Beaujolais

Beaujolais and Beaujolais-Villages: juicy, light Gamay to drink young and slightly cool.

Plain Beaujolais is simple raspberry-and-cherry red; Beaujolais-Villages, from the northern hills, is deeper and a clear step up for little more money. Both can be served lightly chilled with charcuterie. A little white, from Chardonnay, is also made.

Plain Beaujolais is simple raspberry-and-cherry red; Beaujolais-Villages, from the northern hills, is deeper and a clear step up for little more money. Both can be served lightly chilled with charcuterie. A little white, from Chardonnay, is also made.

Gamay: bright red fruit, juicy, low in tannin, best lightly chilled.

Beaujolais is almost all Gamay. On granite it gives perfumed, mineral wine with soft tannins; the crus add depth, and many are made from whole bunches for extra fruitiness. The grape is thin-skinned and light in colour but can age well from good sites.

Beaujolais is almost all Gamay. On granite it gives perfumed, mineral wine with soft tannins; the crus add depth, and many are made from whole bunches for extra fruitiness. The grape is thin-skinned and light in colour but can age well from good sites.

Charcuterie and jambon persillé with Villages, Fleurie or Chiroubles, lightly chilled.

The classic match: pâté, terrine, rillettes, saucisson and jellied ham with parsley suit a juicy, low-tannin Gamay. Serve Beaujolais-Villages or lighter crus a little cool.

The classic match: pâté, terrine, rillettes, saucisson and jellied ham with parsley suit a juicy, low-tannin Gamay. Serve Beaujolais-Villages or lighter crus a little cool.

Roast chicken, coq au vin or steak frites with Morgon or Brouilly.

Bistro mains suit the cru reds: Morgon's weight handles grilled red meat and stews, while lighter crus work with chicken. The wine is Burgundy-like in how it matches food, with less tannin.

Bistro mains suit the cru reds: Morgon's weight handles grilled red meat and stews, while lighter crus work with chicken. The wine is Burgundy-like in how it matches food, with less tannin.

Fleurie to cellar: Clos de la Roilette Cuvée Tardive.

A fuller, longer-lived Fleurie from old vines on manganese-rich soil, praised for how it ages around ten years.

A fuller, longer-lived Fleurie from old vines on manganese-rich soil, praised for how it ages around ten years.

Natural Gamay: Lapierre's Raisins Gaulois.

A juicy, low-sulphur Vin de France from the founding family of natural Beaujolais; an easy conversation bottle.

A juicy, low-sulphur Vin de France from the founding family of natural Beaujolais; an easy conversation bottle.

A vineyard name under the cru, like Morgon Côte du Py, means one site.

Many growers add a lieu-dit or climat to the cru name: Morgon Côte du Py, Fleurie La Madone, Moulin-à-Vent Clos des Thorins. These bottlings come from one named plot and usually show a clearer, more serious side of the cru than the estate's village blend.

Many growers add a lieu-dit or climat to the cru name: Morgon Côte du Py, Fleurie La Madone, Moulin-à-Vent Clos des Thorins. These bottlings come from one named plot and usually show a clearer, more serious side of the cru than the estate's village blend.

Brouilly is fruity and easy; Côte de Brouilly, from the hill, is denser.

Brouilly, the largest and southernmost cru, is the friendly one: raspberry and blackberry, floral, good young. Côte de Brouilly, from the steep volcanic hill inside it, is darker, more structured and ages longer.

Brouilly, the largest and southernmost cru, is the friendly one: raspberry and blackberry, floral, good young. Côte de Brouilly, from the steep volcanic hill inside it, is darker, more structured and ages longer.

Altitude and slope explain why crus differ - Chiroubles is high and cool.

Chiroubles has the highest, coolest vineyards and does best in warm years. Côte de Brouilly is a volcanic hill with vines facing every direction, so grapes ripen unevenly across the slope. Fleurie's La Madone sits around 425 metres and gives perfumed, silky wine.

