Appellation: Mâcon-Villages
Cuvée:
Colour: White
Grapes: Chardonnay
About: Andrew’s wanted to do a Mâcon but only a “fat” Mâcon, so he looked high and low for some old vines that were grown for sparkling or Cremant wine, built for acidity, but old vine so would give richness, so as to combine Macon tropicality with acidity. Great job.
Vines
Location: Azé in the Vire Clessé sub-region in the north of the Mâconnais
Size: a few rows
Age: planted some in 1980, some in 1940
Soils: limestone
Exposition: steep slope, westerly, no sun until 10h
Altitude: 280m
Training:
Farming philosophy: sustainable and transitioning to certified organic, no ploughing, just scratching so as not to disturb the worms, no pesticides, insecticides, herbicides.
Average yield hl/ha:
Climate: continental and variable, increasingly hot summers
Winemaking
Grapes are crushed and left for several hours of skin contact before a long pressing. Chilled overnight and racked to large format barrels for a native fermentation with plentiful grape solids for texture. Left undisturbed on lies for 12 months and then racked to steel tanks with their lies for another three months to brighten. No added yeasts or sulfites or anything else. Made on site in the Mâconnais then brought to Beaune to bottle. Bottled unfined with a very light filtration.
Vintage Notes 2020
A warm year, but unlike 2019 when it was very hot at harvest so was hard to get the results wanted, 2020 was much fresher at harvest, which gives width as well as weight. Great for reds, spectacular for whites, as good as 2014.
Date harvested: 5 sept
Yield hl/ha: 50
Date bottled: 2022-04
Bottles produced: 10,000
Alcohol %: 12,2
SO2 Total: 68
Tasting: spicy toast nose, with rich apple and lemon, smart, then palate is super stylish, vibrant lemon acidity with rich baked apple, very satisfying, mineral and richness.