Burgundy or Bordeaux?

Which wines do you prefer - pinot noir and chardonnay (Burgundy) or Cabernet and Merlot (Bordeaux)? Your answer to that question should make your decision for you. :)

If you can swing a solid chunk of time for the Dordogne, I would go there. Not just as the tie breaker between two distinguished wine regions (Bordeaux, Burgundy) but in its own right. I think it will be the highlight of your trip. On the other hand if you lack the time to spend (I'd want a minimum of 4 full days in the Dordogne but more lets you explore the Lot and beyond), then make the decision based on what works best with your itinerary. To differ gently with Tim's advice: France does not classify wines the way we do and choosing based on the grape would be a mistake. A good Chablis is nothing like what most think of as chardonnay, for instance.

We will be going at the end of August-beginning of September, will be renting a car and spending 8-10 days in Bordeaux/Dordogne or Burgundy region. It's either or, not both. I am leaning towards Bordeaux/Dordogne now: we can go to the beach in the area if it's warm enough, visit oyster farm and gave the freshest oysters, mix in city scene by visiting Bordeaux, visit wineries, Dordogne, caves. It seem to have variety of sites, different in their nature. Is it right?

We visited Dordogne early last June and it was a high point. Charming towns, farmers markets, fun castles, great prehistoric caves and five course tasting menus for 23-29 euros. We then went to the striking hill town of St Emilion which is a pleasant wine town during the day with lots of tasting but it was very quiet at night. We made appointments to visit some top wineries and had wonderful personal tours including in the caves. We then drove to Bordeaux where we had more tours arranged. I guess I wasn't prepared as the drive looked simple but we got lost and missed some appointments. We live very close to the wine country in California visiting monthly and I can honestly say our landscape is far more attractive. We finally arrived in Bordeaux the city and really enjoyed it. I can give you alot more specifics on some wineries if you decide on it. We were in Burgundy several years ago with children so it was a different type of trip. We also love Alsace.

Kira - If you want a beach, check out Arcachon and Cap Ferret. We stayed at Hotel des Pin in Cap Ferret and loved it. Lovely wide sandy beach in Cap Ferret.

Hi Grier, that's actually our preliminary plan. Start with one of the beach towns, spend there couple of days and then move deeper into Bordeaux, stay in the country side, visit the city as a day trip, visit some wineries, then move to Dordogne. Do you know if end of August-beginning of September is a good beach time? We were in San Sebastian couple of years ago at the beginning of September and only one day is ok for the beach. Karen, thank you for your reply. If you compare Burgundy and Bordeaux, what are the things that you noticed? I understand it has different wines and grapes, looking from a visitor's perspective.
We visited wineries in Spain couple of years ago and it was such a pleasant experience. One of them had a museum, another brought us to their storage which was old and impressive, another had a really nice space/environment to relax and had wine and lunch, etc. Most of them were near some cute towns. None of them was pushing expensive wines as was my brother's experience in Burgundy.

Kira - I don't have personal experience with August/September for the beach but would think it would be ideal. We were there in April and it was cold.