The Cistercian wine estate that became the symbol of Burgundy wine.
€290for a half-day wine tour from Beaune, up to 4 guests
Private driver from Beaune: 28 min by road (25 km), €100 one way for the whole car.
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Standing in the middle of the walled Clos de Vougeot vineyard, this château began as a working winery for the monks of Cîteaux Abbey. A Renaissance manor was added in 1551. Today it is the home of the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin and one of the best-known stops on the Route des Grands Crus.
Cîteaux Abbey was founded in 1098, about 12 km to the south-east. From the early 12th century the monks assembled the Clos de Vougeot vineyard through gifts and purchases, and by 1336 it was enclosed by a wall. To work these vines they built a vat house with giant wooden presses and a great cellar on the site, with a dormitory above for the lay brothers who tended the vines.
In 1551 Dom Jean Loisier, the 48th abbot of Cîteaux, added a Renaissance manor house to these working buildings. The monks kept the estate until the French Revolution, when it was confiscated and sold as national property. In 1818 it was bought by the family of the banker Ouvrard. Later in the century the buildings were neglected, and in 1889 the wine merchant Léonce Bocquet bought the château and restored it at great expense.
In 1920 the château passed to Étienne Camuzet, a winegrower and member of parliament, and in 1944 to a society of friends of the château. The Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin, founded in Nuits-Saint-Georges in 1934, made it its seat and restored it. It was classified as a historic monument in 1949 and became the headquarters of the Climats of Burgundy after their UNESCO listing in 2015.
The château is a group of buildings around a courtyard. The oldest parts are plain and functional, in the Cistercian spirit: the vat house, which still holds four giant wooden presses, and the great cellar, built to store the monks' wine in barrels. The 1551 manor house contrasts with them, with its mullioned windows and more refined Renaissance style. The original kitchens survive and are still in daily use.
Ticket sales stop 30 minutes before closing, and guided tours in English (€15) start at 11:30 and 15:30 and must be booked.
Checked on on the official site.
The château is open to visitors all year. You can explore the vat house, the great cellar and the Renaissance rooms, and guided tours in English run at set times. Plan at least an hour. The château also serves a tasting lunch, La Table de Léonce, and hosts events such as the Livres en Vignes book fair, which can affect tours.
What to combine with Château du Clos de Vougeot on the same day, nearest first.
Château du Clos de Vougeot is about 28 min from Beaune by road (25 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €100 for the whole car, up to 4 guests.
Did you know? Léonce Bocquet, the wine merchant who saved the château from ruin in 1889, chose it as his final resting place. Since 2013 the drive leading to its gates has carried his name.
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Half-day wine tour from Beaune: €290 for the car, up to 4 guests
