Faithful to its calling as a guardian of Burgundy's heritage and passage of time, Maison Patriarche is proud to join the winemaking community's fundraising initiative to restore the Définitoire of Cîteaux Abbey.

There are places where Burgundy's history becomes inextricably linked with our own. Founded in 1098, Cîteaux Abbey remains the birthplace of the Cistercian Order, whose spiritual and agricultural legacy profoundly shaped the Burgundian vineyard landscape. It is to these monks that we owe the painstaking deciphering of the terroirs and that deep devotion to place which, to this day, defines the identity of our wines.

First launched in 2022 by the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin and the Fondation du Patrimoine, the charity auction "Clos de Vougeot pour l'Abbaye de Cîteaux" returns for its second edition, entrusted to Christie's. The event will unfold in two stages: an online auction opening on September 4th, followed by a gala dinner at the Château du Clos de Vougeot on September 19th. The funds raised will finance the restoration of the Définitoire—a remarkable 17th-century Cistercian building and one of the rare structures at the abbey to have survived the French Revolution—which is set to become a cultural site open to the public.

In support of a cause that unites the vine and collective memory, we wished to offer a collection steeped in heritage: a presentation box featuring exceptional vintages of the Nicolas Rolin and Guigone de Salins cuvées (2009, 2015, 2019, and 2020), centered around a true rarity: a 1959 Beaune Cuvée Estienne.

This bottle is one of the final remaining witnesses to a now-extinct cuvée. Like most Hospices de Beaune wines, the Cuvée Estienne bore the name of a benefactor family whose vine bequest enriched the estate of the charitable institution founded in 1443 by Nicolas Rolin and Guigone de Salins. Offered at the Hospices auction from 1899 to 1967, it gradually faded from the catalog as its parcels were integrated into the founding couple's cuvées—such as Les Bressandes, which now forms part of the Cuvée Guigone de Salins. As a 1959 vintage, this Beaune Cuvée Estienne stands among the very last vestiges of a lost name. Treasured in our Caveau de l'An 2000, it will return to the light in 2026 to serve a noble purpose greater than ourselves.

From the vaulted halls of Cîteaux to our historic cellars in Beaune, we are devoted to preserving one and the same story: that of humanity, the land, and time.