Beaujolais Flashcards
Grapes
98% Gamay - mostly red with a tiny amount of rose and Chard
Climate
Continental; slightly warmer than the rest of Burgundy due to being more south
740mm rainfall per year - adequate
Saone river acts as a moderating influence
Cold Mistral winds can impact flowering in cold damp spring weather and can damage leaves and grapes at the end of the season when Gamay’s thin skins are vulnerable
Training
Low to the ground to help protect the vine from the impact of the Mistral
Soil & Topography
Northern part (Beaujolais Cru and Villages) is hilly at 200 - 500m
Fast draining granite, schist, and sandy soils
South and south east facing slopes for max sun exposure leading to a week earlier harvest than south
South is flatter and richer soils
Gamay
Early budding - susceptible to spring frost
Vulnerable to millerandage in cold damp windy weather
Thin delicate skins are prone to rot and wind
Early ripening so usually picked before autumn rains
Varying levels of tannin and fruitiness depending on growing conditions
Sites with good sunlight and warm granite soils can produce intense fruit
Those on cooler site can be green
Vineyard Management
Gamay is productive and yields need to be managed to make concentrated wines
Short pruning helps moderate the productivity
Traditionally bush trained (which gave wind protection); still the case on steeper slopes
Increasingly trellised to aid mechanization, espec for inexpensive wines
Mostly hand harvested as whole bunches are required for the most common form of winemaking
Interest in organic and biodynamic with assoc Terra Vitis founded in Beaujolais. Pioneers in natural winemaking are Jules Chauvet and Jean-Paul Thevenet
Quality increasing as high Burgundy prices drive more people here.
Winemaking
Chaptalization is common, particularly in cooler years
Majority made via semi-carbonic maceration
Total maceration time on skins is 4 - 5 days for Beaujolais and Villages (6 - 9 for higher quality) to enhance the fruitiness and color for early consumption . Press wine is added for even more color and tannin. Briefly aged in stainless and released early.
Red fruit, kirsch, blueberry
Cru Beaujolais may be made in this way with extended maceration of 10 - 20 days. Or they may be crushed, destemmed, and fermented on the skins like a traditional red wine. More people doing this as Burgundy is too pricey
These are aged in large or small barrels perhaps with some new oak. These are Burgundian in style. deeper in color, more full bodied, higher tannins than carbonic.
Semi-carbonic maceration
Vessel is filled with whole bunches (must have been hand harvested)
Grapes at the bottom are crushed via the weight of those on top and some juice is released
Ambient yeast begin to ferment the juice (cultured yeast can be added)
Fermentation produces CO2 which fills the vessels
The uncrushed grapes undergo carbonic maceration. Here the grapes begin an anaerobic metabolism where sugars are converted to alcohol inside the grape without yeast.
The intact grapes begin to split and the yeast begin to ferment the released juice completing the fermentation.
Beaujolais Nouveau
Can be labeled Beaujolais Nouveau AOC or Nouveau Villages AOC depending on where the fruit is grown
Can be sold from the 3rd Thursday in November, earlier than all other French wines (15th of Dec)
Made by carbonic or semi-carbonic.
Bottled 3 - 5 days after fermentation stops
Some go through malo some don’t
Fining and sterile filtration is common as is moderate to high SO2 usage
particularly important if malo has not taken place
Beaujolais AOC and Villages AOC
Beaujolais AOC: Regional covering whole area; but all vineyards are in the south
Max yield is 60hl/ha (some low intensity).
Sold from mid Jan after harvest
fresh, fruity, good quality, inexpensive
Beaujolais Villages AOC: Located in the north of the AOC and better quality.
Max yield 58hl/ha
Individual village name can be on the label if sourced from there, but usually just labeled villages.
purple; medium red cherry, raspberry, plum, kirsch, banana; medium plus to high acid; light to medium minus body; medium alcohol, light to medium tannin
good to very good and inexpensive to mid
Some top producers are working with old vines make low inervention wines made in oak. these are more pronounced. Desjourneys and Metras
Beaujolais Crus
10 Crus in the north with own AOC. Range from 250 - 1,300ha.
Samantha - St. Amour Jarrett - Julienas Can - Chenas Marry a - Moulin a Vent Frenchie - Fleurie Called - Chiroubles Maxime - Morgon Right - Regnie By - Brouilly Columbus - Cote de Brouilly
Moulin a Vent - most powerful and long lived; closer in style to Cote d’Or
Fleurie - some sandy soils in the south for a lighter more fragrant wine. heavier more full bodied on the clay soils in the north.
Chiroubles - highest altitude, lighter fragrant, more acidity
Morgon - large; includes wines from the south facing Cote de Py vineyard; more inense fruit and tannins to age for decades
Brouilly - large area, warmer, lighter, more perfumed
Business
Avg size of 10ha
25% of sales are cooperatives
60% sold in France - direct sales, wine shops, supermarkets, hospitality
40% export - Japan (nouveau), USA & UK (villages and Cru) are 60%
Increasing in popularity as a cheaper Burgundy
Georges Duboeuf promoted Nouveau since 1964 (and died in 2019) and created the market helping all boats to rise. This gave way to release festivals and media event particularly successful in Japan, France, UK. 25% of all Beaujolais is Nouveau.
Newfound respect among sommeliers, espec in the US
