Beaujolais

Every so often, I take a sip of a “humble” regional wine that makes me question everything. With a glass of this in hand, I think to myself, who cares about grand cru Burgundy? Or, why would I ever drink anything else? Or, surely this is the bottle I’d choose to fill my cooler with if I were stranded on a desert island.
     When I’m able to think rationally again, of course I’d pounce on a bottle of Taupenot-Merme’s grand cru Corton Rognet or the Perret family’s majestic Condrieu I write about in this month’s newsletter. And variety is everything, so I wouldn’t fill my island cooler with just Jean Foillard’s Beaujolais-Villages. But this kind of red makes you suspend reason for a moment and devote yourself to it, at least while the wine’s still in your glass.
     After all, Beaujolais-Villages has no business being this good, but Jean Foillard is an extraordinary vigneron. A decade or so ago, Jean made Beaujolais Nouveau that he would expedite to us each November to meet the deadline of the worldwide Nouveau celebration. That Nouveau was outstanding and he didn’t need to change anything, but he had an epiphany that only the most ambitious sort of grower has: the grapes he was using were of high enough quality to make a cuvée with more depth and complexity, so he proposed taking his time to produce a Beaujolais-Villages instead of a hurried Nouveau.
     Blending grapes from high-elevation, granite-heavy terroirs barely outside the region’s crus, and with a patient élevage that’s very close to that of his world-class Morgons, this wine is silky and seductive, with notes of rose petals, red fruit, pomegranate, and stones. With just the right amount of tannin and acidity, and lots of class, it is perfect for all occasions.

Avec toutes mes amitiés Beaujolaises, “with all my Beaujolais friendship,” is how Ghislaine Dupeuble signs her emails. That detail succinctly summarizes her warmth and the essence of her family’s wines, which exude just what her signature suggests. Domaine Dupeuble is our most southern Beaujolais producer, situated in the hamlet of Le Breuil, just northwest of the food capital of Lyon. This part of the region boasts such dramatic landscapes and striking terroir that just a few years ago UNESCO declared the area a Geopark—worthy of protection for its spectacular geology. Here, Gamay grows on granite, schist, and pierres dorées, golden limestone that offers a privileged terrain for grapevines to dig deep in a way that’s wildly different from plantings in the sandier soil surrounding Villié-Morgon.
     Dupeuble’s rouge is thirst-quenching and tangy with loads of violet and réglisse, aromas you might expect from fruit that grows so close to the Rhône. Enjoy it with anything from grilled sausages to homemade pizzas, herby rice and beans, or late-summer tomato salads. One glass of this simply made and easy-drinking Beaujolais will provide centuries’ worth of tradition, generosity, paysan culture, and friendship.