Wine of the Jura

The vineyard and the wines of the Jura 
 
 
The Jura has an AOC (“appellation d’origine controlee” - designation of controlled origin) vineyard. With an area covering 1850 hectares, the Jura vineyard has a great diversity of land types. The reputation of the wines of the Jura has always been founded on the land’s strong image and on the preservation of cultural and traditional wine-making practices. At the end of the 19th century, when the vineyard was wiped out by the phylloxera epidemic, it forced the winegrowers to rebuild, with courage, a new high standard wine making region. Their efforts were rewarded when they obtained the first AOC in Arbois in 1936. The diversity of wines in the Jura is the best way to characterise the vineyard of the region: 5 grape varieties, 6 AOCs, 200 business operations and lastly, a wide range of products to accompany every occasion, from the easygoing wine to the sparkling wine and including liqueurs for drinking before or after dinner.

 

The red grape varieties :
   • Poulsard or Plousard,
   • Trousseau,
   • Pinot noir.
 
The white grape varieties : 
   • Chardonnay,

   • Savagnin.
 
Today, 90% of the wine growing region produces Jura appellation wines.
   • AOC Arbois,
   • AOC Château-Chalon,
   • AOC L’Etoile,
   • AOC Côtes du Jura,
   • AOC Macvin du Jura,
   • AOC Crémant du Jura.

 
 

Some of the Jura wines are more especially well-known.

The yellow wine : very characteristic wine, very dry with a distinct taste of walnuts. Available in 62cl bottles : the “clavelin”. It is made from the Savagnin grape variety, conserved for 6 years and 3 months in casks without “ouillage” (filling up of casks to replace evaporated wine and prevent oxidation) in order that a white film of yeast, called “voile” (veil), forms on top of the wine giving it its distinctive “gout de jaune” (yellow flavour).

The straw wine : wine that is fortified thanks to the over-maturation of the grapes that, before going through the wine making process, are arranged on beds of straw or hung up for 2 months in order to lose some of their water and become concentrated in sugar, a process called “passerillage”. Sold in half bottles only, it is made from a blend of different grape varieties from the Jura.

The macvin : liqueur wine benefiting from the “AOC muté au marc du Jura”, that is obtained by adding Jura “marc” (alcohol made from grape pomace) to the “mout” (grape juice) at the start of the fermentation process to stop this fermentation (“muté”). It is to be drunk before a meal or as a dessert wine.

You can therefore discover many original and unique products thanks to the Jura wines.

 
Contacts : 
 
Comité interprofessionnel des vins du Jura - the Jura winegrowers interprofessional committee
Château Pécauld BP 41
39600 Arbois
Tél : +33(0)3.84.66.26.14 Fax : +33(0)3.84.66.10.29
www.jura-vins.com

La route des vins du Jura - the Jura wine road
www.laroutedesvinsdujura.com