Saint-Bris

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The Auxerrois vineyard sits within the cuesta of the "Côte des Bars", a relief formed by a plateau of hard limestone, the Calcaire du Barrois.
• The subsoil of the concave slope consists of compact, impermeable marls called "Marnes à Exogyra virgula", most often masked by a mantle of colluvium mixing fine materials with coarser limestone fragments.
• The vineyard is mainly established on the marly slope, on very calcareous, clay-rich but well-drained soils, and also occupies locally the edge of the plateau, where soils are shallow and very stony.
• The cool oceanic climate shows moderate and regular rainfall, with an annual average of 650 millimetres at Auxerre, and an annual average temperature of 10.8°C with risks of spring frost.
• The plots range between 150 and 300 metres in altitude, either on the plateaus at the back of the "Côte des Bars" around 300 metres and little sheltered from the wind, or on the marly slopes facing from west/north-west to north.

• The Sauvignon and Sauvignon gris varieties, present since the mid-19th century, are locally called "blanc fumé", a name originating from the vineyards of Sancerre and Pouilly-sur-Loire.
• These varieties most often grow intermingled with traditional Burgundian varieties within the same plot, and a growers' defence association was founded in 1962 to preserve them.

• The wine is generally crisp and tangy, with fruity aromas often of citrus and blackcurrant buds, most frequently paired with subtle vegetal notes of asparagus and elderflower.
• The preservation of a certain acidity asserts liveliness and freshness in its youth, while after a few years the wine is prized for its mineral complexity.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in France

Sources

• Product specification (BO Agri, PDF) — approved 8 juin 2026, JORF 11 juin 2026
• Official INAO text (show_texte)
• INAO product entry
• Official trade body site — BIVB