Jura vineyard at Arbois

1,100 hectares under AOC status ring Arbois, the historic capital of Jura wines since 1936. From the slopes of Pupillin to the dry valleys of Mesnay, you’ll track savagnin raised under flor, taste a vintage vin jaune after its 6 years and 3 months of aging, and weigh the difference between blue marl and Plio-Quaternary gravels. A thoughtful stop at Louis Pasteur’s house reveals his 1860s fermentation work, still shaping local viticulture. From Besançon it’s 45 km: the road follows the Doubs, then the Loue, with sheer limestone bluffs on the Côte de l’Heute.

Your dedicated driver collects you at your Besançon hotel with a Mercedes for the day: flexible timings, luggage tucked away, and tastings booked ahead. While they handle the wheel to Arbois and Pupillin, you sip, tour, and jot notes; the ride back stays blissfully unhurried. In Arbois with our private chauffeur in the Jura, call at 83 Grande Rue for Pasteur’s house, continue to Montigny-les-Arsures for trousseau, break for a reserved lunch, then wrap up at the Fer à Cheval viewpoint, 10 minutes from town.