Appellation · France
Arbois
The Jura’s largest appellation, and the town where Louis Pasteur worked out what fermentation actually is.
Reds that are very pale, light and delicate with red fruit and a savoury edge. Whites range from clean Chardonnay to intensely nutty oxidative Savagnin.
About Arbois
Arbois is the Jura’s main appellation and was among the very first granted in France, in 1936.
It grows five varieties: Poulsard and Trousseau for pale, delicate reds, Pinot Noir, and Chardonnay and Savagnin for whites. Poulsard in particular makes a red so pale it is regularly mistaken for rosé.
Louis Pasteur had a vineyard here, and it was working on Arbois wine in the 1860s that led him to demonstrate that fermentation is caused by living yeast rather than by spontaneous chemical decomposition — one of the foundational results in microbiology.
The Jura’s signature technique is sous voile: white wine aged in barrel without topping up, under a film of yeast, in the manner of Sherry. It produces a nutty, oxidative character that the region has made its own.
What the name means
- Legal name
- Arbois AOC
- Type
- Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée / Protégée (AOC / AOP)
- Set by
- INAO
- Recognised
- 1936
- Regulates
- Origin, plus grape varieties, maximum yields, minimum ageing.
The delimited area, permitted varieties, maximum yields, minimum alcohol, pruning and training methods, and in many cases minimum ageing. Administered by INAO.
One of the first French appellations granted. Covers red, white, rosé, vin jaune and vin de paille.
Grapes
Wines from here
red
Light-bodied dry red
Pale, low-tannin reds with bright acidity and red-fruit character — the reds that suit a light chill and don’t overwhelm food.
white
Jura Savagnin and Chardonnay
Jura whites made either topped-up and fresh, or deliberately oxidative — two opposite philosophies from one cellar.
white
Vin Jaune
Jura Savagnin aged six years under a yeast film without topping up — intensely nutty, savoury and unlike any other dry white.
Rules worth knowing
Confirmed in the EU register
Arbois is registered as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), file number PDO-FR-A0994, protected at EU level since 1973.
Article 107 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013
Specification published: Official Journal C 450, 28.11.2022 · Official Journal
Only the rules that change what to expect in the glass or on the label. WineHQ does not reproduce production specifications, and each entry carries the date it was last checked because appellation rules change.
The designation is confirmed above. WineHQ has not read this appellation’s production specification, so it publishes no yields, ageing minima or permitted-variety lists for it — those come from the document linked above, not from a summary of it.
What to eat, and how to serve it
Derived from this region’s signature styles. Each is listed separately, because a region does not have one serving temperature.
Jura Savagnin and Chardonnay
Serve at 11–14°C (lightly chilled).
Try with fillet steak, salmon or salmon in a cream sauce.
Vin Jaune
Serve at 14–16°C (cellar cool).
Try with salmon, salmon in a cream sauce or vegetarian dishes.
Light-bodied dry red
Serve at 12–15°C (lightly chilled).
Try with fillet steak, turkey or tortilla española.
Where to go next
Places worth trying if you like this one — neighbours, rivals, and the obvious step across.
- Château-Chalon — An appellation that exists for one wine only — vin jaune, aged six years under a yeast film and bottled in a 62 cl bottle.
- Côtes du Jura — The Jura’s regional appellation, running the length of the region and covering every style it makes.
Approximate centroid: 46.90°, 5.77°. WineHQ stores coordinates only where it has them, and does not estimate boundaries it has not sourced.
Sources
Sources consulted
- Institut national de l’origine et de la qualité (INAO) — INAO, France