Chiroubles has the highest, coolest vineyards and does best in warm years. Côte de Brouilly is a volcanic hill with vines facing every direction, so grapes ripen unevenly across the slope. Fleurie's La Madone sits around 425 metres and gives perfumed, silky wine.

Moulin-à-Vent: the most structured cru, built to age like a light red Burgundy.

The firmest, most tannic and longest-lived Beaujolais, often with oak ageing and a Burgundian approach. Manganese in the granite gives dark fruit, pepper and spice; the best bottles are best after five to ten years.

The firmest, most tannic and longest-lived Beaujolais, often with oak ageing and a Burgundian approach. Manganese in the granite gives dark fruit, pepper and spice; the best bottles are best after five to ten years.

Morgon: the serious cru - dense, dark-fruited and cellar-worthy.

Morgon is the cru that comes closest to Moulin-à-Vent in weight. Expect cherry and plum, a mineral edge and firm structure; the best age for a decade or more. It is also the home of the natural-wine pioneers around Jules Chauvet.

Morgon is the cru that comes closest to Moulin-à-Vent in weight. Expect cherry and plum, a mineral edge and firm structure; the best age for a decade or more. It is also the home of the natural-wine pioneers around Jules Chauvet.

Burgundian crus destem, macerate longer and age in oak for structure.

Estates such as Château des Jacques destem most grapes, macerate for three to four weeks and age about ten months in barrel. The wines are deeper, firmer and need cellaring.

Estates such as Château des Jacques destem most grapes, macerate for three to four weeks and age about ten months in barrel. The wines are deeper, firmer and need cellaring.

The Chauvet approach: organic farming, native yeast, almost no sulphur.

Marcel Lapierre met Jules Chauvet around 1980 and by 1981 had dropped cultured yeasts and winemaking sulphur. Growers following this approach bottle part of their crop with no added sulphur.

Marcel Lapierre met Jules Chauvet around 1980 and by 1981 had dropped cultured yeasts and winemaking sulphur. Growers following this approach bottle part of their crop with no added sulphur.

Some top natural Gamay is sold as Vin de France, no cru named.

A few top growers bottle part of their range outside the appellation, so the label shows no village. Lapierre's Raisins Gaulois is an example. Judge these by producer and price rather than by the missing cru name.

A few top growers bottle part of their range outside the appellation, so the label shows no village. Lapierre's Raisins Gaulois is an example. Judge these by producer and price rather than by the missing cru name.

Clos de la Roilette: a fuller, longer-lived Fleurie from manganese-rich soil.

A nine-hectare estate on Fleurie's eastern edge, next to Moulin-à-Vent, run by Alain Coudert. Its Fleurie is darker and weightier than the cru norm.

Clos de la Roilette has nine hectares on one of Fleurie's best eastern slopes, bordering Moulin-à-Vent. When Fleurie became an appellation in the 1920s the clos lost the Moulin-à-Vent name it had used, and the owner of the time protested by putting his racehorse Roilette on the label and leaving Fleurie off. By the 1960s the land had run wild; Fernand Coudert bought and replanted it in 1967, and his son Alain has made the wine since the mid-1980s. Clay and manganese in the soil, plus vines averaging around thirty years, give a deep, rich Fleurie with cassis and black cherry rather than just flowers. It ages well beyond ten years, and the Cuvée Tardive, from older vines, is the bottle to cellar.

Morgon's named sites differ: Côte du Py is full, Charmes perfumed, Micouds light.

Morgon is the cru where climat names matter most. Côte du Py gives the fullest, densest wine, Les Charmes and Corcelette are perfumed and deeply coloured, Grand Cras sits on a schist outcrop, and Les Micouds is lighter.

Morgon is the best cru to learn site by site. Côte du Py, a dome-shaped hill with volcanic rock under schist, gives full, dense wine with the most structure. Les Charmes, on the western edge at some of the highest sites with sandy granite, is perfumed and lighter. Corcelette, to its north, has lighter granite with less sand and can be very aromatic and deep in colour. Grand Cras, at the southern edge, is a schist outcrop surrounded by granitic sand and scree. Douby, to the north-east, borders Fleurie. Les Micouds, on well-drained east-facing slopes, gives a lighter style. Burgaud, Desjourneys, Gauthier and Mee Godard all bottle several of these separately, so a flight of single-climat Morgons from one grower is the clearest way to taste what soil does to Gamay.

