Wines of France

Beaujolais is a perfect picture postcard of the French countryside, with its string of beautiful hills culminating in a forested crest. Its villages are clustered across the landscape, complete with pointed steeples and happily playing children. To the east, there is a view of the Saone plains and on the horizon lies the white outline of the Alps and their crowning glory, Mont Blanc. But this is not all that Beaujolais has to offer. In this dynamic region near Lyon, the people live well, and aren’t afraid to say so. As the region is right on the border between the harsh climate of the north and the balmy weather of the south, its people tend to combine a northern sense of humor with a southern lifestyle. However, its wines display no such compromise and clearly exemplify the joy of the southern life.

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Near Lyon, the region of Beaujolais has a continental climate with dry, cold winters and hot summers. With eastern and southeastern exposure, its hillside vineyards are protected from the humid winds out of the west and benefit from sunny summer weather with Mediterranean influences. They extend along the length of the nearby Rhone Valley. The climate there is thus temperate and rarely cold. Gamay thrives in these mild weather conditions and ripens relatively early, allowing the grapes’ sugar content to increase. Their excellent sun exposure, sometimes on terraces, optimizes the ripening process.

Life in Beaujolais revolves around the region’s numerous small villages and its generous climate. Good living and happiness are of utmost importance here. Beaujolais natives tend to be roguish, mischievous and good-natured, and the region’s wine tends to follow suit. There is always something to celebrate and the food is top-notch. The people of Lyon often come to escape to the vineyards and their simple and delicious taste in food is always well satisfied. A sense of the simple, good life dominates the region, and it is here where the tradition of Beaujolais Nouveau, released on the market on the third Thursday in November, began. It was as if the people of Beaujolais couldn’t wait a second longer to celebrate the arrival of the new vintage. These days the entire planet joins in the yearly celebration.

Two very different types of terroirs exist in Beaujolais. In the southern part of the region, the clay-limestone soils of the Beaujolais and Beaujolais-Villages appellations produce fruity red wines that should be enjoyed young—wines that exude joy and the pleasure of the moment. This area, the region’s largest, consists of a series of round grassy hills covered with vineyards that are well positioned for maximum sun exposure. In the north of the region, ten villages offer very different soils, composed primarily of shale and granite. It is here that Gamay thrives, with a wider array of aromas and a more powerful tannic structure. These ten crus can age for a longer period of time and are an excellent illustration of what Beaujolais’ terroir has to offer.