Thursday the 20th of November 2025 will be Beaujolais Nouveau day – so how about a few stats to get us going?
15.5 million bottles of Nouveaux were produced in 2023 versus 16.5 million in 2022 – but in 2024, we saw another drop to 14.3 million. That said, 2024 was a much lower-volume harvest – and 2025 wasn’t much higher. Unfortunately, for comparison’s sake, the 2025 sales volume won’t be known for quite some time…
The main theme for the 2024 vintage were the losses due to mildew. There was a little of that in 2025 too – but in the end, it was the poor weather at flowering time that reduced volume expectations as it resulted in much coulure and millerandes. Volume expectations were further reduced by spells of hot (heatwave) weather, which shrunk the volume of juice in the berries. Like in the other regions of Burgundy, there was rain to contend with at harvest time, but as one grower explained to me, “Yes, but the rain was sufficiently late that the grapes didn’t take up much of it – so it hardly budged the potential harvest volumes.”
Most of Nouveau comes from the southerly part of Beaujolais – in the Beaujolais and Beaujolais villages areas. More (Nouveau) wine is generally made here than in the crus – but volumes (and trying to compare them) are, of course, a moving target, varying from producer to producer.
In 2024, France took 62% of the bottles, but the classic Nouveau markets of Japan, the US and the UK, together, still bought 3.2 million bottles (versus 4 million bottles in 2022) out of the total of 5.3 million that were exported. Oh, and 4% of that remains white or rosé today!
And how is this Nouveau vintage?
I’ll make my comments on 2025 Nouveau, aided by some comparison to 2024:
Historically – and I’ve been making this tasting since the 2017 vintage – I’ve seen much more consistent quality in smaller volume vintages than I have in ‘normal’ or ‘generous’ vintages. It seems that many domaines like to play with yield elasticity in the more generous vintages – when it’s quite easy to find lighter, usually less interesting wines.
The quality wasn’t consistent in 2024, and was only rarely great. 2025 is another smaller-volume vintage, but this time the growers have delivered much better consistency – the best that I’ve seen since the 2022 vintage. The 2025 grapes had naturally higher ripeness than in 2024, enabled by earlier harvesting that allowed growers to delay harvesting, should they wish – many domaines recounting that they found it difficult to find the optimum harvest dates. This higher ripeness seems to have worked in our favour with more consistency, and it’s clearly evident in even higher levels in this year’s Beaujolais Villages.
From the 116 wines from 2025 that I tasted, I found many more acceptably delicious, even excellent wines than was the case in 2024 – I even found some great ones!
Very good to excellent wines mean that they are wines where I would be happy to drink at least a glass, or even multiple glasses. This year, it was obvious that there was more consistent quality to be found in the Beaujolais Villages than the Beaujolais, though, like every year, at the expense of drinkability.
Let me explain:
This year, Beaujolais Villages wines show more maturity and their finishing sweetness of fruit is next level – but also the level of tannin in many…. Most of them will start drinking well in the Springtime of 2026 – but on the 20th of November? Les Beaujolais Nouveaux day? – less so.
Did I ever say that I struggle with the concept of Beaujolais Villages Nouveaux? At least in terms of drinking them on the third Thursday of November – of course I did 🙂
Good hunting!
All of the wines were tasted and selected blind. It was only after the tasting that I got a copy of the spreadsheet with the names to match to the numbered bottles:
Great wines for their labels
Antoine Viland Nouveau
Julien Aucagne Villages Nouveau
Jérôme Lacondemine, Cœur de Vigneron Villages Nouveau
Excellent Wines – Beaujolais Nouveau
Only one more excellent wine than in 2024 in this section – but fully 61% (36 of 59 samples) of the wines I rated as being of very acceptable quality – that’s way higher than in 2024:
Quentin et Gaëtan Morel, Boder’Wine
Château de L’Eclair
Louis Tête, Le Pot
Les Vins J.M Aujoux, Le Bistrot d’Aujoux
Les Vins J.M Aujoux, Le Cochon Chic
P.Ferraud & Fils, Le Couple
Georges Duboeuf
Excellent Wines – Beaujolais Villages Nouveau
Nineteen from 51 wines tasted in this section I thought excellent – 2 were great. That’s in comparison to just 10 in 2024. Likewise, I classed a much higher percentage of 2025s as having very acceptable quality: 38 from 51 or 74% !!