Château des Jacques: the Burgundy house's Moulin-à-Vent, structured and ageable.

Louis Jadot owns this 69-hectare estate across Moulin-à-Vent, Morgon and Fleurie. The wines are destemmed and oak-aged, with Clos des Thorins and Grand Clos the single-site reference points.

Château des Jacques was founded in 1924 and owned by the Thorins family from 1931 until Louis Jadot bought it in 1996. Jadot later added Château Bellevue in Morgon and now farms about 69 hectares of pink granite with manganese veins across Moulin-à-Vent, Morgon and Fleurie. The approach is Burgundian: grapes are mostly destemmed, macerate for three to four weeks with native yeasts, and age about ten months in barrel. That gives deep colour, firm tannin and dark fruit, with a mineral, earthy character that deepens with time. Clos des Thorins comes from a single south-facing lieu-dit in deep granitic soil and is described by the producer as full and robust; Grand Clos is the flagship single-vineyard wine. These are the bottles to cellar for five to ten years.

Burgaud: single-site Morgon from old vines; a serious, structured house style.

Jean-Marc Burgaud makes whole-cluster Morgon from old vines and bottles climats separately: Côte du Py, Les Charmes, Corcelette and Les Grands Cras, with Cuvée James as the top wine.

Burgaud is the Morgon estate to choose if you want to taste the cru's sites one by one. Jean-Marc Burgaud ferments whole clusters semi-carbonically from old vines, then bottles single-climat wines from Côte du Py, Les Charmes, Corcelette and Les Grands Cras alongside a blended Morgon. The top cuvée is James, aged in used casks. A pair of these single sites tasted side by side makes the clearest introduction to why Côte du Py wine is fuller and Les Charmes more perfumed.

Thibault Liger-Belair: a Côte de Nuits grower's organic, single-site Moulin-à-Vent.

A Burgundy producer from Nuits-Saint-Georges who also makes Moulin-à-Vent. Les Rouchaux, from the base of a slope on blue granite, is the best known; La Roche and Vignes Centenaires are the other single sites.

Thibault Liger-Belair is a Côte de Nuits grower who took over an old family property at Nuits-Saint-Georges in 2001 and also makes a small group of Moulin-à-Vent single-site wines. His vines are certified organic and farmed biodynamically, with horses used where possible. The wine to know is Les Rouchaux, from the bottom of a slope with deep silty soil over blue granite: bright and spicy, with firmer tannins than most Beaujolais and a white-pepper finish. About 40 percent whole bunches go into the ferment and the wine ages in large foudres. La Roche and Vignes Centenaires, from older vines, complete the range. Burgundy fans will recognise the approach.

Lapierre: the founding name of natural Beaujolais, now run by Mathieu and Camille.

Marcel Lapierre turned to Jules Chauvet's low-sulphur methods around 1981; his children run the 16-hectare organic estate. Morgon is the benchmark; Raisins Gaulois is the easy-drinking Vin de France.

Marcel Lapierre took over the family vines around Morgon in 1973 and met Jules Chauvet around 1980. By 1981 he had dropped cultured yeasts and winemaking sulphur and cut chemicals from the vineyard, and with Foillard, Thévenet and Breton he became one of the four growers known as the Gang of Four. After his death in 2010, his children Mathieu and Camille took over the 16 hectares, now all organic. Whole grapes macerate for weeks, wine is raised in barrel, and about a third is bottled without added sulphur; the back label shows which. The main Morgon is the one to buy; Cuvée Camille comes from a Côte du Py parcel, Cuvée Marcel Lapierre from old vines in exceptional years, and Raisins Gaulois is the juicy, cheaper Vin de France.

Foillard: benchmark Côte du Py Morgon from a Chauvet-method grower.

