Pouilly-Fuissé is located in Burgundy’s Mâconnais subregion and Chardonnay is its only grape.  Its wines are usually good deals and cheaper than those from the north of Burgundy.  There, a good tip for when all those wines are swimming in front of your eyes at the liquor store and you’re feeling both pressure and confusion.

There are no premier cru vineyards in Mâconnais though – and this is because no one applied for them to be created when the AOC was founded in 1936.  Vineyard owners were likely too distracted by the grind of the mid-war years.

This wine is a medium lemon with light legs.  The nose has average intensity with aromas of pineapple, yellow Golden Delicious apple, green pear, caramel and wood from the 6 months it spent in French oak barrels.

The palate is dry with medium acidity, average alcohol and flavours of yellow apples, Asian pear, quince, crushed rock, toffee and oak.  The wood treatment is a little heavy and as the wine warms, becomes unbalanced.

That said, when nicely chilled, it went absolutely superbly with our juicy chicken roasted in Provençal marinade, Saltspring Island greens and baked potatoes with butter and sour cream.

WSET Good plus