Our history

In 1848, France was undergoing a revolution. The provinces, less affected than Paris, became a melting pot where people came together to build a modern world in peace and fraternity. In the same year, the arrival of the railway in Burgundy incited Jean Ropiteau to found his Wine Merchant House with his brothers-in-law. At only 24 years old this young man, whose Burgundian roots date back to the XVIth century, very quickly foresaw this means of transportation as a way of promoting the wines of Burgundy. 

At the beginning of the 20th century the House kept on expanding but remained faithful to its values. In 1940, his great-grandson, Auguste Ropiteau, purchased the current Meursault cellars. The same year he also bought a pluriculture property of the Hospices de Beaune for a pittance, as the time was hardly favourable for selling wine. This acquisition was such a success that today the name Ropiteau Frères has become synonymous with the “grand” Meursault.

In the village cemetery, the gravestone of Marguerite Ropiteau, wife of Jean, has two letters engraved on it: SG. Why? These letters stand for “Sauva les Genevrières” and tells of the unrelenting battle led by this remarkable woman to maintain the classification of Premier Cru for this wonderful climat.