Domaine des Moriers was born from a passion for the Beaujolais terroirs, where the Gamay grape variety expresses itself like nowhere else. Managed today by Arnaud Combier, a man of solid experience having made his own wines in the Mâconnais then in Languedoc, he carries out a work of art here sublimating the climates of northern Beaujolais. The estate produces Beaujolais-Villages in Lancié, just on the border with Morgon; Morgon “Charmes”, Fleurie “La Madonne” – the most beautiful climat of Fleurie – and finally the famous Moulin-à-Vent and Moulin à Vent “En Brenay” which are the most Burgundian of the Beaujolais terroirs. The entire estate has been converting to organic farming since 2018 and the intention is to progress towards biodynamics very soon. Convinced that to produce beautiful grapes, balanced and rich in taste, living soils are needed, they put animal traction into practice for land maintenance.
The harvest is strictly manual and whole bunches are used for vinification which is carried out in concrete vats, as is the tradition in Beaujolais. Pressing after two weeks of fermentation is carried out by two vertical presses, which provides excellent quality of press juice, essential in the final vintage. No use of sulphites so far, it is only at bottling that the wines will be very lightly sulphated to guarantee transport. This has the effect of giving rise to distinctive and sincere wines while being very digestible.

It is not only estates from Burgundy’s Côte d’Or who have implanted themselves in Beaujolais. Plans to renovate a family residence in the Macon combined with the desire for new wine making challenges led the brothers Antoine and Maxime Graillot, whose work in Crozes-Hermitage needs no introduction, to purchase some magnificent vineyards in Beaujolais, Saint-Amour and Fleurie. In doing so, Domaine de Fa was born. Fa is short for Faye, which is the lieu-dit where the Graillots have set up their operations in a former stable turned winery.

2014 was their first vintage, a single Beaujolais labeled with the lieu-dit “En Besset,” which was sourced from the first vineyards they purchased, grouping together vineyards in Beaujolais and Saint-Amour. As of 2015, these wines are bottled separately in their own appellations, as well as a Fleurie, lieu-dit “Roche Guillon.”

The vineyards are farmed biodynamically. For winemaking, Antoine and Maxime designed the chai to work by gravity. They vinify with whole clusters, entirely in concrete, for a maximum of 10 days. Wines are aged predominately in foudres, with a small proportion of used barriques and demi-muids. The result are wines which have that Graillot signature, dense and structured but without sacrificing immediate accessibility.

Family-owned and operated, this six hectare estate has been run by women for three generations.

They were primarily grape growers, selling their grapes to the local co-operative. But in 2006, the fourth generation took back the reins of Clos de Mez when Marie-Elodie Zighera decided to forsake urban life in order to rekindle the domaine’s legacy.

Clos de Mez produces two of Beaujolais’ finest appellations: Fleurie and Morgon. The soils primarily consist of granite that has decomposed into a type of pink sand called “gore,” with depths that vary from several centimetres to several meters. These soils are acidic, highly filtering, and resistant to drought—ideal for Gamay. Some of the domain’s parcels in Fleurie are planted on steep slopes.

The philosophy of the domaine is based on a single conviction, that the quality of the wine depends on the quality of the grapes. With that in mind, starting in 2006, the domain has focussed their work in the vineyards, yields have been reduced drastically, and they’ve employed techniques such as severe pruning and rigorous debudding. Their vines now have an average age of over 40 years. To maintain the character of these old vines, the Clos de Mez plans to propagate their fields using clones from their own plants. They’ve always grown their gamay gobelet-style, and continue to do so.

Louis-Claude Desvignes’ two children, Claude-Emmanuelle and Benoit-Claude, have jointly managed the domaine for the past decade.

Unlike many Beaujolais producers, their Morgons are made without carbonic maceration and are not allowed to to reach the high temperatures at the beginning of the maceration period (a method which serves to extract different aromas). The juice undergoes montages and délestages, which are traditional vinification techniques usually employed outside of Beaujolais. The Desvignes are getting closer and closer to organic methods, plowing the soil and limiting chemical interventions.

Their wines are the real-deal, with surprising structure for a Morgon, and an almost pinot noir-like depth.  The main guides of France place the wines of Domaine Louis-Claude Desvignes at the summit of Morgon.

We had been importing Laurent Martay’s Brouilly and Côte de Brouilly for many years before they joined the ranks of the SAQ’s specialty products. Today, Martray’s Brouilly is a flagship product in its category at the SAQ, showing to those who are sceptical that the appellation can yield far-from-commonplace wines. The Brouilly has been a huge success, as has the exceptional Côte de Brouilly “Les Feuillées.” It is faithful to appellation as it offers up more structure, with a striking minerality and surprising length.

There’s no doubt that the wines of Laurent Martray helped generate interest among Quebecers for Cru Beaujolais. If northern Burgundy is the global standard of pinot noir, the same applies for gamay in Beaujolais, as the region’s recent renaissance testifies. We can only add that Laurent Martray is a charming, welcoming host. Have the urge to visit? You’ll definitely need a GPS, like many wineries in the labyrinthian of backroads of Beaujolais.

Pierre-Marie Chermette is as much a hard worker as he is talented. Along with his wife, Martine, they own vineyards throughout Beaujolais. They have a parcel adjacent to the winery in southern Beaujolais but most of the vineyards are scattered throughout the appellations of Fleurie, Moulin-à-Vent and Brouilly. Pierre-Marie spends his days travelling hours between all his vineyards. The man is unrelenting and seemingly tireless in his pursuit of growing great grapes.

The end result of all that hard work are exceptional wines. France’s top wine guides are unanimous in placing Pierre-Marie Chermette amongst the headliners of Beaujolais. Their wines always show great density and a smooth texture, all built on a solid core of fruit. Most importantly, you can always taste the terroir in each cuvée, which makes Chermette an important ambassador for Beaujolais.