Volnay AOP

AOC/AOP Regulations

Département

• Côte d’Or

Communes of Production

• Volnay, Meursault

Styles and Encépagement

• Rouge: Pinot Noir, plus a max. 15% mixed plantings of Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, and Chardonnay
• Rouge „Premier Cru“

Minimum Potential Alcohol

• Rouge: 10.5%
• Rouge „Premier Cru“: 11%

Minimum Must Weights

• Rouge: 180 g/l (171 g/l prior to 2011)
• Rouge „Premier Cru“: 189 g/l (180 g/l prior to 2011)

Maximum Residual Sugar

• Rouge: 2 g/l

Élevage

• Wines must be aged until at least June 15 of the year following the harvest

Minimum Planting Density

• 9,000 vines per hectare

Maximum Yield (Rendement de Base)

• Rouge: 50 hl/ha (40 hl/ha prior to 2011)
• Rouge „Premier Cru“: 48 hl/ha (40 hl/ha prior to 2011)

Principal Soil Type

• oolitic limestone

AOC Established

• 1937 (last updated 2011)

Links

• AOP Cahier des Charges
• AOC Map
• Map of Volnay AOC (Official Wines of Burgundy Website)

Premier Cru Vineyards of Volnay (29)

Vineyard	Size**	Major Producers	Notes
Carelle sous la Chapelle	3.73 ha	Jean-Marc Boillot, Jean-Marc Bouley, Paul Pernot, de Montille	The Premier Cru Carelle Dessous was absorbed into Carelle sous la Chapelle in 2006.
	Origin of Name: „Carelle“ is derived from the Latin quadrus, or „square“–the shape of the vineyard. The Chapelle (chapel) still stands today, marking the road to Monthélie.
Champans	11.19 ha	Marquis d’Angerville, de Montille, Comtes Lafon, Joseph Voillot, Jacques Prieur
	Origin of Name: „Champans“ = „field on a slope“
Clos des 60 Ouvrées	2.40 ha	Domaine de la Pousse d’Or, monopole	This vineyard is located within Les Caillerets, in the Caillerets Dessus lieu-dit.
	Origin of Name: An „ouvrée“ is a historic unit of measurement used chiefly in eastern France. It represents the amount of land a man could work in one day, without horses, oxen, or mules.
Clos de l’Audignac	1.11 ha	Domaine de la Pousse d’Or, monopole	Part of Le Village, this vineyard officially became a separate premier cru in 1985.
	Origin of Name: The vineyard was once owned by François d’Audignac.
Clos du Château des Ducs	0.57 ha	Michel Lafarge, monopole	Part of Le Village, this vineyard officially became a separate premier cru in 1985.
	Origin of Name: The vineyard lies on the site of the 11th-century Château de Volnay, which was owned by the Dukes of Burgundy. It was consumed by fire in 1749, but the vineyards remain.
Clos des Chênes	15.41 ha	Michel Lafarge, Bitouzet-Prieur, Comtes Lafon, Bouchard, Jean-Marc Bouley, J. Drouhin
	Origin of Name: „Chênes“ = „oak trees“; an oak forest once stood on this vineyard site.
Clos des Ducs	2.41 ha	Marquis d’Angerville, monopole
	Origin of Name: The vineyard dates to at least the early 16th century, and stands on the former site of the domaine of the Dukes of Burgundy.
Clos de la Barre	1.32 ha	Louis Jadot, monopole	Louis Jadot does not own this vineyard, but they are the sole purchaser of its fruit and producer of the wine. The Charraux family are the actual owners.
	Origin of Name: In Old French, „Barre“ indicates a fence.
Clos de la Bousse d’Or	2.14 ha	Domaine de la Pousse d’Or, monopole	This vineyard was once the property of Duvault-Blochet, 19th century owners of Romanée-Conti. It is a lieu-dit within Le Village accorded status as a premier cru under its own name in 1985.
	Origin of Name: „Bousse d’Or“ is derived from bourse d’or, or „purse of gold.“ This land once belonged to the royal family, and it was highly fertile.
Clos de la Cave des Ducs	0.64 ha	Benjamin Leroux, monopole	Domaine Carré-Courbin produced this wine until 2006. The domaine dissolved and sold most of its holdings to Maison Champy. The Carré family retains ownership of this vineyard, but sells the fruit to Leroux. It is a lieu-dit within Le Village accorded status as a premier cru under its own name in 1985.
