Robert Chevillon

History of Domaine Robert Chevillon

The Chevillon family has been in Nuits-Saint-Georges for at least four generations. For many years, they were small-scale winegrowers, working for local merchants while tending a few rows of vines of their own. Maurice Chevillon began bottling some of his production, laying the foundations for an independent estate, though the property was still very modest at the time.

The estate’s true architect was Robert Chevillon, who joined his father Maurice in 1968. At the time, the estate covered just three hectares. With rare foresight, Robert patiently acquired parcels of old vines in the village’s finest climats over the decades, expanding the estate to its current thirteen hectares. Every acquisition proved astute, from the lower slopes to the most prestigious premiers crus in the south of the appellation. Since the early 2000s, his sons Denis and Bertrand, the fifth generation, have run the property. While remaining faithful to the principles they inherited, they have further refined the wines’ precision, to the point that William Kelley, the Wine Advocate’s Burgundy critic, counts Robert Chevillon among his favorite producers in all of Burgundy.

Terroirs and Vines of Domaine Robert Chevillon

The estate’s vineyard holdings form a veritable map of the premiers crus of Nuits-Saint-Georges. The most prestigious parcels lie south of the village, where limestone bedrock nearly reaches the surface. Les Pruliers and Les Roncières sit on shallow, stony soils very low in clay, lending them finesse and tension. Les Cailles and Les Saint-Georges benefit from deeper soils combining limestone and clay, a source of concentration. Les Vaucrains, near the mouth of the Combe de Nuits, stands out for its distinctive iron oxide content, which leaves a pronounced mark on the wine. To the north, Les Chaignots and Les Bousselots yield a more supple style, reflecting the area’s more elegant character.

The age of the vines is another hallmark of the estate. While they average between twenty-five and forty years old, the vines in Les Cailles, Les Vaucrains and Les Saint-Georges date back to the 1920s, and a quarter of the vines in Les Vaucrains are over a century old. The village-appellation vines average around fifty years. Vineyard management remains traditional and highly hands-on, following a sustainable approach: Guyot pruning, early shoot removal, careful monitoring throughout the season and green harvesting when crop loads call for it, all to keep yields in check.

Winemaking at Domaine Robert Chevillon

The method has remained unchanged for decades and is the same for every cuvée; only the proportion of new oak varies according to the wine’s standing. The grapes are fully destemmed, never fermented as whole clusters, then given a cold pre-fermentation maceration. Fermentation follows in open wooden vats using only indigenous yeasts, with two punch-downs a day. Total time in vat ranges from three to five weeks, with long macerations at relatively high temperatures, accounting for the wines’ generous body and depth.

The wines are then aged for fifteen to eighteen months in French oak barrels, largely supplied by the Sirugue cooperage in Nuits-Saint-Georges. The proportion of new oak remains modest: around twenty percent for the Nuits-Saint-Georges Vieilles Vignes and thirty percent for all the premiers crus. The wines are racked after malolactic fermentation and bottled without filtration. The result is fleshy, fruit-forward, beautifully defined Burgundies whose structure promises superb development over fifteen to twenty years.

The wines of Domaine Robert Chevillon

Nuits-Saint-Georges Blanc: one of Burgundy’s greatest rarities, with just two barrels produced. Made from Pinot Gouges, a white mutation of Pinot Noir, it is an exotic, textured and strikingly original wine that ages as long as the estate’s most celebrated reds. A collector’s treasure.

Nuits-Saint-Georges Vieilles Vignes: a blend from three hectares of fifty-year-old vines, principally in La Charmotte and Au Chouillet, complemented by Aux Saints Jacques, Les Charmois, Les Maladières, Les Chaliots and Les Brûlées. The exuberant, fragrant nose combines dark fruit, earth and a hint of anise; the palate shows remarkable definition and verve, with fine tannins. One of the appellation’s finest village wines, offering unbeatable value for money.

Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Bousselots: sixty ares north of the village, producing the more supple style typical of this area. The wine charms with vivid red fruit, floral notes and a caressing texture, underpinned by a subtle mineral thread. One of the most approachable premiers crus in its youth.

Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Chaignots: at one and a half hectares, this is one of the estate’s finest holdings, also located to the north, not far from Vosne. Deep ruby color, intense aromas of red fruit and spice, a silky structure and remarkable length. An elegant premier cru with excellent aging potential.

Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Perrières: just fifty ares in a very stony climat, as its name suggests. It charms with pronounced minerality and freshness, alongside subtle floral and stone-fruit notes. A finely etched wine, more linear than the appellation average.

Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Roncières: just over one hectare on shallow, stony soils low in clay, south of the village. Often considered the most underrated climat in the range, it combines finesse and tension with exceptionally pure, tangy red fruit.

Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Pruliers: neighboring Les Roncières, on equally lean, stony terroir, it yields a firmer, spicier wine with well-defined tannins and a saline finish. A serious premier cru that needs five to eight years to open up fully.

Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Cailles: 1.2 hectares planted in the 1920s on deeper soils combining limestone and clay. Arguably the most sensual of the estate’s premiers crus, it offers a velvety texture, ripe dark fruit, a floral hint and remarkably fine tannins. A reliable and highly sought-after wine.

Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Vaucrains: at 1.6 hectares, a quarter of which is planted with century-old vines, this is the cellar’s most structured wine. Its position near the Combe de Nuits brings added freshness, while the soil’s iron oxide content gives it a highly distinctive ferrous minerality. Broad-shouldered and austere in its youth, it reveals itself slowly over the years and ages magnificently.

Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Saint-Georges: the estate’s crowning achievement, from just sixty ares planted in the 1920s in the village’s southernmost and most historic climat, long considered a candidate for promotion to grand cru by the INAO. It is the most concentrated and often the most closed of the estate’s premiers crus in its youth. Over time, it reveals dazzling aromatic complexity, woodland fruit and red berries, and the depth and structure that make it one of the great wines of the Côte de Nuits, prized by connoisseurs worldwide. Save it for the finest occasions, after at least ten years in the cellar.