Domaines viticoles Pays du Châtillonnais

Anne and Sylvain Bouhélier, along with their son Paul, welcome you to their cellar, which has been converted into a winegrower's museum, a veritable mine of information on the history of Crémant du Châtillonnais. In summer, and by appointment the rest of the year, they take you to the heart of their vineyards to discover the slopes, the grape varieties and the work of the winemaker. The 7.5 ha of sustainable vineyards are spread over 6 villages. Choose from 5 cuvées of Crémant, a Burgundy, red, white or rosé, a ratafia and an old marc distilled on the estate.

Alain Gillon, a farmer from the Châtillonnais region, started out in viticulture in 1995 with his brother Patrick. Julien and Romain, their respective sons, took over the reins of the family domaine, investing heavily. The estate is set in a superb location, in the heart of the village and on the banks of the Seine, and comprises just over 9 hectares of vines. Always on the lookout for something new, the owners are currently making a Crémant blanc de noir and an oak-aged white wine, both of which will be available in 2025.

Domaine Cailletet Père et fils will soon operate 20 hectares of vineyards in Bouix, within the limits of Burgundy and Champagne appellations.

More than 25,000 bottles are produced each year, in Crémants rosé, pure Chardonnay or composed of a blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The recent vat installed in the farm's buildings has a press and new vinification vats capable of producing 80,000 bottles, making Domaine Cailletet one of the most important in the Chatillonnais region. Jean-Marie or his son Cédric welcomes you in the cellar. Discover the jewel of the house, "Les délices de Jules et Lalie", a blend aged on slats for 48 months and pampered throughout its evolution. The bottle is sold for € 9, compared to € 6.50 for the vintage Tradition, the taste ²of Champagne is not far away! The estate, which has received several awards in the Hachette and Gilbert & Gaillard guides, also sells its products online.

Domaine Jean Girard, in Belan-sur-Ource, embodies the story of a successful transition. Initially a farmer, Jean Girard took up viticulture in the 1990s. With his daughter Sylvie, trained at the Beaune winegrowers' school, they passionately cultivate 4 ha 55 of vines. The harvest is hand-picked and vinified on the estate using traditional Burgundian methods. The wines, AOC Bourgogne pinot noir or chardonnay, reveal a complex palette, aged in oak barrels. The highly original crémant rosé and the 6 cuvées make for an enchanting tasting experience. An estate worth discovering!

Are you looking for Crémant rosé or Chardonnay, or even a still wine from the Burgundy appellation? Visit Roland and Christelle Van Hecke, who will be delighted to welcome you to their cellar in Grancey-sur-Ource. Roland Van Hecke vinifies and handles his Crémants himself in a winery modernized in 2018, making his operation HVE1. The vineyards cover 6 ha on the slopes of Gomméville. Thanks to the excellent 2023 harvest, the estate is now producing 25,000 bottles. Several Crémants have won awards.

Now, the vineyard of the Guilleman estate covers 4.25 ha facing south-south-east. Trained at Viti de Beaune, Fabien Guilleman is now the head of this estate well equipped with working tools. Behind the facade of the family house, there is a farmyard where the winery and the cellar are optimally installed. Crémant and still wines are pressed, vinified and handled at the estate which has a cellar that can accommodate 50 people. On site are held tastings, presentation of the area history and some indications on the town of Marcenay where the Saint Vorles history begins. Currently 8,000 bottles are sold in the estate while the remaining grapes are purchased by traders on the spot. The range of crémants is complete: Tradition 60% of Pinot, Blanc de blanc, Blanc de noir, Tradition (aged in oak barrels) and Élégance, a blend of 50/50 Pinot/Chardonnay. As for the country wine, the estate now offers a Pinot gris. Great news for lovers of aromatic white wines!

The Châtillonnais region has established itself as a land of excellence for Crémant de Bourgogne, and Ghislain Brigand is keen to pass on his passion to the "oenocurieux". His estate, which has existed since 1902, is currently the oldest winegrowing estate in the Châtillonnais. Since July 2015, the estate has been awarded "Haute Valeur Environnementale" certification in recognition of its efforts to protect the environment. On-site, still red and white wines, as well as rosé and white crémants, are available for tasting and sale.

