If you have ever enjoyed a particularly fine lemon tart from a patisserie, one that comes on a lace doily with flaky, buttery pastry crust, creamy lemon curd, and just the right hints of vanilla and orange and salt, you might have thought just for a moment “I wish I could bottle this flavor”. Jean Manciat may or may not have had this thought in mind, but in his vineyards in the village of Charnay on the outskirts of Mâcon, he has essentially accomplished the feat. Jean took over his family’s 3.5 hectare vineyard in the 1980s and the first thing he did was leave the local co-op so he could make higher quality wines. His first step was to cut the vines shorter and reduce yields. Chardonnay is perfectly content to produce huge volumes of grapes if you let it, but great Chardonnay requires attention. This means forcing the vine to pay closer attention to a smaller number of grapes, giving each one more intense flavor and texture. This charming, stainless-aged and classic Mâconnais Chardonnay is the result.