French Wineries

I can only speak to Burgundy. You can have a great time, and taste some great wines, for a day maybe 2. with a bike out of Beaune. It is a world-class wine destination.

Try the tasting lunch in Aloxe-Corton.

3 or 4 days Beaune might get a little claustrophobic, and for wine I'd certainly want to spend some time around Chablis. So maybe a combination of bike and car.

That time of year if you are not picky you can find lodging day of (best to call around in the morning or previous day). If your itinerary is set though might as well take care of things before you go.

I hope you don't mean you'll try to visit all three areas in 3-4 days. Pick one and do it justice. Burgundy (Beaune or elsewehre) probably offers the most variety of sights on top of the wineries. You may be there when they're harvesting, adding interest to the trip.

The Alsace Region is known for it's wineries. La Route des Vins d'Alsace offers a lot of wineries in a small region. I also agree that you should pick a region and explore that one place rather than hop. You don't want to spend more time traveling than enjoying. Alsace is also near the Riems area, we're looking at exploring Reims for the day while staying in Strasbourg.

Here's a link to a write up on the Alsace region:
www.winemag.com/Web-2012/A-Guide-to-Visiting-Alsace/

I assume that you will focus the plan, as recommended above. A rental car will be key to flexibility and accessibility in the rural areas and if you are booking on short notice. Next question is how you'll deal with all the wine that accumulates in the back of the car.

Thank you for the input. We've been trying to decide if we should jump around or stay in an area. So this helps. Any input on the Northern Rhone area?