Meursault wine
Encyclopedia
Meursault wine is produced in the commune of Meursault
Meursault
-See also:* Communes of the Côte-d'Or département* Route des Grands Crus* French wine-External links:* * In French.* * In French....

 in Côte de Beaune
Côte de Beaune
The Côte de Beaune area is the southern part of the Côte d'Or, the limestone ridge that is home to the great names of Burgundy wine. The Côte de Beaune starts between Nuits-Saint-Georges and Beaune, and extends southwards for about 25 km to the River Dheune...

 of Burgundy
Burgundy wine
Burgundy wine is wine made in the Burgundy region in eastern France, in the valleys and slopes west of the Saône River, a tributary of the Rhône. The most famous wines produced here - those commonly referred to as "Burgundies" - are red wines made from Pinot Noir grapes or white wines made from...

. The Appellation d'origine contrôlée
Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée
Appellation d’origine contrôlée , which translates as "controlled designation of origin", is the French certification granted to certain French geographical indications for wines, cheeses, butters, and other agricultural products, all under the auspices of the government bureau Institut National...

(AOC) Meursault may be used for white wine and red with respectively Chardonnay
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is a green-skinned grape variety used to make white wine. It is originated from the Burgundy wine region of eastern France but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand...

 and Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir
Pinot noir is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes...

 as the main grape variety. The production of white Meursault dominates, with around 98 per cent. There are no Grand Cru vineyards within Meursault, but several highly regarded Premier Cru vineyards.

In 2008, there were 394.05 hectares (973.7 acre) of vineyard surface was in production for Meursault wine at village and Premier Cru level, and 18,536 hectoliter of wine was produced, of which 18,171 hectoliter white wine and 365 hectoliter red wine. Some 13.47 hectares (33.3 acre) of this area was used for the red wines in 2007. The amount produced corresponds to almost 2.5 million bottles, of which slightly less than 50,000 bottles were red wine.

For white wines, the AOC regulations allow both Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc to be used, but most wines are 100% Chardonnay. The AOC regulations also allow up to 15 per cent total of Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc
Pinot Blanc
Pinot blanc is a white wine grape. It is a point genetic mutation of Pinot noir. Pinot noir is genetically unstable and will occasionally experience a point mutation in which a vine bears all black fruit except for one cane which produced white fruit....

 and Pinot Gris
Pinot Gris
Pinot gris is a white wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. Thought to be a mutant clone of the Pinot noir grape, it normally has a grayish-blue fruit, accounting for its name but the grape can have a brownish pink to black and even white appearance...

 as accessory grapes in the red wines, but this not very often practiced. The allowed base yield is 40 hectoliter per hectare of red wine and 45 hectoliter per hectare for white wine. The grapes must reach a maturity of at least 10.5 per cent potential alcohol for village-level red wine, 11.0 per cent for village-level white wine and Premier Cru red wine, and 11.5 per cent for Premier Cru white wine.

The style of white Meursault typically has a clear oak influence, which have led to descriptions such as "buttery" to be applied to powerful examples of Meursault wines.

Premiers Crus

There are several climat
CLIMAT
CLIMAT is a code for reporting monthly climatological data assembled at land-based meteorological surface observation sites to data centres. CLIMAT-coded messages contain information on several meteorological variables that are important to monitor characteristics, changes, and variability of climate...

s
in Meursault classified as Premier Cru vineyards. They consist of two groups, one to the north of the village Meursault, bordering on Volnay
Volnay
Volnay is the name of two communes in France:* Volnay, Côte-d'Or* Volnay, SartheIt may also refer to:* Volnay AOC, a wine classification based on the town of the same name in Côte-d'Or...

, and a larger group to the south of the village, in the direction of Puligny-Montrachet
Puligny-Montrachet
Puligny-Montrachet is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France.In the middle of the Côte de Beaune, it is a well-known appellation of Burgundy wine, containing one of the most famous vineyards in the world, Montrachet.-Population:-Wine:...

 and Blagny. Their wines are designated Meursault Premier Cru + vineyard name, or may labelled just Meursault Premier Cru, in which case it is possible to blend wine from several Premier Cru vineyards within the AOC.

In 2007, 96.97 hectares (239.6 acre) of the total Meursault vineyard surface consisted of Premier Cru vineyards, of which 0.82 hectares (2 acre) red Meursault Premier Cru. The annual production of Premier Cru wine, as a five year average is 4,706 hectoliter of white wine and 85 hectoliter of red wine.

The climats classified as Premiers Crus are:
  • Les Cras
  • Les Caillerets
  • Les Santenots Blancs (Santenots)
  • Les Plures (Santenots)
  • Les Santenots du Milieu (Santenots)
  • Les Santenots du Dessous (Santenots) - red only
  • Les Vignes Blanches (Santenots) - red only
  • Charmes
  • La Jeunelotte (Blagny)
  • La Pièce sous le Bois (Blagny)
  • Sous le Dos d’Ane (Blagny)
  • Sous Blagny (Blagny)
  • Perrières
  • Clos des Perrières
  • Genevrières
  • Le Porusot
  • Les Bouchères
  • Les Gouttes d’Or
  • Les Ravelles


  • Five climats in the north of the commune together make up Santenots, which also fall within the Volnay AOC and therefore can use the designation Volnay-Santenots. Volnay is more famous than Meursault for red wine, so this designation is logical to use for red wine production. Four climats in the south of the commune are also entitled to the Blagny AOC
    Blagny AOC
    Blagny is an Appellation d'origine contrôlée for red wine from Pinot Noir produced in the communes of Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet in Côte de Beaune of Burgundy. The appellation only covers seven Premier Cru-classed climats in the two communes, and takes its name from a small village in...

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