Mâconnais Wine Region

With its narrow streets winding down to the banks of the Saône, Tournus was once a prominent fishing town and the curious horizontal stones that pierce many of the town roofs are testament to that history. Tournus is also the northern geographic marker for the region of the Mâconnais. This is the largest and southernmost of the Burgundy wine districts with over 6,500 planted hectares. Chardonnay and Gamay grapes yield great fruity whites and rich reds and are distributed under famous labels such as Mâcon, Mâcon-Villages, and Pouilly-Fuissé.

When meandering this region you will see signs for small country towns are synonomous with the world’s finest wines–Pouilly, Fuissé and Saint-Véran. A maze of country roads cross back and forth and journey through the vineyards that embrace these charming wine villages of Mâconnais. There are numerous wineries where one can stop and sample the liquid gold of the region, but we especially liked our visit at the Château de Fuissé, located at the heart of the town of the same name.