Event
SAINT-VINCENT TOURNANTE DE VOLNAY 2027
Photo credit : Bénédicte Manière
As tradition dictates, Jean-François Curie, Grand Maître of the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin, announced the venue of the next Saint-Vincent Tournante de Bourgogne at the close of the induction ceremony for the veteran winegrowers of the Maranges.
After a first edition in 1957 and a second in 1986, the village of Volnay, located in the Côte de Beaune, will once again host the event for its 83rd editsion. The organising committee is already hard at work preparing this major celebration, which will take place on 30 and 31 January 2027.
VOLNAY APPELLATION
Planted exclusively with Pinot Noir, this Côte de Beaune appellation in the Côte-d'Or comprises 29 Climats classified as Premier Cru. The total surface area within the appellation is 242 hectares and 34.07 ares, including 143 hectares and 96.92 ares classified as Premier Cru.
Perched high on the slopes of the Côte de Beaune, narrow and steep to give pride of place to the vine, Volnay lies against the small Chaignot hill, creating a gentle bend in the general orientation of the slopes, from east to south-east. This vineyard has been cultivated for centuries. The Knights of Malta, the Abbeys of Saint-Andoche in Autun and Maizières, followed by the ducal and royal estates, were harvesting these vineyards long before the French Revolution. Its distinctive character became firmly established as early as the 18th century. Red and produced from Pinot Noir, this Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée, officially recognised in 1937, is complemented by Volnay-Santenots, produced in Meursault (a neighbouring area sharing the same terroir continuity as Pinot Noir land).
(Sources: BIVB)
THE ORIGINS OF THE SAINT-VINCENT TOURNANTE
Every year at the end of the month of January, Burgundy pays homage to Saint Vincent, the patron saint of winegrowers. Saint Vincent first appears in the Middle-Ages with the creation of mutual aid societies intended to help sick or injured peasants unable to tend the vines on their own.
In 1938, the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin revived and remodelled the ancient custom, turning it into a festive event, involving a procession, religious service, the investiture of retired winegrowers and wine-tastings. The celebration quickly became a key event in the region's viticultural calendar and still preserves its principal values based on conviviality and a common community spirit. Every year, it draws thousands of visitors.