Domaine Renaud: Setting the Bar High in the Mâcon
The Mâcon is just a quick 90-minute drive south from the town of Beaune, which essentially functions as the mid-point of Burgundy and divides the Côte de Nuits (north) from the Côte de Beaune (south). Once you arrive in the Mâcon you are greeted with rolling hillsides, quaint small villages, and a farmer-driven culture of winemaking. The Mâcon is home to approachable, ready-to-drink, and affordable wine values, which makes it incredibly important—and rare—in the Burgundian ecosystem. Domaine Renaud has been fashioning some of the best values to be found in Mâcon from an array of vineyards scattered throughout the many appellations located within the Mâconnais.
To be able to offer a roster of stunning white Burgundy for under $20 is an impressive feat, and Domaine Renaud has four great selections that fit this bill! An amazing value, the 2022 Domaine Pascal & Mireille Renaud Mâcon-Villages $17.99 is an elegantly structured white that springs from the glass with aromas of green apple and wet stone. The palate is light and energetic with orchard fruit flavors quickly giving way to green apple notes and a hint of minerality. A great drinking white Burgundy that totally over-delivers on its modest price-point.
Possibly my favorite of the quartet of under-$20 offerings is the 2022 Domaine Pascal & Mireille Renaud Mâcon-Solutré $19.99, which drinks a lot like a Pouilly-Fuissé. The wine starts off with orchard fruit and mineral notes that are fine and delineated following up a complex palate that unfurls to show pear, Mirabelle plum, and subtle saline notes. The finish is impressively long and the fruit flavors linger on the palate.
The 2022 Domaine Pascal & Mireille Renaud Mâcon-Charnay $19.99 is a larger-scaled, fuller-bodied wine than the Mâcon-Solutré with notes of golden delicious apples, smoke, and fresh herbs. Flavors of apple, pear, and hints of peach roll across the palate as this sumptuous white displays all the fruit you’ve ever wanted from a white Burgundy without being heavy or cloying.
The last of the four values is the most outstanding, the 2022 Domaine Pascal & Mireille Renaud St-Véran $19.99 is a powerful and complex white that delivers Asian pear and apple notes with a depth and complexity rarely seen in an under $20 white Burgundy. St-Véran is one of the top villages in the Mâconnais, and there’s discussion about granting 1er Cru status to some of its best vineyards, which only bolsters the qualitative argument for this small commune.
As great as the under $20 values are, Domaine Renaud really hits their stride with Pouilly-Fuissé. Pouilly-Fuissé is easily the most important appellation in the Mâconnais, as it is the only one with 1er Cru vineyards and is known for producing the greatest white wines to come out of the Mâcon. The 2021 Domaine Pascal & Mireille Renaud Pouilly-Fuissé Vieilles Vignes $26.99 is a stunner with delicate aromas of peach and nectarine against a complex palate that just oozes delicate orchard fruit flavors. The fruit here is so pure and clean with elegance and balance that creates a great white Burgundy experience. As we move up the price ladder a bit we come to the first of two 1er Cru offerings, the 2021 Domaine Renaud Pouilly-Fuissé 1er Cru "Aux Chailloux" $34.99 is incredibly complex with nectarine, Mirabelle plum, and peach notes that deftly combine stone and fresh herb flavors. A wonderful compromise for people looking for an amazing white Burgundy experience sans the tariff!
We finish with the 2021 Domaine Renaud Pouilly-Fuissé 1er Cru "Vers Cras" $34.99, which tilts more towards citrus flavors than orchard fruits. Spicy and crisp, this is an energetic, bright, and fresh white that delivers zesty citrus and spice notes throughout, with a fabulous crescendo of fruit on the finish. If you’re looking for an inexpensive step up in white Burgundy be sure to check out the Pouilly-Fuissés of Domaine Renaud.