Winegrower from father to son for several generations, Stéphane Brice became the owner of his own estate in 2009. As he is passionate about the vine for many years, he settled in Belan-sur-Ource, in new premises that are perfectly equipped to press the grapes, vinify and handle the production. Stéphane welcomes families and groups with pleasure for a tasting and a live visit, whether in the cellar or on the estate. He has 11 hectares which are mainly spread over the slopes of Belan. The Crémants range is complete: blanc de blanc 100% Chardonnay, Crémant rosé, made from Pinot Noir, and our favourite (and the cheapest): crémant brut, with 70% pinot noir and 30% chardonnay. The Prestige cuvée is a blend of half Pinot Noir and half Chardonnay. Stéphane Brice also offers half bottles, which are perfect for those who are in love! Stéphane Brice's experience and motivation have transformed him into a meticulous winemaker who produces Crémants with subtle aromas.

Jean-Louis Chaumonnot, a small farmer from Châtillon, set up his winery in 1995. With his daughter Elodie, they now cultivate 9 hectares of vines. Part of the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay harvested is sold to the wine trade, the rest has been vinified on the estate since 2005. A small, well-equipped winery enables Jean-Louis Chaumonnot and his family to produce 6,000 to 7,000 bottles a year. Among them are Crémants, 100% Pinot Noir rosé and 100% Chardonnay white, as well as an excellent ratafia. The harvest is done entirely by hand in mid-September. The visit of this estate is all the more pleasant as the village of Bissey-la-Côte is well representative of the region. A nice stopover on the Route du Crémant.

On the Crémant road, all Van Hecke productions are carried out in an artisanal and manual manner (including the work of the vine), only bottling is processed by a claimant for unblocking and not. The rates are still very attractive. Olivier van Hecke was set up more than years ago in Châtillon-sur-Seine as a collecting-sur. Trained in agriculture, passionate by his land, he chose to take part in the renaissance of the region's wine-growing past, and in particular that of Crémants Du whose finesse and originality are sometimes worth a champagne. On less than 3 ha of vines, 30 000 bottles per year are produced in the field: wines (white Burgundy, red and rosé), but above all crémants (white burgundy, white white and rosé). To give them a very special signature, Olivier van Hecke's white crémants come from a pinot noir and Pinot noir which gives them balance, complex aromas and finesse in the mouth.

Pierre Rousseau and his son Francis cultivate and vinify two grape varieties: Chardonnay and Pinot Noir on 4.5 ha for the crémants and 1 ha for the still wines. The wines are made in the purest tradition from the cultivation of the grapes to the bottling. Do not hesitate to make an appointment to visit their estate, taste their wines and understand everything about their know-how. The landscape is magnificent, the winegrowers are friendly and the wines are very good!

Bruno Dangin and his son Mathieu are in the lineage of the Dangin family, the fifth generation of winemakers by heart and by trade. An estate of 4.50 hectares certified organic since 2014 which produces a complete range. With his experience of the various stages of creating champagnes Bruno now gives birth to crémants using the traditional Champagne method. Bruno exports his cremants with their subtle aromas and honours them in various competitions or on the menus of prestigious restaurants, such as Eleven Madison Park in New York.

When we discovered this area, there were many surprises. The first was geographical: The Bellevue Farm carries its name! On the small road that joins the farm from Potières, the view on the Plateau plateau is exceptional. André Philosophy, who leaves cereal production management to his son, is dedicated to 100% in crémants. The area covers 2 hectares of vines producing about ten different crémants, for an average of 20 000 bottles per year. Equipped with two presses, André Philosophy closely and attentively follows his vinification, assembly and manipulation. It is with a real pleasure that André Philosophy makes us discover his crémants, some of us surprise. And it's successful! It offers fine crémants for vintage assemblages. This explains a wide range of prices. Connoisseurs will appreciate their subtleties.

This is certainly an estate for lovers of still and sparkling wines. If it were music, it could be described as non-commercial, out of the ordinary, original and atypical. Imagine the Alice Beaufort Crémants do not take back the AOC, yet they are well produced in the tradition, their high selling price places them out of category. Quentin Beaufort is the owner of the 8.5 ha of Pinot and Chardonnay vines on the plateau and hillsides of Potières, which have been certified organic since 2011. Coming from a Champagne family, Quentin and his wife Alice enjoy working with wines in an authentic way. The Crémants, including Petit Beaufort, are hand-disgorged, vintage wines. Sulphite is introduced in a measured and as natural a way as possible. Still wines such as La Grande Charme, Chardonnay and Pinots Noir reveal the typicality of their terroirs, that of a Champagne terroir, but not only. Make an appointment to come and taste and discover the immensely large and surprising cellars of the Bois de Langres farm.