Jean Foillard farms 8.6 hectares on Côte du Py, Morgon's fullest hillside. The wines are dense yet fresh, and the rare Cuvée Pi (3.14) sells at auction.

Jean Foillard is one of the four Morgon growers who followed Jules Chauvet's low-intervention ideas from the 1980s. His speciality is Côte du Py, the dome-shaped hill that gives Morgon its fullest wines; he farms about 8.6 hectares there. The Côte du Py bottling shows how much weight and mineral grip Gamay can carry on that volcanic-schist slope while staying fresh and drinkable. The special Cuvée Pi (3.14) is one of the very few Beaujolais that trades regularly at auction, so treat it as a collector bottle. Expect wines that repay a few years in the cellar.

Granite soil in the north gives Beaujolais its fine, mineral fruit.

The crus sit on granite hills, mostly pink granite, with local pockets of schist, volcanic rock and manganese. Granite drains fast and gives low yields, so the Gamay is more concentrated and the wine more mineral than from the flatter south.

The crus sit on granite hills, mostly pink granite, with local pockets of schist, volcanic rock and manganese. Granite drains fast and gives low yields, so the Gamay is more concentrated and the wine more mineral than from the flatter south.

In the glass: Firm minerality, perfume and concentration from low yields

North is granite hills and crus; south is limestone, clay and simple fruit.

Granite in the north gives the crus and Beaujolais-Villages. The south has clay and limestone, with golden stone villages known as the Pierres Dorées, and gives easy, fruity wines and most of the region's white. Knowing which half a wine comes from sets expectations.

Granite in the north gives the crus and Beaujolais-Villages. The south has clay and limestone, with golden stone villages known as the Pierres Dorées, and gives easy, fruity wines and most of the region's white. Knowing which half a wine comes from sets expectations.

In the glass: North: structured, mineral, ages; south: round, juicy, drink young

Altitude and slope explain why crus differ - Chiroubles is high and cool.

Chiroubles has the highest, coolest vineyards and does best in warm years. Côte de Brouilly is a volcanic hill with vines facing every direction, so grapes ripen unevenly across the slope. Fleurie's La Madone sits around 425 metres and gives perfumed, silky wine.

Chiroubles has the highest, coolest vineyards and does best in warm years. Côte de Brouilly is a volcanic hill with vines facing every direction, so grapes ripen unevenly across the slope. Fleurie's La Madone sits around 425 metres and gives perfumed, silky wine.

In the glass: Cooler, higher sites give lighter, floral wines; warm slopes give riper, fuller ones

Manganese, diorite and rotted volcanic rock create the cru's rare, denser sites.

Moulin-à-Vent has manganese veins in pink granite, and the neighbouring edge of Fleurie shares them. Côte de Brouilly's summit has blue diorite, and Morgon's Côte du Py has a volcanic subsoil under schist. These patches yield the firmest, longest-lived Gamay.

Beyond the general rule of pink granite, a few patches stand out and the best growers know them. In Moulin-à-Vent, pink granite is laced with manganese veins, and Clos de la Roilette in neighbouring Fleurie sits on the same manganese-rich edge, which its owners credit for richer wine. On Côte de Brouilly the summit is blue metamorphic diorite and schist, steep and fast-draining, and Château Thivin's La Chapelle comes from that top. In Morgon the Côte du Py hill rises to about 350 metres with a volcanic subsoil beneath schist, the local 'roche pourrie' (rotted rock), and its wines are the fullest in the cru. If a label names one of these sites, expect more weight and grip than the village blend, and a wine that improves for years.

In the glass: Denser, firmer, longer-lived wines than ordinary granite sites

Morgon's named sites differ: Côte du Py is full, Charmes perfumed, Micouds light.

Morgon is the cru where climat names matter most. Côte du Py gives the fullest, densest wine, Les Charmes and Corcelette are perfumed and deeply coloured, Grand Cras sits on a schist outcrop, and Les Micouds is lighter.

