From the atlas
Maison Rijckaert
At A Glance
Maison Rijckaert joins Chardonnay from the Jura with Chardonnay from the Mâconnais in southern Burgundy. Jean Rijckaert founded the estate in 1998; Florent Rouve has led farming and production in both regions since taking over in 2013. Separate cellars keep each regional harvest close to its vineyards: Davayé for the Mâconnais and Villette-Les-Arbois for the Jura.
The Producer
Jean Rijckaert began in the Mâconnais in 1990 as co-founder of the Verget négociant business in Sologny. Eight years later, his own estate began with four hectares around Viré-Clessé and five hectares in Arbois. The resulting labels move between Côtes du Jura, Arbois, Mâcon, Saint-Véran and Pouilly-Fuissé Premier Cru, with Chardonnay as the thread running through both regions.
Florent Rouve now directs the vineyards and cellar work. The estate also buys selected grapes on the vine and takes them through harvest, fermentation and bottling itself, so purchased fruit enters the same regional cellar system as estate fruit.
Place
The Mâconnais and the Jura sit far apart on a label, but Maison Rijckaert treats them as two Chardonnay territories. A Pouilly-Fuissé or Viré-Clessé comes from southern Burgundy, where the ground is generally stonier, drier and more permeable. Côtes du Jura and Arbois come from the cooler, more humid Jura, where marlstone is more common.
Those conditions give the appellations different material to work with. The Burgundy wines can carry yellow apple, grilled lemon, herbs and oak-derived nougat, while the Jura examples bring mineral notes, green fruit and lively acidity. The regional cellars allow those differences to be handled near the grapes rather than after transport to one central winery.
Soil And Site
Arbois En Paradis is Chardonnay grown on blue marlstone, sandstone and limestone. Those three materials appear beneath a wine described with mineral character, fresh acidity, apple fruit and floral notes; the bottle links Jura ground to a brisk, layered white rather than a broad generic regional style.
In the Mâconnais, Sur la Roche comes from La Roche, a south-facing vineyard at 400 metres. Its vines average 50 years old, and the site gained premier cru status in 2020. The elevation and aspect frame a Chardonnay whose citrus and mineral notes sit alongside apple fruit and oak-aged breadth.
Story
Rijckaert was built as a two-region project from the start. In 1998 Jean Rijckaert bought vineyards around Viré-Clessé and in Arbois, instead of establishing one cellar and adding a second area later. Burgundy and Jura therefore entered the estate together, with separate cellars and a shared interest in Chardonnay.
The house now works through Florent Rouve, who took over officially in 2013. His remit covers farming and production on both sides of the range, so a Jura bottle and a Mâconnais bottle can show different ground and weather while sharing native fermentation, lees ageing and limited new oak.
Vineyards And Cellar
The vineyards are farmed with biodiversity in mind and without chemical use as stated by the estate. Treatments rely on copper, sulphur and plant-based fertilisers, with the fertilisers intended to reduce copper use. The practical result is fruit grown under the same stated approach in both regions, before regional differences enter through site and season.
Alcoholic and malolactic fermentations happen spontaneously, and almost all of the wine is made in cask. Very little new wood is used because the casks are intended to give structure rather than an overt woody aroma. Wines stay on their lees without bâtonnage, then spend extended time ageing before bottling; the importer cites at least 18 months for the range. This leaves apple, citrus, floral and mineral notes present beneath the oak and lees texture.
Wines
The range gives Chardonnay several regional settings. Côtes du Jura Chardonnay and Arbois En Paradis place the grape in Jura soils, while Viré-Clessé Rendez-Vous de Septembre, Saint-Véran, Mâcon and Pouilly-Fuissé Premier Cru Sur la Roche follow it through the Mâconnais. The appellation on the label is therefore useful information: it tells where the Chardonnay was grown, not merely where the wine was marketed.
Sur la Roche is the more site-defined Burgundy bottle in the supplied range: 100% Chardonnay from La Roche, fermented without added yeast and aged in mostly used oak on its lees. Côtes du Jura Chardonnay 2023 is also Chardonnay, with fresh yellow apple, pineapple, honey, grilled lemon, cardamom, nuts and vanilla. Arbois En Paradis Vieilles Vignes 2022 brings Chardonnay from its blue marlstone, sandstone and limestone into a fresher, mineral register with butter, flowers and apple.
In The Glass
Across the documented wines, start with yellow apple and citrus: grilled lemon appears in both the Côtes du Jura Chardonnay and Sur la Roche. Oak and lees bring cardamom, vanilla, nougat and nutty notes, but used casks keep the fruit in view. The palate moves from fresh acidity and mineral character into a fuller, lightly buttery texture, then finishes with citrus, herbs or floral lift.
Arbois En Paradis shows the Jura end of that sequence especially clearly. Its concentrated aroma includes green fruit, ripe gooseberry and persimmon; the palate combines apple fruit, mineral notes, floral detail, fresh acidity and good length. Sur la Roche is more yellow-fruited and herb-edged, with oak-aged weight gathered around grilled lemon and nougat.
A Bottle To Understand It
Start with Maison Rijckaert Côtes du Jura Chardonnay 2023. It is a direct Jura Chardonnay: high in freshness, marked by oak, and built around yellow apple, pineapple, honey, mineral notes, grilled lemon, cardamom, nuts and vanilla. The bottle shows the house method in practical terms—Chardonnay shaped by Jura conditions, cask ageing and lees contact—while leaving enough acidity to keep the fruit and oak moving through the finish.
Anecdote
Jean Rijckaert had no heir for a conventional family handover, so he mentored Florent Rouve and gradually transferred responsibility for the estate to him. Rouve had to learn a project divided between two working regions: Mâconnais wines were made in Davayé, while Jura wines were made in Villette-Les-Arbois. In 2013, Rouve officially took over the estate. He subsequently became responsible for farming and production across both the Burgundy and Jura sides of Maison Rijckaert, working with the separate cellars that had been part of the estate’s structure since its beginning.
Final Word
Maison Rijckaert is worth seeking out for Chardonnay seen through two nearby but distinct French regions. Put a Côtes du Jura beside a Mâconnais bottle and the contrast becomes physical: marlstone, cooler conditions and mineral acidity on one side; stonier, drier Burgundy ground and yellow-fruited cask-aged weight on the other.
Sources
- https://rijckaert.fr/en/
- https://hartandcru.com/blogs/grower-stories/domaine-rijckaert
- https://www.terrestrialwine.com/rijckaert
- https://www.systembolaget.se/produkt/vin/maison-rijckaert-9277601/
- https://strictlywine.co.uk/rijckaert-pouilly-fuisse-1er-cru-sur-la-roche
- https://www.vinjournalen.se/produkter/vitt-vin/cotes-du-jura-chardonnay-232701/
- https://www.vinguiden.com/produkter/arbois-en-paradis-vielles-vignes/