Around Lons-le-Saunier

Château-Chalon, Etoile and the southern Côtes du Jura
By Wink Lorch

This Guide was last updated on 19 August 2011
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Food specialities

Poulet au Vin Jaune: chicken – if possible Bresse chicken, or a poularde (capon) cooked in a rich creamy sauce made with Vin Jaune and morel mushrooms. Drink with a traditional oxidative Savagnin if not a Château-Chalon or other Vin Jaune.

Truite au Vin Jaune: trout from the local streams cooked in a cream and Vin Jaune sauce.

Morteau/Mortadeau: quite strong-tasting pork sausages often cooked in wine heated over vine-cuttings and served with boiled potatoes and sometimes Cancoillotte cheese. They bring out the best in a red/pink Poulsard.

Comté Cheese: a large hard cheese, similar to Gruyère, considered by many in France as an ordinary cooking cheese (like Cheddar in England). When a real Comté Fermier, with at least 12 months ageing, is tasted in the Jura the flavours bear no resemblance to ordinary cheese – it has a lovely texture and a nutty flavour. It is a perfect match with Vin Jaune in particular, but also works well with any Savagnin or other oxidative white.

Other Jura Cheeses: Morbier is a soft, relatively mild white cheese with a blue streak, originally from ash; Bleu de Gex is a mild blue from the Jura mountains near the Swiss border; Cancoillotte is a soft, creamy cheese, often served with boiled potatoes and pork. All these cheeses work well with Jura Chardonnay or Poulsard.

Further reading

Jancis Robinsons Oxford Wine Companion 3rd edition

The A-Z of all you need to know about wine and the vineyards of the world. All Jura entries were written and/or updated by Wink Lorch.

Tom Stevenson's Wine Report

Annual Guide that gives the inside track on all the wine regions of the world. The chapter on the wines of Jura and Savoie is written by Wink Lorch.

Jura Wines by Wink Lorch

www.wine-pages.com/guests/wink/jura.htm