The Clos de Vougeot was officially classified as Grand Cru in 1937

October 4, 2010

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Clos de Vougeot is a large Grand Cru vineyard, and corresponding appellation, in the small village of Vougeot. The walled site is the largest Grand Cru in the Cote de Nuits sub-region of Burgundy, covering 124 acres (50 hectares).

The sheer size of the Clos de Vougeot climat is something which makes it stand out among the top vineyards of the Cote d’Or, where the average size of a Grand Cru site is closer to 35 acres (14 hectares). There is a particularly obvious contrast between Vougeot and its southern neighbor Vosne-Romanee, whose six meticulously classified Grand Cru sites have an average surface area of only 11 acres (4.5 hectares).

The Clos de Vougeot was officially classified as Grand Cru in 1937, when the whole Clos was granted this prestigious title; delimited according to the location of the Clos wall rather than the actual quality of the terroir. Many in the modern wine world openly question whether this decision was in keeping with the high standards imposed on the other Burgundy Grand Crus, and suggest that only some parts of this ancient vineyard are truly deserving of the classification.

There are about eighteen sub-divided lieux-dits within the Clos, reflecting how the ownership of the land was historically divided between the Cistercian monks who planted the original vines, the Roman Catholic church and the French crown. These divisions became less meaningful after the French revolution, when the land was confiscated by the Napoleonic state, and subsequently sold to a rich banker. Where once it was owned by this single man, the Clos de Vougeot is now divided into more than one hundred plots, owned by more than eighty individuals from various families and domaines. The Napoleonic inheritance laws introduced in the early nineteenth century have meant that this is the story all over Burgundy’s vineyards.

The result of these divisions has had profound implications on the quality (and resulting reputation) of Clos de Vougeot wine. Where before grapes from all over the site could be blended to achieve a balanced style under a single label, now the multiple different producers have only their own small patch of terroir. While some of these patches produce grapes worthy of Grand Cru status, many do not, meaning that modern Clos de Vougeot wine is of highly variable quality.

To earn the right to the Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru appellation title, wines must not only be made from at least 85% Pinot Noir grapes (Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc are permitted to a maximum of 15%) grown exclusively within the climat, but must also meet the strict production conditions specified in the appellation laws. These conditions are designed to guarantee the quality of the wines, and control such factors as vineyard management, maximum yield levels and the natural sugar and alcohol content of the finished wine. The clause permitting the use of 15% white grapes is rarely invoked anywhere in Burgundy, and is only present in the appellation laws to allow for mutations and planting variations within the sometimes ancient vineyards.

Source: http://www.wine-searcher.com/regions-clos+de+vougeot

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