From: Mâcon, Burgundy, France
Varietal: Chardonnay
Taste: This vivacious wine expresses pear, apricot, and peach aromas. Fresh lemon zest, crisp green apple, and hints of almond and baking spice counter the initial fruit for an impression of balanced purity and immediate drinkability. Vivacity, tension, and minerality support the fruity backbone of this pure Chardonnay.
“Mâcon-Milly-Lamartine whites have nuanced profiles reflecting the diversity of the terroir. Often with a dazzling golden yellow color, the nose can be very flattering or even sunny, thanks to its aromatic generosity that mingles aromas of yellow-fleshed fruit like apricots and peaches, combined with a few tropical touches of mango. In the mouth, they feel like structured wines, with body and volume, counterbalanced by a fairly lively finish.” —Vins de Bourgogne
Pairing: “With its sunny aromatic character and smoothness on the tongue, this wine makes a natural pairing with all kinds of goat cheeses, such as the traditional AOC Mâconnais or its neighboring Charolais for a terroir-themed aperitif. Follow with grilled chicken supremes or mixed fried river fish. This white wine will also bring out the best in local freshwater fish dishes, such as Dombes carp with white wine, or pochouse from Verdun-sur-le-Doubs.” —Vins de Bourgogne
In line with Vins de Bourgogne’s notes, we recommend pairing this lovely white with fried fish or grilled chicken as a focus, but within those categories, you’ve got a lot of wiggle room. Some specific ideas for seafood include serving this alongside Novia Scotia fish cakes, Korean Cod Jeon Sliders (pan-fried cod sliders), fish Milanese, fried fish with fried ginger, pan-roasted fish fillets with herbed butter, cod fritters, and rainbow trout baked in foil. Pairing ideas featuring grilled chicken main dishes include gingery grilled chicken thighs with charred peaches (check it out below), grilled sesame lime chicken breasts, grilled chicken Caesar salad, grilled chicken salad with green beans, capers, olives, and eggs, and even a shawarma-spiced grilled chicken with tahini-yogurt dipping sauce.
Gingery Grilled Chicken Thighs With Charred Peaches
By Melissa Clark
About. The Mâconnais is the soul of southern Bourgogne. It extends over 40 km (almost 25 miles) of the Côte Chalonnaise as far as the Rock of Solutré. Lying between the rivers Saône and Grosne, its valleys and hillsides seem to make the vines welcome. Indeed, vines have been grown here since Gallo-Roman times, and their cultivation received a boost from the powerful Abbeys of Cluny and Tournus. The town of Mâcon has strong links with the wine industry. The surrounding villages have a smiling and good-natured appearance, reminiscent of watercolor paintings, with their galleried houses and Romanesque church towers. The wines of the Mâcon appellation, which was established in 1937, can be made from Chardonnay (like this one), Pinot Noir, or Gamay.
The inclusion of “Milly-Lamartine” on this wine’s label indicates that it must come from within a defined area in the villages of Berzé-la-Ville, Berzé-le-Chatel, Milly-Lamartine, and Sologny. Located west of the longest limestone range (stretching from Tournus in the north to Fuissé in the south), the vineyards of Milly-Lamartine are found on the last western slopes of the Mâconnais. Sitting between 287 and 380 meters above sea level on slopes that face the rising sun, the vines are influenced by cool breezes from the first hills of the Haut-Mâconnais. Vineyards span a diversity of soil types (limestone, clay, marl), and exposure ranges from the northeast, where it is cooler, to the southwest, where the vines are more exposed to the sun. Sologny, where Pascerette des Vignes is based, has some Trias clay soils dating back 230 million years.
Founded in 2013, Domaine la Pascerette des Vignes is the project of a lifetime of Celine Robertgeot-Cienki. Originally an engineer from the Marne (in Champagne), Celine settled in the Mâcon (her partner’s hometown) in 1996. The couple had done some consulting work in the agricultural sector, and when they purchased the family home in the town of Sologny, the idea of creating a small farm came up. They found an old farmhouse on the heights of Val Lamartinien and started purchasing sheep. They opened a bed and breakfast on their property in 1999, and their project evolved to include a wine estate when they bought more land in 2012. Celine’s husband joined her work in the vineyards in 2019, and today, they manage 6.8 hectares of vineyards, 16 hectares of meadows, 60 sheep (also used in the vineyards), and a gîte (bed and breakfast).
Their vineyards (which include Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Gamay) are planted amongst pastures and forests at around 300 meters above sea level with East and South-East exposures. The estate's name, “Pascerette,” highlights the dual activities; it means shepherdess and also designates the cajole, a shelter for the vineyard workers.
Minimal intervention is the philosophy in the cellar, and farming practices to make genuine and authentic wines grown in a preserved environment. The wines are all organic certified and hand-harvested.