Saint-Véran is an ''

Appelation d'Origine Contrôlée An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boun ...

'' (AOC) for white

Burgundy wine Burgundy wine ( or ') is made in the Burgundy region of eastern France, in the valleys and slopes west of the Saône, a tributary of the Rhône. The most famous wines produced here, and those commonly referred to as "Burgundies," are dry red wi ...

from the

Mâconnais The Mâconnais district is located in the south of the Burgundy wine region in France, west of the Saône river. It takes its name from the town of Mâcon. It is best known as a source of good value white wines made from the Chardonnay grape; the ...

subregion, located in the department of

Saône-et-Loire Saône-et-Loire (; Arpitan: ''Sona-et-Lêre'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the rivers Saône and Loire, between which it lies, in the country's central-eastern part. Saône-et-Loire is Bo ...

. It is named after the commune of Saint–Vérand.

Geographical description

The geographical area of this appellation extends over 8 communes and is divided into two small islands separated from each other by the

Pouilly-Fuissé Pouilly-Fuissé () is an ''appellation'' (AOC) for white wine in the Mâconnais subregion of Burgundy in central France, located in the communes of Fuissé, Solutré-Pouilly, Vergisson and Chaintré. Pouilly-Fuissé has Chardonnay as the ...

appellation. It is made up of the villages of

Davayé Davayé is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. See also *Communes of the Saône-et-Loire department The following is a list of the 565 communes of the Saône-et-Loire dep ...

Prissé Prissé () is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. See also *Communes of the Saône-et-Loire department The following is a list of the 565 communes of the Saône-et-Loire depa ...

and

Solutré-Pouilly Solutré-Pouilly (; frp, Selutrié-Polyié) is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. It is known for a local geological feature, the Rock of Solutré. Wine The vineyards of Sol ...

in the north, and

Chânes Chânes () is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. See also *Communes of the Saône-et-Loire department The following is a list of the 565 communes of the Saône-et-Loire dep ...

Chasselas Chasselas or Chasselas blanc is a wine grape variety grown mainly in Switzerland, France, Germany, Portugal, Hungary, Romania, New Zealand, Croatia and Chile. Chasselas is mostly vinified to be a full, dry and fruity white wine. It is als ...

Leynes Leynes (; frp, Lèn) is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. See also *Communes of the Saône-et-Loire department The following is a list of the 565 communes of the Saône-e ...

, Saint-Amour and Saint-Vérand in the south. All these villages are located in the extreme south of the Mâconnais subregion and of the Burgundy wine region as a whole.

Historical background

The Saint-Véran appellation came into being on January 6, 1971. An enthronement ceremony was held at the Château de la Balmondière in Saint Vérand. The AOC wine produced by the 6 Mâconnais communes of Chânes, Chasselas, Davayé, Leynes, Prissé, and Saint-Vérand was christened "Saint-Véran" (without a final 'd'), the old spelling of the village's name.

Vineyards

Features

* Grape varieties grown: Saint-Véran wines are produced entirely from

Chardonnay Chardonnay (, , ) is a green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine. The variety originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern French wine, France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from English wine, Englan ...

grapes. * Pruning: The pruning method known as "taille à queue du Mâconnais" (lit. Maconnais tail pruning) is typical of the Maconnais district and is a variation on

Guyot In marine geology, a guyot (pronounced ), also known as a tablemount, is an isolated underwater volcanic mountain ( seamount) with a flat top more than below the surface of the sea. The diameters of these flat summits can exceed .acrotony, a characteristic defect of Chardonnay vines, and also serves to protect the plants against spring frosts. * Surface area of land under production: The Saint-Veran appellation covers of land and produces 39,030 hectolitres of wine. * Maximum yield: 55 hectolitres/hectare.INAO website
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Geology and terroirs

From north to south, the terroir (soil type, climate and wine-growing tradition) of Saint-Véran borders directly on that of its neighbour, the Pouilly-Fuissé appellation, and together they share soils that are a mixture of chalk and clay. The area ranges in altitude from 250 to 450 metres. The south-south-east facing slopes that enjoy the most sunshine.

Named vineyards

Le Clos, Au Château, les Peiguins, Au Bourg, A la Croix, Aux Bulands and Vers le Mont are the '' climats/lieux-dits'' (specific named vineyards) with the most desirable micro-climates, and which sometimes be found indicated on the labels together with the name Saint-Véran.

Wine type, gastronomical features and serving temperatures

It is a pale golden colour when young, taking on a rich amber hue over time and often improving with age. Wine connoisseurs appreciated Saint-Veran's qualities before the appellation was officially recognized. With its complex, ample and elegant bouquet, this typical Burgundy wine offers round, powerful flavours on the palate. Depending on the year and the batch, one can detect fruity notes of

white peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and Agriculture, cultivated in Zhejiang, Zhejiang province of East China, Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and o ...

apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...

pear Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the family Rosaceae, bearing the p ...

, or floral notes of

lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...

-blossom or

acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus na ...

that give way, over time, to notes of hazelnut or

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ...

, offset by delicate touches of

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). Pollination is required to make the p ...

and flint. It can for example be matched with chicken in a cream sauce, veal sweetbreads or fish. Saint-Véran should be served at around 11 °C and is best opened a few minutes before being served, allowing time for the full richness of its aroma to be released.

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint-Veran AOC Burgundy (historical region) AOCs