--- title: "Saint-Bris: Burgundy’s Sauvignon Wine and Old Cellars" description: "Burgundy's only Sauvignon appellation, above a maze of medieval cellars near Auxerre. Add Chablis and Irancy, 1 h 35 from Beaune by private driver." url: https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/saint-bris lang: en updated: 2026-09-29 generated: 2026-10-08 image: https://www.cote-privee.com/og/villages/saint-bris.png --- # Saint-Bris > Saint-Bris: Burgundy's Sauvignon village, built over a maze of medieval cellars. Saint-Bris is a wine village (Chablis & Auxerrois), 1 h 35 by road (140 km) from Beaune. White wine · Private driver from Beaune: €355 one way for the whole car, up to 4 guests. Saint-Bris-le-Vineux lies about 10 km south-east of Auxerre. It gives its name to Saint-Bris, the only Burgundy appellation made from Sauvignon rather than Chardonnay. Beneath its stone houses runs a network of medieval cellars, and its Gothic church holds a remarkable painted Tree of Jesse. ## Key facts - Type: Wine village - Region: Chablis & Auxerrois - Location: 120 km north-west of Beaune · Chablis & Auxerrois - Coordinates: 47.7440, 3.6475 - 1 h 35 from Beaune - White wine - Appellations: Saint-Bris - Grapes: Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris - From Beaune: ≈ 1 h 35 · 140 km - €880 for a [long-day wine tour](https://www.cote-privee.com/wine-tours/long-day) from Beaune, up to 4 guests ## Getting there - [Private driver from Beaune](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver): 1 h 35 by road (140 km), €355 one way for the whole car. Coming by train or plane? [Transfers from stations and airports](https://www.cote-privee.com/transfers) Estimates per vehicle for up to 4 guests, tolls included. Your price is confirmed when you book. ## History The village takes its name from Saint Prix, a 3rd-century Christian martyr of Auxerre. Tradition says that one of his companions, Cot, was killed while fleeing with the saint's head, and the church is dedicated to both men. The Mello family became lords here in the late 12th century. The Gothic church, built between the 12th and 15th centuries, has fine 16th-century stained glass and was listed as a historic monument in 1904. For centuries the Yonne's vineyards supplied Paris by river. Railways later brought competition from the south of France, and phylloxera ruined most of the vines. Sauvignon seems to have arrived after that collapse, perhaps inspired by its success on the upper Loire. When Burgundy's appellation rules took shape in the 1930s, Sauvignon was left out, but growers kept it. The wine won VDQS status as Sauvignon de Saint-Bris in 1974, then full village appellation as Saint-Bris in 2003. ## The wines Saint-Bris is white only, made from Sauvignon Blanc and Sauvignon Gris in any proportion. About 180 hectares grow across five communes: Saint-Bris-le-Vineux, Chitry, Irancy, Quenne and Vincelottes. The soils are very calcareous, with Jurassic limestones and marls holding fossil oysters, as in nearby Chablis. The wine is pale straw to light gold, lively on the palate, with aromas of grapefruit, mandarin, peach and crushed blackcurrant leaves. ## What to see ### Church of Saint-Prix-et-Saint-Cot A Gothic church with 16th-century stained glass and a huge mural of the Tree of Jesse, dated 1500, showing about fifty figures. ### Medieval cellars A network of vaulted medieval cellars runs beneath the streets, and they are often called the most impressive in Burgundy. Several winegrowers receive visitors in them. ### Bailly quarries On the banks of the Yonne, underground quarries worked since the Middle Ages have housed a Crémant de Bourgogne cellar since 1972, with about four hectares of galleries. ## Good to know Pair Saint-Bris with Irancy, a few minutes away, and Chablis for a full day in the Yonne. Allow about 90 minutes for the church, a walk and a tasting, and book cellar visits ahead. ## Did you know? Saint-Bris is the only appellation in Burgundy that uses Sauvignon. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grown on the same slopes must be sold under other names, such as Bourgogne Côtes d'Auxerre. ## Around Saint-Bris What to combine with Saint-Bris on the same day, nearest first. ### Villages - [Irancy](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/irancy) (4 km away): The red wine village of the Yonne, set in a bowl of vines and cherry trees. - [Chablis](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/chablis) (14 km away): Burgundy's northern outpost, where Chardonnay grows on fossil-rich limestone above the river Serein. ### Châteaux - [Château Long-Depaquit](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-long-depaquit) (14 km away): An 18th-century château in the heart of Chablis, home of the grand cru La Moutonne. - [Château de Maligny](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-maligny) (16 km away): A castle above the Serein north of Chablis, whose name lives on in the Durup family's wines. - [Château de Béru](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-beru) (19 km away): A family château above the Chablis vineyards, with a rare sundial and moon dial, and biodynamic wines. ### Things to do - [Domaine Pierre-Louis et Jean-François Bersan](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/domaine-pierre-louis-et-jean-francois-bersan) (1 km away): A father-and-son estate whose wines age in a maze of medieval cellars beneath Saint-Bris-le-Vineux. - [Caves Bailly