appellation 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 bou ...
'' (AOC) for
white wine
White wine is a wine that is fermented without skin contact. The colour can be straw-yellow, yellow-green, or yellow-gold. It is produced by the alcoholic fermentation of the non-coloured pulp of grapes, which may have a skin of any colour. ...
Aligoté
Aligoté is a white grape used to make dry white wines, especially in the Burgundy region of France where it was first recorded in the 18th century.winepros.com.au. Since it is tolerant to cold, this variety is also cultivated in Eastern Euro ...
, and Bouzeron AOC is therefore the only communal-level Burgundy appellation for Aligoté-based wines. Other Aligoté wines from Burgundy are restricted to the regional appellation Bourgogne Aligoté AOC, and all other white Burgundy wines from communal appellations (except Saint Bris AOC) are Chardonnay-based. However,
Pinot blanc
Pinot blanc is a white wine grape. It is a point genetic mutation of Pinot noir. Pinot noir is genetically unstable and will occasionally experience a point mutation in which a vine bears all black fruit except for one cane which produces white ...
is technically allowed.
The Bouzeron AOC was created in 1998, and at this time replaced the Bourgogne Aligoté de Bouzeron AOC, which had been introduced in 1979 within the Bourgogne Aligoté AOC. There are no
Premier Cru
Cru is a wine term used to indicate a high-quality vineyard or group of vineyards. It is a French word which is traditionally translated as "growth", as is the past participle of the verb "croître" (to grow); it literally means 'grown'. The t ...
vineyards in the Bouzeron AOC. The move towards an own appellation for Bouzeron and its Aligoté was spearheaded by the efforts of
Aubert de Villaine
Aubert de Villaine is a social economist and co-owner of the Domaine de la Romanée-Conti; he served as the Domaine's co-director from 1974 to 2021, stepping down to an advisory role in 2022. Some of the world's most expensive wines are produc ...
, co-owner of
Domaine de la Romanee-Conti
An estate is a large parcel of land under single ownership, which would historically generate income for its owner.
British context
In the UK, historically an estate comprises the houses, outbuildings, supporting farmland, and woods that s ...
. H. Johnson & J. Robinson ''The World Atlas of Wine'' pg 68-69 Mitchell Beazley Publishing 2005 Together with his wife Pamela de Villaine he owns Domaine A & P de Villaine in Bouzeron.
Wine style
The wines of this appellation are more similar in style and fruit characteristics to
Pinot gris
Pinot Gris, Pinot Grigio (, ) or Grauburgunder is a white wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. Thought to be a mutant clone of the Pinot Noir variety, it normally has a grayish-blue fruit, accounting for its name, but the gra ...
than to Chardonnay. The wines tend to be light bodied with subtle spice notes that are usually most vibrant up to five years after vintage. T. Stevenson ''The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia'' pg 159-160 Dorling Kindersley 2005 Pinot noir- and Chardonnay-based wine are also grown in the same geographical area but are typically sold under the regional appellations '' Bourgogne Rouge'' and ''Bourgogne Blanc''. E. McCarthy & M. Ewing-Mulligan ''"French Wine for Dummies"'' pg 103-105 Wiley Publishing 2001 They could also be sold as
Bourgogne Côte Chalonnaise AOC
Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...
, but not as Bouzeron AOC.
Production
In 2008, of vineyard surface was in production for Bouzeron AOC, and 2,459 hectoliter of wine was produced,BIVB: Les Appellations d’Origine Contrôlée de Bourgogne accessed on November 30, 2009 corresponding to just under 330,000 bottles of white wine.
AOC regulations
The AOC regulations require 100% Aligoté for Bouzeron, and a planting density of at least 8,000 vines per
hectare
The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...
hectoliter
The litre (international spelling) or liter (American English spelling) (SI symbols L and l, other symbol used: ℓ) is a metric unit of volume. It is equal to 1 cubic decimetre (dm3), 1000 cubic centimetres (cm3) or 0.001 cubic metre (m3). ...
per hectare, and the grapes must reach a maturity of at least 9.5 per cent
potential alcohol
Must weight is a measure of the amount of sugar in grape juice (must) and, hence, indicates the amount of alcohol that could be produced if it is all fermented to alcohol, rather than left as residual sugar.AOC regulations for Bouzeron, last updated 2009 /ref>