With our current interest in all things Beaujolais, we thought it time to spread a little knowledge on the regions of Beaujolais and keep a point of reference for the future!

It is a region much maligned for producing fun fruity and forgettable wine from the 1980’s era when Beaujolais-Nouveau was all the rage. Whilst this wine still does account for over 1/2 of the whole regions production the ‘cru’  villages account for 1/4 and here the quality of the wines has much improved. We have been tasting some really exciting examples over the last 12 months.

There is also a lovely variation which was highlighted in our tasting last week (17th March) from the classic lighter style reds (St. Amour Chateau de Belleverne £11.95) made from the Gamay grape to some more serious wines from the Moulin a Vent ( Chateau Moulin a Vent £24) regions also made with Gamay but having smaller yields, barrel ageing they are more akin to their northerly neighbours of the Maconnais/Chalonaise region.

Whilst it may not win the hearts of a true Burgundy (Pinot Noir) fan. I believe these wines really are worthy of consideration. The Brouilly from Chateau de Pierruex 2015 (£16.95) is a prime example and the most popular the tasting. This wine adopts both styles where it has wonderful upfront red fruits, it undergoes maceration by foot and 6 months oak ageing, brings extra depth and complexity that you would struggle to find in a Generic Bourgogne rouge Pinot for a similar price.

These wines just also happen to be perfect reds for Spring.

Santé!