Trade bookOpen an accountTech sheetsShelf talkersMake a payment
Pas Mal Selections
Jura · Section through Ménétru-le-Vignoble

Jura: grey marl under the cliff

West to east from the edge of the Bresse plain, up the marl slopes of Ménétru, to the limestone cliff and plateau. Tap a layer to read it.

Swipe the plate sideways to see the whole section.

Schematic: Bajocian limestone over Liassic marl over Keuper marl follows the general Revermont sequence; contacts and the Bresse fault are to be checked against the BRGM 1:50,000 sheet for Lons-le-Saunier. The fault is drawn as a single line; the real edge is a band of faults. Carlines' four single parcels are set on this slope at their stated heights, not at surveyed positions, so they are drawn dashed. Château-Chalon village lies 1.4 km south of the line on its own spur. Ground from AWS terrain data.

Key to the ground

5 layers, youngest at the top

    Single vineyards we pour from. Tap one on the plate.

    Why marl makes Jura wine

    1. Grey Liassic marl holds water and stays cool, so ripening is slow and acid stays high.
    2. West-facing slopes catch the warm afternoon sun, which helps in a cool continental climate.
    3. The cliff and plateau shelter the slopes, and their scree lightens the heavy marl.
    4. Savagnin on this marl is what makes vin jaune; Carlines bottles several Château-Chalon parcels as Côtes du Jura because they are not vin jaune.

    Did you knowMénétru-le-Vignoble is one of the four communes of the Château-Chalon appellation, with Château-Chalon, Nevy-sur-Seille and Domblans. The appellation is for vin jaune only.

    In the book

    Pas Mal wines on this ground

    Ménétru-le-Vignoble and Château-Chalon

    Elsewhere in the Jura

    • Savagnin MacérationDomaine Labet

    Sources: Wink Lorch, Jura Wine; Domaine des Carlines parcel notes; BRGM 1:50,000 geological map, sheet Lons-le-Saunier; AWS Terrain Tiles.