A vineyard, a terroir and people
The Chardonnay grape variety, which is said to have originated in the eponymous village near Tournus, reigns almost absolutely in this wine-growing area of the Mâconnais, the last vineyard in southern Burgundy. Here, there is no uniform hillside, but a succession of valleys parallel to the Saône where Chardonnay expresses an incredible range of aromas and flavours that the appellation contrôlée orders and classifies in a clever hierarchy: Mâcon Villages, Saint-Véran, Viré-Clessé, Pouilly-Loché, Pouilly-Vinzelles and Pouilly-Fuissé share a production spread over more than 5000ha of vineyards.
Master Chardonnay also wisely cedes some of the parcels of this terroir to other red wine grape varieties such as gamay giving fruity and tasty wines or pinot noir for fine and elegant wines.
Thus red Burgundy, Beaujolais or Mâcon complete an already rich range of white wines, to which the sparkling and dashing Crémant de Bourgogne is added as a highlight.
The climats of Burgundy
In Burgundy, when we talk about Climats, we don't raise our eyes to the sky but lower them to the ground
In Burgundy, a Climat refers to a parcel of vinesEach Climat has its own particular geological, hydrometric and exposure characteristics. Each Climat has its own particular geological, hydrometric and exposure characteristics. The production of each Climat is vinified separatelyThe resulting wine takes the name of the Climat from which it is made. The personality of the Climat is expressed in the wine, vintage after vintage, thanks to the know-how of the winegrower. Nowhere else in the world has man sought to link wine production to its place of production in such a precise and intimate way.
The Climats of the Burgundy vineyards have been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2015 with the aim of encouraging its protection and preservation!
By spreading its spiritual influence throughout medieval Europe, the abbey of Cluny not only disseminated its ideas but also its knowledge. The cultivation of the vineThis is one of the traditions that have permeated the entire Cluniac world and forged its identity.
The Mâconnais-Beaujolais wine route
From Tournus to Mâcon via Cluny, the wine route is inseparable from the Romanesque art circuit. There are few villages in the twenty-six appellations of Mâcon-Villages and the five splendid communal appellations where there is not a small Romanesque building to discover.
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