wheat, historic towns and ancient architecture, and the most gastronomic faire. Overall the cruise has been relaxing, informative, fun and delicious in so many ways!

I travelled as a guest of European Waterways. Big thanks to the fabulous crew. Captain Mathias, Chef Arnie, Hostesses Diana and Luna, and Deck Hand/Tour Guide Will.

What’s Finesse Really Like?

• Constructed as a working barge in 1950 Finesse was originally christened Nivea, but she was remodelled and transformed into a luxury hotel barge and renamed in 2015.
• Finesse is an ultra-deluxe barge with two decks – cabins on the lower deck and saloon and sun deck above.
• Communal areas include a saloon with contemporary furnishings. Lined with panoramic windows on either side, no matter the weather, you’ll be able to enjoy the passing scenery of rural France.
• Fitted with four luxury double bedroom cabins, each room can be arranged with either double or twin beds. Suites have their own en suite bathrooms with walk in showers and double basins, and comprise approximately 265 square feet of floor space each.
• Out on the sun deck you’ll find reclining loungers and a spa pool. You may also choose to take your dinner al-fresco on a balmy summers evening.
• There are five crew members on hand to attend to your every need.
• The wheelhouse observation area allows guests to sit behind the captain, watching the scenery go by.
• A unique feature of Finesse is the open kitchen, a demonstration galley, where you can watch and learn from your chef as he prepares meals.

Frequently Asked Questions

But what if I don’t get on with the other guests?

I’ve been on 3 European Waterways hotel barge cruises and can honestly say that on these 3 trips we’ve met the most wonderful people, and made lifelong friends. The people we’ve met have been from America and Australia and all had similar reasons for booking a barge cruise; namely, an interest in slow travel, fine wines, good food, the history of the area, and a desire for vacation relaxation (as opposed to adrenalin pumping adventure activity). There’s always been much to chat about, mull over and laugh about, and in my experience people have always been sensitive not to discuss controversial topics that might disrupt the harmony of the group.

If you are really concerned about other guests, you have the option to charter the whole barge and take along your own friends and family. Alternatively, the crew can sometimes arrange two separate tables for dining.

How active is a barge cruise?

Some barge cruises offer more opportunities than others to walk or bicycle along the canal tow path, so always check how much availability there is for this before assuming you can get onto the tow path whenever you want.

When it comes to the amount of walking you’ll be doing, from my experience of cruises in Burgundy, Champagne and Italy, there have been daily excursions by mini bus to various nearby attractions which have involved small amounts of gentle walking.

Compared to an ocean cruise or a large boat river cruise, a luxury small barge cruise is much gentler. No waves, no queing for a buffet. Due to the small number of guests there’s no jostling or waiting to get off the barge and the mini bus parks nearby to take you on private

Cruise Southern Burgundy aboard Finesse

The 8-passenger hotel barge Finesse cruises the Canal du Centre and the River Saône between May and October. A selection of private whole boat charter Theme Cruises are available, including:

Family | Golf | Wine Appreciation 

If you missed part one of Jo Castro’s recount of her luxury barge cruise in Burgundy aboard hotel barge Finesse, you can catch up by reading it here >