Vougeot is dominated by its eponymous Grand Cru, Clos de Vougeot (or just Clos Vougeot), the largest in the Côte de Nuits, representing just shy of 51 hectares. (By contrast, there are only three hectares of village Vougeot and 11 hectares of Premier Cru vineyard here.)
The Clos is thought to date back to the 13th century, with the château that sits in the middle of it built a century earlier. Unsurprisingly given the size of Clos de Vougeot, its terroir is varied – with significantly more limestone at the top, clay in the middle and deeper, more alluvial soil in the bottom section.
To combat this, producers such as Lamarche and Leroy craft wines using fruit from plots at both the top and bottom of the vineyard, offering a more complete picture of the site. Many argue that it shouldn’t all be classified as Grand Cru, and certainly quality is mixed, however the best examples are worthy of their classification, generally much firmer and structured expressions of Pinot Noir than those of neighbouring Chambolle or Vosne.
Beyond the synonymous Grand Cru, the rest of Vougeot is often over-looked, but Hudelot-Noëllat’s Premier Cru Les Petits Vougeots and Domaine de la Vougeraie's monopole Premier Cru Clos Blanc de Vougeot should be sought out. There are only a handful of producers based here, but Ch. de la Tour (with its château within Clos de Vougeot) is worth highlighting, having six hectares of vines in the Grand Cru.
