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Appellation · France

Viré-Clessé

Two Mâconnais villages promoted to their own appellation in 1999, making the richest whites in the sub-region.

Viré-Clessé AOCcontinentalmoderate
What to expect in the glass

Dry, full-bodied Chardonnay with ripe orchard fruit, honeysuckle and a broad texture. Riper and rounder than most Mâcon.

About Viré-Clessé

Viré and Clessé were previously named villages within Mâcon-Villages and received their own appellation in 1999.

The whites are the fullest and roundest of the Mâconnais, and a handful of growers make an off-dry style from late-picked fruit — unusual in Burgundy and the subject of a long-running dispute when the appellation was created.

What the name means

Legal name
Viré-Clessé AOC
Type
Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée / Protégée (AOC / AOP)
Set by
INAO
Recognised
1999
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.

Grapes

Wines from here

white

White Burgundy

Barrel-fermented Chardonnay from the Côte de Beaune and Mâconnais — the model every serious oaked Chardonnay in the world is measured against.

Rules worth knowing

Confirmed in the EU register

Viré-Clessé is registered as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), file number PDO-FR-A0661, protected at EU level since 2004.

Article 107 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013

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.

White Burgundy

Serve at 10–13°C (lightly chilled).

Try with salmon in a cream sauce, halibut or scallops.

Where to go next

Places worth trying if you like this one — neighbours, rivals, and the obvious step across.

  • Mâcon-Villages — The Mâconnais’ workhorse white appellation, and where most people first taste unoaked Burgundian Chardonnay without realising it.
  • Pouilly-Fuissé — The Mâconnais’ finest white appellation, beneath the limestone rocks of Solutré and Vergisson, with Premier Crus since 2020.

Sources

Sources consulted