Les Pierres Grises -- 2019 Saint-Veran -- St-Veran, Mâcon, Burgundy, France

Les Pierres Grises -- 2019 Saint-Veran -- St-Veran, Mâcon, Burgundy, France

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Burgundy is complicated enough that a person could study it for their whole life without exhausting the subject, and this is a complicated wine, so strap into your figurative scuba gear, we’re going on a bit of a dive. Saint-Veran is an appellation in the far southern Mâconnais, the most southern region of Burgundy, that straddles the border between “proper” Burgundy and Beaujolais. While Beaujolais is technically part of Burgundy for administrative purposes, its climate, topography, soils and grapes (for reds, anyway) are quite different. Still, the two regions do abut one another and the granite soils that Gamay Noir favors and the limestone soils that Pinot Noir favors don’t divide along a nice clean line, but rather, form a patchwork with still more areas where it's evenly split between the two. The wine at hand is Chardonnay, however, and Chardonnay is a versatile grape that isn’t limited to growing only on limestone soils, and before the creation of the St-Veran appellation in 1971, the majority of Beaujolais Blanc, which was and remains limited to Chardonnay, came from this area. The St-Veran appellation is for Chardonnay only and its regional affiliation was transferred to Burgundy from Beaujolais so the label will say Bourgogne along with St-Veran. It could also, if the winery owner chose to, be labeled Beaujolais Blanc or Bourgogne Villages Blanc. In practice, however, they never are as the St-Veran appellation and its affiliation with Burgundy is now much more well known in the market. (Incidentally, reds, which are currently rare here but historically were dominant, are also grown and can be labeled as Mâcon Rouge, Bourgogne Rouge, Beaujolais Rouge or Beaujolais Villages Rouge and can be made of either Gamay or Pinot Noir.) This wine is a collaboration between Skurnik Imports and Domaine Delaye that keeps the price much more accessible from this now well-regarded appellation. Stainless steel and 20% older oak aging keeps the focus on the flavors of green and yellow apple, a touch pineapple panna cotta, and citrus juice. An excellent pairing with fish, poultry or mild cheeses.