A new estate is emerging on the starry blue sky of Burgundy, Domaine de Chézeaux – or should I say the new Domaine de Chézeaux – based on the vineyard holdings of the Mercier family who owned the Domaine de Chézeaux estate located in upper Gevrey-Chambertin.
Domaine de Chézeaux was sold to Charles Van Canneyt and his wife Anne-Sophie in 2021, and this sale has been unfolding according to the very complex rules of Burgundy. This is indeed complex as there were no less than three métayage agreements linking other producers to the Domaine des Chézeaux vineyards.







The sale of a complex estate like Domaine des Chézeaux certainly creates a lot of issues that can be very tedious regarding vineyard ownership or rental. Now the discussions have ended as the distribution of vineyards and is more or less finalised.
Domaine des Chezeaux was sold fully as an estate to Charles Van Canneyt and his wife Anne-Sophie Gagey and this does make the rules more simple … the buyer gets the vineyards when the metayage agreements expire … or even before.
This means that Charles Van Canneyt gets most of the vineyards, Chambertin, Clos Saint-Denis, Griotte-Chambertin (most of it), Chambolle Les Charmes, Gevrey-Chambertin Les Cazetiers and Gevrey-Chambertin village.
The vineyards will continue in a separate estate Domaine des Chézeaux located in the old Domaine des Chézeaux estate in the top end of Gevrey-Chambertin.
The estate is separate from Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat and owned by Charles Van Cannyt and his wife Anne-Sophie Gagey, It will have a new label and will be sold under the Domaine des Chézeaux label.
So a beginning for Domaine des Chézeaux as a winemaker, and a continuation of Domaine des Chézeaux as an estate and vineyard owner.
Domaine des Chézeaux … a bit of history
The origin of Domaine des Chézeaux dates back to 1928 when the Mercier family established itself in Gevrey-Chambertin.
The Mercier family had a very fine portfolio of vineyards with plots in Le Chambertin, Clos Saint-Denis, Griotte-Chambertin, Chambolle Les Charmes, Gevrey-Chambertin Laveaux-Saint-Jacques, Gevrey-Chambertin Les Cazetiers and Gevrey-Chambertin village.
The entirety of the vineyards were leased to other vignerons – Ponsot (Laurent) had Le Chambertin, Clos Saint-Denis, and 57% of Griotte-Chambertin. The Chambolle Charmes vineyard was also leased to Ponsot, and the Gevrey 1er Cru and village vineyards to Domaine Berthaut in Fixin. The rest of the Griotte-Chambertin holdings – 43% – was leased to Domaine René Leclerc.
The métayage agreements ensured that Domaine des Chézeaux got wine from the vignerons, and these wines were then, for the most part, sold under the old Domaine des Chézeaux label.
The name Chézeaux comes from the village terroir that is located just outside the estate buildings just north of the Château Gevrey-Chambertin.
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