Why it matters
The producer
Domaine Barraud farms Chardonnay in Vergisson, a hamlet in the Mâconnais near the Roches de Solutré and Vergisson. Its wines are intense, mineral driven French Chardonnay with clean acidity and salinity. The range moves from Mâcon Villages to named Mâcon parcels and Pouilly Fuissé bottlings.
Manual soil ploughing and hand harvesting keep the vineyard work close to each parcel. Treatments are limited to sulfur and copper. In the cellar, fruit is pressed in whole clusters through a pneumatic press, and the wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
The highest vineyard parcels reach 485 meters, where grapes ripen slowly and retain more acidity in the cooler climate. Vergisson sits close to the Roches de Solutré and Vergisson, two rock formations that frame the local vineyards.
The labels follow this geography. Mâcon Villages names the broadest category in the range. Mâcon Fuissé and Mâcon Vergisson La Roche put the village or site into the name. Pouilly Fuissé narrows the appellation further, while Premier Cru marks the higher named tier within the Pouilly Fuissé range.
In the cellar
Vineyards and cellar
Manual ploughing and hand harvesting form the core vineyard practice. Harvesting takes place in multiple passes so each parcel can be picked when its grapes are perfectly ripe. Sulfur and copper are the only treatments used.
The fruit is pressed delicately in whole clusters through a pneumatic press. The pressed wine settles overnight in temperature controlled tanks, then moves by gravity to barrel or tank. Pouilly Fuissé Premier Cru Sur la Roche spends 12 months in barrel with 20% new oak each year, followed by two further months in tank.
Wines to know
The range in view
Mâcon Villages Harmonie represents the broadest appellation level, with a dry, fruited style and mineral notes that bring fine shape to the wine. Mâcon Fuissé narrows the range to a named village parcel, while Mâcon Vergisson La Roche identifies a specific site on the Vergisson slopes.
Pouilly Fuissé forms the more site focused part of the range. Alliance combines fruit from parcels in Vergisson, while Sur la Roche and La Maréchaude Clos La Verchère carry Premier Cru names. Alliance is vinified in equal thirds in barrel, demi muid and tank. A demi muid is a larger oak vessel than a standard barrel, so its wood influence arrives more slowly and less overtly.
A useful way in
A bottle to begin with
Choose Pouilly Fuissé Alliance. It combines parcels planted 40 and 60 years ago and has approximately seven years of aging potential, while remaining open to drinking young.