Morgon is the best cru to learn site by site. Côte du Py, a dome-shaped hill with volcanic rock under schist, gives full, dense wine with the most structure. Les Charmes, on the western edge at some of the highest sites with sandy granite, is perfumed and lighter. Corcelette, to its north, has lighter granite with less sand and can be very aromatic and deep in colour. Grand Cras, at the southern edge, is a schist outcrop surrounded by granitic sand and scree. Douby, to the north-east, borders Fleurie. Les Micouds, on well-drained east-facing slopes, gives a lighter style. Burgaud, Desjourneys, Gauthier and Mee Godard all bottle several of these separately, so a flight of single-climat Morgons from one grower is the clearest way to taste what soil does to Gamay.

In the glass: Same grape, different weight and perfume by hillside

Old vines and low yields separate a serious cru from a simple one.

Gamay left to crop heavily makes thin, simple wine; granite soils and careful growers keep yields down and concentration up. Vieilles Vignes bottlings from the cru growers below are usually the denser cuvée.

Gamay left to crop heavily makes thin, simple wine; granite soils and careful growers keep yields down and concentration up. Vieilles Vignes bottlings from the cru growers below are usually the denser cuvée.

In the glass: More colour, structure and ageing ability

Most Beaujolais is fermented as whole bunches for juicy, low-tannin fruit.

Whole-bunch, semi-carbonic ferments are the regional norm. They give raspberry-and-cherry brightness and very soft tannins, and are why Beaujolais is best served slightly cool.

Whole-bunch, semi-carbonic ferments are the regional norm. They give raspberry-and-cherry brightness and very soft tannins, and are why Beaujolais is best served slightly cool.

In the glass: Bright fruit, soft tannin, perfumed lift

Nouveau uses full carbonic maceration in sealed tanks for maximum fruit.

Whole grapes ferment in a sealed tank full of carbon dioxide for about three weeks, then the wine is run off, filtered and bottled. The result is very light and grapey.

Whole grapes ferment in a sealed tank full of carbon dioxide for about three weeks, then the wine is run off, filtered and bottled. The result is very light and grapey.

In the glass: Very fruity, banana-candy aromas, almost no tannin

Burgundian crus destem, macerate longer and age in oak for structure.

Estates such as Château des Jacques destem most grapes, macerate for three to four weeks and age about ten months in barrel. The wines are deeper, firmer and need cellaring.

Estates such as Château des Jacques destem most grapes, macerate for three to four weeks and age about ten months in barrel. The wines are deeper, firmer and need cellaring.

In the glass: Darker fruit, firmer tannin, more age-worthy

The Chauvet approach: organic farming, native yeast, almost no sulphur.

Marcel Lapierre met Jules Chauvet around 1980 and by 1981 had dropped cultured yeasts and winemaking sulphur. Growers following this approach bottle part of their crop with no added sulphur.

Marcel Lapierre met Jules Chauvet around 1980 and by 1981 had dropped cultured yeasts and winemaking sulphur. Growers following this approach bottle part of their crop with no added sulphur.

In the glass: Fresher, more perfumed, lighter wines that taste alive; can vary bottle to bottle

Large old casks and foudres frame single-site crus without much oak flavour.

Top cru growers often age in large old oak, not small new barrels, so the wine gains texture without a toasty taste.

Beaujolais crus rarely show new-oak flavour, and the better growers keep it that way. Laurent Gauthier ages single-vineyard Morgons in large, old casks; Thibault Liger-Belair uses large foudres for Moulin-à-Vent Les Rouchaux; Lapierre raises its Morgon in barrel for about nine months after a long, cool fermentation. Even Château des Jacques, which uses some new wood (about a quarter for its Morgon), ages for roughly ten months, not years. Gamay is light in colour and tannin, so heavy oak would dominate it quickly. The vessel is there to soften the wine and add texture rather than flavour. When you see foudre, demi-muid or vieux fût on a back label or a producer's sheet, expect a polished wine with its fruit intact rather than vanilla and toast.

In the glass: Texture and polish without obvious oak flavour