Close to the vineyards of Beaune, the vineyards of Savigny-les-Beaune are located on high hills with southeastern exposure on clay-limestone-ferrous soils. Mentioned as early as 1117 as "Seviniaco," Savigny may derive from the Latin "Silva" meaning forest, woodland, referring to the geology, geography and vegetation of the place. This interpretation is plausible since Savigny is a large wine-growing village with 2093 hectares of forest out of the village's total area of 3529 hectares.