Pouilly Fuisse

Production of Pouilly Fuisse Wine

Pouilly Fuisse is an appellation for fine wine in Solutre-Pouilly Vergisson. The INAO created the appellation in 1936 and covers four villages: Chaintre, Fuisse, Solutre-Pouilly and Vergisson.

Over 250 producers make wine from the region’s 760 hectares of vines. The appellation is divided into 200 climats, all with different altitudes and soil types, giving variety to the sunny region — the soils are limestone and clay, and heights can reach 500m. The famous Roche de Solutre, a geological formation in the region’s centre, has become a symbol for the Maconnais. It’s worth mentioning the surrounding slopes are prime estate for growing fine Chardonnay.

The area produces over 5.2 million bottles of wine every vintage. And although wines from the northern regions around Beaune are more commercially available, finding a bottle of Pouilly Fuisse is easy in most developed wine markets. 

Although the quality is extraordinary in Pouilly Fuisse, the finest wines come from the region’s 22 Premier Cru vineyards, created as early as 2020 to distinguish the good from the great. Premier Cru vineyards cover 194 hectares and produce around 22% of the region’s wine. Two neighbouring regions share Pouilly Fuisse’s character and vinous traditions: Pouilly-Loché and Pouilly-Vinzelles. Still, Pouilly Fuisse is the Mâconnais’ best-known appellation, and the most coveted by wine lovers worldwide. 

Grape Varieties

Pouilly Fuisse specialises in white wines made with Chardonnay; it’s the only allowed varietal in the appellation. The vineyards are planted densely, with at least 8000 vines per hectare, and producers can only harvest 10,500kg of grapes per hectare, guaranteeing rich and concentrated fruit. The grapes must achieve minimum potential alcohol of 11%, or 12% for wines with a particular “lieu-dit” or named vineyard. And although the appellation requires minimum ageing, most wines in Pouilly Fuisse are well aged in oak barrels, where they gain colour, aromatic complexity and richness.

Chardonnay is a noble varietal known for being compatible with various winemaking techniques, including malolactic fermentation and oak ageing. The grape is also highly susceptible to the climate. Chardonnay from the colder Chablis offers citrus and green apple aromas, while Chardonnay from Pouilly Fuisse is all about golden apples, white flowers and brown spices on the nose with a less-pronounced acidity. 

Buy Pouilly Fuisse Wine from Hourlier Wines

We offer a curated selection of fine Pouilly Fuisse at different price points and quality levels - There’s no doubt Pouilly Fuisse is a beautiful everyday white wine that can elevate any dining experience to celebratory heights. With the elegance of the finest Burgundies, but the rustic charm of a lesser-known region, Pouilly Fuisse offers the best of two worlds. 

Pouilly Fuisse: Gilles Guerrin Vieilles Vignes

You’ll find the prestigious Gilles Guerrin at the heart of the Mâconnais, in Bourgogne à Vergisson. The estate has been making wine in the area since 1984, and they’re authentic Chardonnay specialists. Sylvie, Gilles and Blandine Guerrin run the estate sustainably from grape to bottle, and perhaps their most particular expression of the land comes from its 60-year-old vines.

Gilles Guerrin's Vieilles Vignes is a 100% Chardonnay aged for 12 months in new and used oak, resulting in wine that will evolve for at least five years. Best enjoyed at 12°C; this fantastic golden wine comes from grapes grown in clay-limestone soils. It offers scents of baked golden apples, brown spices, white flowers and hints of minerality over a medium- to full-bodied palate with medium alcoholic warmth and a long aftertaste. Enjoy with butter-seared seafood, roasted poultry and foie gras.

Where does Pouilly Fuisse wine originate?

Pouilly Fuisse is a region in the Mâconnais subregion of Burgundy in central France, west of the Saône river around the village of Mâcon and a few others. The area is south of the Côte Chalonnaise and north of Beaujolais.

What does Pouilly Fuisse wine taste like?

Pouilly Fuisse is a medium- to full-bodied white wine made with Chardonnay, and it’s often creamy and oaky. The wine is bold and structured for white wine and offers medium-high alcoholic strength and medium-high acidity. Golden apples, white flowers, crème fraîche, brioche, minerality, brown spices and vanilla are common Pouilly Fuisse descriptors. 

Which food groups pair well with Pouilly Fuisse wine?

Most Pouilly Fuisse is oaked, and the style is ideal for creamy sauces, cheese-based dishes, oily fish, white meat, poultry and shellfish. If unoaked, Pouilly Fuisse pairs well with whitefish, vegetable dishes, raw fish, oysters and fresh cheese.