Lapierre](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/caves-bailly-lapierre) (3 km away): Crémant de Bourgogne aged in vast medieval stone quarries above the river Yonne. - [Site archéologique d’Escolives-Sainte-Camille](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/site-archeologique-escolives-sainte-camille) (4 km away): The baths of a Gallo-Roman villa on the Via Agrippa, built on reused carved stones, with a Merovingian cemetery among the ruins. - [Domaine Borgnat](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/domaine-borgnat-escolives) (4 km away): A family estate and guest house in Escolives, with tastings in stacked 17th-century cellars and wines of Coulanges-la-Vineuse. - [Église Saint-Pierre d’Auxerre](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/eglise-saint-pierre-auxerre) (8 km away): The winegrowers' church of Auxerre, with a flamboyant tower, a classical façade and a Renaissance gateway inspired by Naples. - [Église Saint-Eusèbe d’Auxerre](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/eglise-saint-eusebe-auxerre) (8 km away): A church on the site of a 7th-century monastery, with a Romanesque bell tower and a bright Renaissance choir of stained glass. - [Auxerre Old Town and Clock Tower (Auxerre, tour de l’Horloge et vieille ville)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/auxerre-old-town), 8 km away: Half-timbered streets, a medieval clock that tracks the moon, and church spires above the river Yonne. - [Saint-Étienne Cathedral, Auxerre (Cathédrale Saint-Étienne d’Auxerre)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/cathedrale-saint-etienne-auxerre), 8 km away: A Gothic cathedral above the Yonne, with 13th-century glass and a rare painting of Christ on horseback. - [Saint-Germain Abbey, Auxerre (Abbaye Saint-Germain d’Auxerre)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/abbaye-saint-germain-auxerre), 8 km away: A great Carolingian abbey whose crypts hold the oldest known wall paintings in France. - [Muséum d’histoire naturelle d’Auxerre](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/museum-histoire-naturelle-auxerre) (9 km away): Auxerre's free natural history museum, in a 19th-century house with a formal garden, with changing exhibitions on nature and science. - [Domaine du Clos du Roi](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/domaine-du-clos-du-roi-coulanges-la-vineuse) (7 km away): A family estate in Coulanges-la-Vineuse with free tastings, a wine bar of local produce and old oak casks under the church. - [Domaine Clotilde Davenne](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/domaine-clotilde-davenne) (9 km away): An oenologist's own domaine in Préhy, with small plots from Chablis to Saint-Bris and Irancy and visits in English. - [Domaine Jean-Marc Brocard](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/domaine-jean-marc-brocard) (9 km away): A large family estate in Préhy, a pioneer of biodynamics in Chablis, with a panoramic tasting cellar. ### Events - **The weekend before Christmas.** · [Marché du Réveillon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/marche-du-reveillon-saint-bris-le-vineux): A Christmas food market held in the medieval cellars beneath Saint-Bris-le-Vineux. (Christmas · Saint-Bris-le-Vineux) - **A weekend in January, close to the feast of Saint Vincent on 22 January.** · [Saint-Vincent de Chitry](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/saint-vincent-de-chitry): Chitry honours Saint Vincent with a parade, mulled wine for all and a Sunday of tastings. (Tradition · Chitry) - **Saturday 29 – Sunday 30 May 2027 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Fleurs de Vigne](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/fleurs-de-vigne-auxerre): The wine festival of the Yonne, held on the Auxerre quays as the vines come into flower. (Wine festival · Auxerre) - **A long weekend in late August.** · [Rues Barrées](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/rues-barrees-auxerre): Three days of free street theatre, circus and dance in the old streets of Auxerre. (Culture · Auxerre) ### Guides about Saint-Bris - [A Chablis day trip from Beaune](https://www.cote-privee.com/guides/chablis-day-trip-from-beaune) - [Burgundy’s grape varieties](https://www.cote-privee.com/guides/burgundy-grape-varieties) ## Questions about Saint-Bris ### How far is Saint-Bris from Beaune? Saint-Bris is about 1 h 35 from Beaune by road (140 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €355 for the whole car, up to 4 guests. ### What wines is Saint-Bris known for? Saint-Bris makes mostly white wines under these appellations: Saint-Bris. ### Can you taste wine in Saint-Bris? Yes. Many domaines in Saint-Bris receive visitors, usually by appointment. On a wine tour your driver plans the route and helps you book the tastings, which you pay directly to the domaines. ### Can a private driver take us to Saint-Bris? Yes. Your driver collects you in Beaune or at your hotel in an electric Polestar 2 (up to 4 guests), waits while you visit and plans the rest of the day with you. The driver speaks English, French, Mandarin Chinese and Arabic. → [Long-day wine tour, €880](https://www.cote-privee.com/wine-tours/long-day) ## Book - [Book a driver here](https://www.cote-privee.com/book?service=wine-tour&option=long&place=village:stbris): Long-day wine tour from Beaune: €880 for the car, up to 4 guests ## Sources - - - - - - - --- Canonical page: