At the beginning of the 17th century : the rich classes or members of parliament began to buy up vineyard estates, taking over from the monasteries. This was to be the beginning of the disintegration of the ecclesiastical domains.

Some examples :
- 1631 : The Abbey of Saint-Vivant sold its highly estimated vineyards in Vosne Romanée
- 1660 : Cîteaux sold its land in Corton.

Indeed, members of parliament from both Dijon and Bordeaux had become interested in the prestigious vineyards near Dijon.

During the 17th and 18th centuries : the province of Burgundy was governed by members of the Condé family.

With Louis XIII and the victory against Spain, the wines of Burgundy regained their reputation. The King and Queen Anne of Austria liked red Burgundy, said to be instrumental in the birth of Louis XIV nicknamed "Désiré". At the time, the fashion was for " œil de perdrix " wines , Volnay and Pommard. Burgundy regained its favored place at the best tables..

1668 : Governor of the Duchy of Burgundy, the " Grand Condé ", after becoming leader of the "Fronde", conquered Franche-Comté for Louis XIV. The frontier of the kingdom was thereby pushed eastward ensuring peace and prosperity for the Burgundian vineyards from then on.

1711-1712 : Heir to the monarchy of Spain and therefore to the Burgundian legacy, Louis XIV gave the title of Duke of Burgundy to his grand-son, Louis, the short-lived second Dauphin, father of the future Louis XV.

Louis XV and Louis XVI made Burgundy the wine of the court. The aristocracy and rich middle classes followed suit. The Burgundian vineyards were in favour again. It was at this time that the Bouchard family settled in Burgundy and founded a wine company which was to become one of the oldest in the region.

Beginning of the 18th century : Birth of the wine trade. The new owners of vineyards were now those who had made their fortunes in commerce, the wine shippers. Unlike the shippers in Bordeaux who most often only sold wines, those in Beaune also grew grapes and made wine.

The famous wine houses of Burgundy were in the hands of skillful businessmen who knew how to build up estates. These houses, such as Bouchard Père & Fils, owned vineyards and increased their estates during the entire 19th century. Acquisition by Bouchard Père & Fils follow a strict guideline : the systematic purchase of the best vineyards in the best places.

1787 : A famous traveller, Thomas Jefferson, future President of the United States, praised the merits of Montrachet and Chambertin.

The structure of the vineyards was modified considerably from that point by the French Revolution when property belonging to the church was confiscated and dispersed.

In 1789, Talleyrand, bishop of Autun, initiated a means of resolving the financial crisis in France by merely taking back the clergy's possessions to pay back the State debt.

1790-1791 : Whereas there were only about 40 monks left at the Abbey in Cluny and the prestige of Cîteaux Abbey had considerably weakened, the monastic orders were abolished and their possessions requisitioned. Thus, the estates of Cluny, Cîteaux, and also the Abbeys of Maizières, the Carthusians, and the Carmelites in Beaune were put up for sale.

The middle classes of the Ancien Régime, of which the great wine houses were members, were favoured by the sale of national goods and withdrew to the land, preferring to exchange warrants and other territorial mandates for land. The Burgundian example is not alone, for in Bordeaux vineyards were also acquired as a result of these revolutionary events.