22 “climats”, a vineyard or a vineyard plot in Burgundian parlance, in Pouilly-Fuissé in southern Burgundy can from now on put “premier cru” on the label. It has taken ten years since the process started, which is quite normal. Since 2010, the appellation Pouilly-Fuissé and INAO (Institut National de l’Origine et de la Qualité) have studied the 22 vineyards, their specific growing conditions, their history and their reputation. In total, the 22 plots cover 194 hectares, which is a massive 24% of the entire AOP Pouilly-Fuissé. They are located in four municipalities (communes), Chaintré, Fuissé, Solutré-Pouilly and Vergisson.
This is slightly different from the Cote d’Or where premier cru is an appellation. Here, premier cru is just a “mention” that the producer can add to the AOP Pouilly-Fuissé. These are the climats:
- Au Vignerais,
- Aux Chailloux,
- Aux Bouthières,
- Aux Quarts,
- En France,
- En Servy,
- La Frérie,
- La Maréchaude,
- Le Clos de Monsieur Noly,
- Le Clos Reyssier,
- Les Chevrières,
- Le Clos,
- Le Clos de Solutré,
- Les Brulés,
- Les Crays,
- Les Ménétrières,
- Les Perrières,
- Les Reisses,
- Les Vignes Blanches,
- Pouilly,
- Sur La Roche,
- Vers Cras.
These are the first premier crus to be awarded in the Mâcon region, the southernmost Burgundy region (if we do not count Beaujolais). Pouilly-Fuissé produces only white wines, from chardonnay, on around 800 hectares, which, despite the absence of premier cru vineyards, have long had a very good reputation. I guess now the reputation will increase even more and so will the prices.
Read more: inao
