Macon Villages

I had a little trip recently to the Maconnais in order to discover what Chardonnay was produced in the northerly Macon Villages. In the U.K, Macon Villages is synonomous with the dependable Cave de Lugny (yellow label sound familiar?) So with that in mind I visited three other cave cooperatives at Vire, Ige and Aze. Some were as expected, nice, fine and light but others ranged from big oaky and juicy to over-priced and disappointing.

The Maconnais produce more wine than the Cote d'Or and Cote Chalonnais put together and yet there are no premier cru vineyards. In fact vineyard names are rarely seen at all with cuvee names or "climat" names being added instead.

Better land is split up into village areas or crus much like in the Beaujolais. There are forty three of these Macon Villages stretching from Chalonnais to the Beaujolais. Lower land prices mean that you don't have to inherit land to make wine, new families and even top Cote d'Or names, such as Domaine Leflaive, have invested in land here, Patrick Matthews even puts it that:-

" This region, with its grand , almost mountainous scenery and its rough-and-ready vinous democracy, could be Burgundy's New World."

I loved the feel of these cooperatives, most had a winemaker or three in having a lunchtime tipple and there was a real sense of community. Here's how I got on..........

Cave de Vire


Macon Villages 2009 (bag-in-box 3 litre) 2E80 equivalent bottle price

Green on the nose with a touch of lime skin. The palate felt very flat and a harsh finish. Amazing price for the juice but not something to serve at a nice supper.

Vire Clesse 2009, 4E per bottle

Green apple on the nose and a touch of floral. The body was much fuller than the previous, green apple skin and a hint of citrus but not overly fruity. Not unappealing but not wholly appealing either, nothing special.

Macon Blanc fleurs blanche 2009, 4E50

More fruity than floral and a hint of honey, quite subtle. Again more body than both previous wines with a green pepper spice that became a bit hot and hard towards the end.

Macon Villages 2009, 5E05

Lifted aromas of lillies and white peach and a full luscious palate with an edge of spice.

Macon Peronne 2009, 5E55

Rich manuka honey, light spring flowers with a nutty butterscotch edge, green apple again on the palate all wrapped up in lipsmaking lemony acidity.

Macon Villages les vercheres 2008, 5E70 (top five wines)

Pineapple chunks, big, juicy and hard-hitting with verve and minerality leading to a mouthwatering lemony finish. Love it.

Vire Clesse grand reserve 2009, 6E20

Spritzy lime and very unappealing on the nose, an almost bathroom medicine cabinet feel to it, yuck. Very, very weighty on the palate yet the flavours seemed raw and over-cooked at the same time. Our server concluded that there was not a bottle fault so it must just be an unforgiving wine.


Macon-Aze Cave Cooperative


Macon Aze 2008, 4E85

Neutral on the nose but rescued by a zingy palate of green pepper and tangerine flavours, not a bad effort.

Macon Aze cuvee J Richard 2007, 5E35 (top five wines)

Caramel, floral, sweaty boiled sweets, peardrops and freshly ground asian spice. A lovely warmth to the palate but with a citrus midpalate leading to a long finish, seriously impressive. An elegant powerful vintage that is coming in to it's own. Who said that Macon Villages can't age!?

Macon Peronne 2007, 5E30


>. More minerality and torque than the previous but slightly shorter on the finish.

Bourgogne Blanc eleve en futs de chene (oaked) 2007, 5E45 (top five wines)

Aged in oak for 9 to 10 months this wine was full butter crust pastry, pistachio nuts with a toasty marmalade flavoured palate and a strange lime(semillon tasting) finish.


Ige Cave Cooperative


Aligote 2009, 4E95

Rhubarb and custard! Green on the palate but lots of flavour and concentration, liking the 09 Aligote's very much indeed.

Macon Ige blanc Chateau London 2009, 5E25

High octane fruit, gooseberry, green apple and a bit of spritz. The wine was powerful, rich and had a soft mouthfeel. Pretty tasty but not the best example of the day.

Macon Ige sous la roche 2008, 5E30 (top five wines)

Very floral, almost lily-esque(if that word even exists?!) and very succulent. Lemon, clemantine and orange blossom litter the palate swathed in refreshing acidity. Impressed.

Macon Ige thuzot 2008, 5E50

A bit of oxidation, almonds and a hard edge. Think bottle fault but server does not agree........

Macon Ige vielle vignes 2008, 5E50 (top five wines)

Made from 40 year old vines the wine had an intruiging nose of deep pineapple, quince paste and a odd copper mineral scent. Less acidity than the rest but a lovely deep flavour.

Macon Villages 2008, 4E85

Interesting spice on the nose but round and complete, cinnamon and toast, no-oak apparently. Very light on the palate, simple but not a pretender to a richer style. More Chablisesque in style than typical Macon Villages.

Tasty, tasty, tasty and all within a 20 minute drive of each other, more than achievable on a day.
Time to drink some Chardonnay methinks.
bon aperitif.