It was in the year 52BC, when the Romans, with Augustus, later the Emperor, completed their conquest of Gallia, today’s France, and built the town of Augustodunum, today’s Autun, as the Roman capital for Gallia in the region of Bourgogne, where the Celtic capital of Bibracte on Mont Beuvray had previously existed.
In a short time, wine began replacing the traditional Celtic Beer served with meals as the preferred beverage. Bourgogne had rapidly established itself as a region of quality wines, so much so that the first written evidence of their success was mentioned in 312AD by Eumenes, a celebrated orator and President of the University of Autun who mentioned it in a speech he dedicated to Roman Emperor Constantine.
Making wine was a very lucrative endeavor both for the Romans and for the native inhabitants of Gallia. The demand continued to grow, so did the expansion north, in fact all the way across France! The passion for wine and the resulting commercial value became a reality in the expansion of the Empire.
It is also true that as Rome grew, the culture of Roman wine-making was increasingly influenced by the viticulture skills and techniques of the regions that were conquered and integrated into the Roman Empire.