Imagine a panorama of impressive, verdant hills covered in a cross-patchwork of grape vines and interspersed with quaint, stone-built hamlets and villages. A mighty river flows along the edge like a main artery, the life-blood to the landscape and its inhabitants. Here begins the story of Beaujolais…

Where is Beaujolais?

At roughly 34 miles from its northern tip near the town of Mâcon to the southern boundary close to the town of Belleville (north of Lyon), and spanning between seven and nine miles across, Beaujolais is a relatively small wine region. Alsace and the combined alpine regions of Jura and Savoie have the smallest surface areas dedicated to vines.

What defines Beaujolais?

Unlike every other major wine producing region in France, Beaujolais is almost exclusively a mono-varietal region. With the exception of a little Chardonnay, 99% of Beaujolais is made from the red variety Gamay, in all its various guises, but fundamentally the intrinsic style is quite clearly defined as this. Light to medium in body and tannin, beautifully perfumed and deliciously fresh in its youth - which is when most of the wines are best drunk.

It’s the sort of wine that needs no pomp or ceremony, but simply pull the cork and enjoy spontaneously either solo or with edibles. Whether sitting in the garden on a warm summer’s day with a chilled bottle or gathered around the table for a hearty Sunday lunch in the company of a ‘Cru’ Beaujolais, the versatility of this red wine makes it a genuine all-rounder.

Whatever happened to Beaujolais Nouveau?

Beaujolais did become a little less fashionable in recent times as the huge craze for Beaujolais Nouveau, a highly-cropped wine that’s released for sale on the third Thursday of every November barely after it has finished fermenting, became passé and consumers chose to preserve the enamel on their teeth from the wine’s raw and aggressive acidity! Interestingly though, like all things retro, it is starting to make a comeback and growers are making far more approachable and softer versions so watch this space!

Sharing the same nickname as our serving Prime Minister could be seen as equally abject but its future does look somewhat brighter as there’s growing interest in the higher quality levels of these overlooked and undervalued wines.

The crème de la crème

Perhaps unsurprisingly, most interest is coming from the region’s best wines, from one of the ten ‘Crus’. Seven of these Crus are named after actual villages while Brouilly and Côte de Brouilly are areas surrounding the lofty hill of the same name and Moulin à Vent is named after a local windmill; a prominent landmark in this particular area. From north to south, the ten Crus are Saint Amour, Juliénas, Chénas, Moulin à Vent, Fleurie, Chiroubles, Morgon, Régnié, Brouilly and finally Côte de Brouilly.

Fleurie La Madone

The chapel of La Madone, Fleurie.

Plenty of good recent vintages

A spate of very good vintages over the past decade also underpins the reasons for closer inspection – 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 are all rated 4/5 or higher.

Cru Beaujolais’ unique factors

What defines these Crus versus AOP Beaujolais-Villages and generic AOP Beaujolais, as well as amongst themselves, essentially boils down to geography and geology.

All ten Crus are located in the hillier northern half of the region, comprised mostly of granite, schist and other volcanic soils with many vineyards being too steep for mechanisation.

The southern half of the region is flatter with limestone, marl and clay-based soils which are ideal for the lighter, juicier, throw-back wines.

Mapping the vineyards

Such is the complexity and significance of the soils across the Crus that detailed studies were carried out between 2010-2014 culminating in detailed geological maps being produced, further supporting the argument that each Cru should be identified as its own entity as opposed to being branded as a collective. You wouldn’t refer to Gevrey Chambertin as just a cru de Bourgogne or Côte Rotie as a cru de Rhône. Today, you’ll find these coveted geological maps hung with pride in many of the vignerons cellars.

How the wines are made

Other than the grape variety the common thread that links all red Beaujolais together is their method of production, or more specifically how they’re fermented. Whole bunch fermentation, either fully or majoratively in a carbon dioxide-rich environment, is a process known as Macération Carbonique or Carbonic Maceration, where fermentation begins inside the grapes themselves as well as in the juice from the crushed grapes at the bottom of the vat.

What do they taste like?

This winemaking technique creates flavours resembling bubble gum, banana and kirsch and also leads to minimal tannin levels as there is little agitation or extraction from the grape skins.

So what can you expect from the different Crus?

Well just like neighbouring Burgundy, you will see a wide variation in style, quality and flavour-profile even within the same Cru and the reputation of the individual producer is key so it’s worth doing your homework.

Broadly speaking, starting with Brouilly, the largest and perhaps one of the most recognised Crus, you will find some of the lightest, juiciest wines that are as exuberant as the classy Parisian bistros where they’ve been enjoyed since as far back as the 18th Century. The unique soil here is Diorite and is known locally as cornes vertes (green horns).

At the other end of the spectrum you’ll find more tannic, longer-lived wines from Morgon and Moulin à Vent. With intense aromas like plum, cherry and violet in their youth, they develop a more Pinot Noir-like character with ageing offering earthy truffle, spices and dried fruits. The primary soil in Moulin à Vent is decomposed pink granite while in Morgon it’s decomposed schist.

You can also find more fuller-bodied examples in the smallest and rarest of the Crus, Chénas, but they are much harder to seek out.

The prettiest and perhaps most floral and elegant wines come from Fleurie, Régnié (elevated to Cru status as recently as 1988) and Chiroubles. Some of the vineyards in Fleurie, particularly from La Madonne and most of Chiroubles are some of the most elevated and precipitous in the entire region closer resembling those of the northern Rhône. Régnié interestingly has more organic producers (either practising or certified) than any other Cru.

What foods pair well with Beaujolais?

You’ll find these wines can pair with similar types of food as Pinot Noir. Think charcuterie, white-rinded cheeses or seared tuna and salmon for the lighter Crus which can also be served chilled (Brouilly, Côte de Brouilly and Saint Amour).

The elegant, mid-weight Crus like Fleurie, Chiroubles and Régnié work well with roast chicken or turkey as well as the more savoury Chinese dishes, while the fuller-bodied Crus like Morgon, Juliénas and Moulin à Vent will handle roasted game birds and duck, garlicky sausages and pretty much anything with a creamy sauce.

Next time you reach out for a Pinot Noir or another lighter-bodied red, consider taking a punt on a Cru Beaujolais and it may just start a whole new vinous love affair.