Louis Latour Pouilly-Vinzelles En Paradis 2021 beautifully demonstrates how serious white Mâconnais can be. This Chardonnay comes from a small appellation next to Pouilly-Fuissé and combines roundness with a clear mineral line, without resorting to oak influence. The name En Paradis refers to a specific lieu-dit within Pouilly-Vinzelles, which immediately gives the origin extra weight. What is Pouilly-Vinzelles? It is a white appellation in the Mâconnais built entirely on Chardonnay and known for wines with more breadth than a simple Bourgogne Blanc.
The origin here is decisive for the style, precisely because Pouilly-Vinzelles is a small appellation with a distinct character within the Mâconnais.
- Location / Origin: Pouilly-Vinzelles is located in the Mâconnais and includes the villages of Vinzelles and Loché. This places this wine in the southern part of Burgundy, right next to the more famous Pouilly-Fuissé.
- Exposure: The appellation covers approximately 50 hectares of vineyards with mostly south and southeast-facing slopes. This orientation helps Chardonnay ripen beautifully without losing the tension from the fruit.
- Soil: The subsoil is argilo-calcaire, meaning clay and limestone. This gives the wine both roundness and a firmer mineral undertone.
- Regional context: The slopes of Pouilly-Vinzelles continue from the predominantly calcareous zones of Chaintré and Fuissé. As a result, this appellation stylistically aligns with Pouilly-Fuissé, but often with a slightly more compact, precise signature.
- Vineyard: The average age of the vines is 30 years and the yield is 45 hl/ha. This gives the wine sufficient concentration to support its round yet refined style.
The cellar approach remains deliberately crisp and classic, so that Chardonnay and its origin remain fully in focus.
- Harvest & Selection: Harvesting is done by machine. This suits a wine that is primarily built on pure fruit and precise processing.
- Fermentation: Fermentation takes place traditionally in stainless steel tanks, with temperature control and 100% malolactic fermentation. This gives the wine more roundness and softness, while maintaining freshness.
- Aging / Oak aging: After that, the wine matures for 8–10 months in stainless steel. This keeps the style pure and precise, without the toast or vanilla notes from oak.
This wine is built entirely on 1 grape, exactly as you would expect from Pouilly-Vinzelles.
- Chardonnay – Pouilly-Vinzelles: Chardonnay forms the complete basis and gives the wine its combination of floral notes, roundness, and mineral tension.