Clos de la Chapelle	0.55 ha	Domaine Clos de la Chapelle (Champy), monopole	Maison Champy purchased this vineyard from Louis Boillot in 2011, and began producing the wine under the name „Domaine Clos de la Chapelle“ with the 2009 vintage.
Clos de la Rougeotte	0.50 ha	François Buffet, Monopole	Part of Le Village, this vineyard officially became a separate premier cru in 1985.
	Origin of Name: „Rougeotte“ derives from rouge; the vineyard is so named because its vines change color a little sooner in the autumn than in neighboring sites
Clos du Verseuil	0.68 ha	Domaine Yvon Clerget, monopole
En Chevret	6.35 ha	Joseph Drouhin, Henri Boillot, Nicolas Rossignol
Frémiets	7.40 ha	Marquis d’Angerville, Henri Boillot, Joseph Voillot, Comte Armand, Faiveley	„Frémiets“ borders the Pommard Premier Cru Les Fremiers.
	Origin of Name: Fremiet was a historic owner of the site.
Frémiets ― Clos de la Rougeotte	0.45 ha	Bouchard, monopole	This vineyard is located within Frémiets.
	Origin of Name: See above.
Lassolle
	Origin of Name: „Lassole“ has a south-facing, sunny (Latin sol) exposure.
Les Angles	3.34 ha	d’Angerville, Louis Boillot	The Premier Cru Pointes d’Angles was absorbed into Les Angles in 2006.
	Origin of Name: „The angle“ describes the triangular shape of the vineyard.
Les Brouillards	5.63 ha	Joseph Voillot, de Montille, Louis Boillot
	Origin of Name: Although „Brouillard“ means „fog“, it is likely the name of a historic owner of the vineyard.
Les Caillerets	14.36 ha	Bouchard, Bitouzet-Prieur, Yvon Clerget, Michel Lafarge, d’Angerville	The vineyard, one of Volnay’s top sites, includes the lieux-dits Cailleret Dessus, En Cailleret, and Clos des 60 Ouvrées. The latter is considered a separate premier cru.
	Origin of Name: „Caille“ derives from calliou (Old French), meaning stony. There are two theories for „Caillerets“ itself. Either the „rets“ is a corruption of the French roi (king), leading to „king’s stones,“ or it is a diminutive, indicating the small size of the stones and pebbles in this site.
La Gigotte	0.54 ha	Darviot-Perrin
	Origin of Name: Gigot was a historic owner of the vineyard.
Les Lurets	2.07 ha
Les Mitans	3.98 ha	de Montille	The Premier Cru En l’Ormeau was absorbed into Les Mitans in 2006.
	Origin of Name: „Les Mitans“ is derived from an Old French word for „middle“; it represents the heart of the Volnay appellation.
Le Ronceret	1.90 ha	Jean-Marc Boillot, Paul Garaudet	The Premier Cru Les Aussy was absorbed into Le Ronceret in 2006.
	Origin of Name: „Ronceret“ refers to a field covered in bramble.
Le Village	6.4 ha		Le Village is a little-used Premier Cru name on labels, but the vineyard encompasses many of the „Clos“ vineyards, including Clos de la Cave des Ducs, Clos de l’Audignac, Clos de la Chapelle, Clos du Château des Ducs, and Clos de la Rougeotte. The smaller sites within Le Village are adjacent to houses, and gained the right in 1985 to be bottled under their own names.
Pitures Dessus	4.08 ha	Bitouzet-Prieur, Jean-Marc Boillot	The Premier Cru Chanlin was absorbed into Pitures Dessus in 2006. The vineyard is often simply referred to as Les Pitures.
	Origin of Name: „above the marsh“
Robardelle	2.94 ha
	Origin of Name: In Old French, a robardel is a thieves‘ hideout.
Santenots (Meursault)	22.73 ha	Robert Ampeau, Comtes Lafon, Jacques Prieur, François Mikulski	Red wines from this vineyard are labeled as Volnay; white wines are labeled as Meursault.
	Origin of Name: „Santenots“ is derived from the Latin sentes, or „bramble.“
Taille Pieds	7.13 ha	Marquis d’Angerville, Bitouzet-Prieur, De Montille, Comtes Lafon
	Origin of Name: „Taille Pieds“ means „cut feet“; the steep slope and sharp rocks underfoot have no doubt confirmed the vineyard’s literal meaning for many a worker.
**Coates, Clive. The Wines of Burgundy. Rev. ed. Berkeley: The University of California Press, 2008.