Why Do So Many Burgundy Village Names Carry Long, Hyphenated Names? — Chambertin

Walk through the Côte de Nuits, and something becomes clear. Gevrey-Chambertin, Chambolle-Musigny — many villages carry long, hyphenated names. Trace where this custom began, and it leads to two neighboring vineyards and a single village. The vineyards are named Chambertin and Clos de Bèze. A village taking both these vineyard names entirely as its own — that was the first step toward a shape that many Burgundy village names share today.

Clos de Bèze, the Starting Point

Records of vines taking root in Gevrey reach far back. In the 7th century, Amalgaire, Duke of Burgundy, is said to have granted land in this area to the Abbey of Bèze, in a donation said to date to around 630. Monks cleared the land and planted vines there. This became “Clos de Bèze” — one of the oldest vineyard records to survive in Burgundy. In 1219, the Abbey of Bèze sold the vineyard to the canons of Langres, and it remained a vineyard afterward.

Another Name Is Born in the Field Next Door

Next to Clos de Bèze, a man named Bertin is said to have held a field of his own. If good wine could come from the monks’ land, Bertin reasoned, it should come from his field too — and so, the story goes, he planted vines on the adjoining plot. That field came to be called “Champ de Bertin” (Bertin’s field), later shortened to “Chambertin,” according to tradition. The name already appears in written form by then: as “Campo Bertyun” in a document of 1219, and as “Champ Berthin” in a record of 1584. After Bertin’s death, the monks are said to have taken over his field, and the two neighboring vineyards — Clos de Bèze and Chambertin — came to be known side by side.

1847: The Village Takes the Vineyard’s Name

Taking a vineyard’s name and making it entirely the village’s own — Gevrey was the first to do this. In 1847, by royal authorization from King Louis-Philippe, the village added “Chambertin” to its own name, becoming “Gevrey-Chambertin.” This precedent became a template that villages across the Côte d’Or followed one after another. The neighboring village of Vosne added the name Romanée to become Vosne-Romanée; the villages of Puligny and Chassagne both added the name Montrachet; and Chambolle added the name Musigny. This is where the pattern begins that gives so many Burgundy village names their long, hyphenated form today.

Chambertin and Clos de Bèze Today

The Emperor Napoleon is said to have had this wine transported with him on his travels and campaigns. The two vineyards behind the name remained side by side, each keeping its own identity. Clos de Bèze and Chambertin were each recognized as an independent Grand Cru AOC on July 31, 1937.

Nearly 1,400 years have passed since the monks of the Abbey of Bèze first cleared this land. From one vineyard borrowing part of a neighbor’s name, to a village taking that name entirely as its own — the name Chambertin spread, little by little, from field to field, and from field to the village of Gevrey itself.

Three Facts Worth Knowing

• The name “Chambertin” is said to come from “Champ de Bertin” (Bertin’s field), belonging to a man named Bertin who grew vines beside the neighboring vineyard, Clos de Bèze. After Bertin’s death, tradition holds that the monks took over his field.
• In 1847, the village of Gevrey obtained royal authorization from King Louis-Philippe to add “Chambertin” to its own name. This first step of turning a vineyard’s name into a village’s name became a template that villages across the Côte d’Or followed, including Vosne-Romanée and Chambolle-Musigny.
• The Emperor Napoleon is said to have had this wine transported with him on his travels and campaigns. The two vineyards behind the name — Chambertin and Clos de Bèze — remain independent Grand Crus to this day, each recognized as AOC in 1937.

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