Named vineyard
Chambertin
Identity card
Grand cruAOPRed
Burgundy › Côte de Nuits › Gevrey-Chambertin · Recognised on 31 July 1937
- Grand cru
- Premier cru
- Village
- Regional
Key points
- A red grand cru of just over 13 ha (2009), in Gevrey-Chambertin only.
- A Clos de Bèze may be sold as Chambertin; not the other way round.
- Stricter than the village: at most 42 hl/ha, at least 11.5% natural alcohol.
Grape varieties
Red wine onlyPinot Noir
Allowed as a small share of the red wine: Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris (15% at most of the vines in each plot)
Only interplanted among the vines
Production rules
42
hl/ha
Maximum yield
11.5
% ABV
Minimum natural alcohol
9,000
vines/ha
Minimum planting density
Minimum ageing: At least until 15 June after the harvest
- Maximum yield
- How much wine a hectare may produce under the appellation (a higher, exceptional ceiling often exists). The lower it is, the less can be made: one of the levers on how concentrated the grapes are. For reference: 35 hl/ha to 80 hl/ha across 68 Oenopia appellations of the same colour.
- Minimum natural alcohol
- The alcohol the grapes' own sugar must be able to give, without enrichment: a ripeness threshold at harvest. For reference: 9 % ABV to 12.5 % ABV across 64 Oenopia appellations of the same colour.
- Minimum planting density
- The fewest vines allowed per hectare. For the same yield, more vines means fewer grapes on each. For reference: 4,000 vines/ha to 9,000 vines/ha across 76 Oenopia appellations of the same colour.
- Minimum ageing
- A minimum ageing period the specification requires before the wine may be sold to consumers.
Terroir
- Lie of the land: The foot of the Côte, on a slight shelf below the slope
- Aspect: Facing east, sheltered from frost risk and fog
- Soils: Red clays and silts over hard limestone and marl
Wine style
- Raspberry
- Blackcurrant
- Violet
- Liquorice
- deep, intense red
Boundaries: INAO, AOC vineyard plot delimitation (September 2026 edition) · Open Licence
Specification
26 October 2011
Labelling terms
- The name may be followed by the words "grand cru"
Nearby appellations
Sources
- Official sourceCahiers des charges d'AOC publiés au BO-AGRI (décrets du 26 octobre 2011) — dont « Chambertin », « Chambertin-Clos de Bèze », « Chapelle-Chambertin », « Mazis-Chambertin » et « Corton »— Ministère de l'agriculture et de la souveraineté alimentaire — Bulletin officiel (BO-AGRI)
- Reference bookThe Oxford Companion to Wine— Oxford University Press
- Trade bodyFiches d'appellation des vins de Bourgogne (surfaces et récoltes)— Bureau Interprofessionnel des Vins de Bourgogne (BIVB)
A red grand cru lying wholly within Gevrey-Chambertin, on the piedmont of the Côte, on a slight shelf. What sets it apart is the marl bed capping the hard limestone and reading in the landscape as a shallow hollow: the vines stop at the top of those marls, whose intermittent seepage makes up for the thin soils' small water reserve. Just over 13 hectares in 2009. Louis-Philippe authorised the village to add the cru's name to its own on 17 October 1847.
Mini-challenge
Chambertin
3 questions on Chambertin, all answered right, and the appellation is mastered in your Atlas.
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