Famille Mélinon
Domaine de Colette, Natur’elle
Maison Piron
Passot Rémy et Fils
Maison Trénel
Domaine de la Plaigne
Domaine du Sallerin, En attendant le Printemps
Aurélie Dunérin
Domaine de Croifolie
Cave du Château des Loges, Le Monde en Fête
Richard Rottiers
Château de Lavernette, Le Jeune
Château de la Terrière
Domaine de la Milleranche
Château de Poncié
Frédéric Perrier
André Colonge & Fils, Gatsby Gamay
The savoury/beer flavours and/or aromas – which I associate with lower sulfur wines that have been open a few hours – or wines in fridge that have been open more than 24 hours – were very common in the flavours of 2024s, but they are much rarer in 2025. I know that some people like beer.
Click on ‘Read More…’ below to see the full notes for the 116 wines in the order that they were (blind) tasted on Wednesday 05th November 2025:
All the wines are listed in the order that they were tasted:
Beaujolais Nouveau Rosé
There were 6 – and they were not very inspiring. Certainly, they were served a little too cold, but that doesn’t mean that they would have been more interesting when warmer…
Pierre-Marie Chermette, Griottes
Almost no colour! A modest but pretty nose. Supple, some sweetness, no rigour – too easy…
Georges Duboeuf
A suggestion of pink – but only a suggestion. Another modest nose. Less easy, a certain structure and intensity here, but less tasty! A good finish though…
Louis Tête, Le Pot
Pink! Another rather anonymous nose, but a slightly better nose. Structural but with a little more depth of flavour. That’s okay !!
Vignerons des Pierres Dorées, Terra Iconia
Again – pink! The temperature is a little low. Good scale but less delicious. The finish is clean and okay…
Le Père la Grolle
Airy, saline – not an aromatic invitation. More supple, some extra width and more finishing density. Quite good.
Domaine des Combiers, Rosé des Granites
Slightly pink. Another rather anonymous nose. Mineral, thin, with a small finishing energy. It’s clean…
2024 Beaujolais Nouveau
Anthony Pérol, Le p’tit Nouveau
Large and dark fruited. Supple, well-textured, with a modest salinity and good concentration. A very good start !!
Domaine J.P Rivière
Bordeaux bottle.
Even a little darker fruit with plenty of graphite. Large in scale, slightly more tannic but long – more villages quality this is super…
Domaine Les Souriants, Sourire de Nouveau
Less colour. More cordial style fruit – clean and attractive. Large-scale, fine velour tannin. An intense line of vibrant flavour…
‘That’s three super wines to start – number 2 the class of those…’
Château Cambon, Cambon Nouveau
A paler colour. A more gentian style of nose. Extra classic bubble-gum and red fruit. The acidity and vibrancy are to the fore in the finish. Classic Beaujolais but not great Beaujolais…
Cosima Bassouls, Le tout nouveau
Medium colour. Airy, less fruit-forward. Good scale in the mouth with plenty of energy. The finish wide and interesting, a very good wine…
Château de Corcelles
A deeper colour. Dark, complex, impressive nose. Super in the mouth – vibrant, concentrated flavour. Excellent !!
Domaine Rivière
Another deeper colour. A more airy nose again, slightly savoury. Good scale in the mouth – texturally interesting too. Good…
Le Crêt de Bine, Première Cuvéé
Medium colour. Good depth of attractive, dark, fruit-driven aroma. In the mouth, supple, mobile, nicely textured wine – another excellent one !!
Maison Piron
Depth of colour once more. Broad, interesting, quite saline aromatics. Large in the mouth – a little bubblegum, more tannin – you should wait for this. Easy bubble-gum but less easy structure – the wine’s attributes are not quite in sync today.
Anthony Pérol, Abracadaboum
Hardly medium colour. A savoury, airy style of aromatic. Mouth-filling, very red fruit, perhaps a little extra CO2 – better balanced than the last today and with quite some finishing length…
Du vin à l’âme, Premier Geai
The first rosé – 😊 The nose is discrete. Petillant – a very different style – apero wine – not a great BJN but a very acceptable apero – in the style of a Chasselay Ephemère which I bought after tasting…
Domaine Mickaël Nesme
Deep colour. Dark, saline aromatics. Hmm – this has super width and depth of darker, almost coffee-inflected flavours. Ultra impressive middle and finishing flavours. Excellent !!
Domaine Brossette, Empreinte
Deep colour again. Hmm – a little more dark fruit focus here – that’s a nice invitation. Large in the mouth, framed with a modest velvet tannin. Wide, melting saline-inflected finish. That’s another super wine – just behind the last…
Maison Trénel
Deep colour. Another fruit-driven nose, dark fruit of fine focus. Wide, supple, concentrated, delicious flavours with just enough tannin that you know that it’s wine… Very good…
Anthony Charvet, Beaujo Beau
A narrower but deep well of dark fruit aroma. Finer but not less drying tanni. The fruit is more red in intensity, in a super finish.
Quentin et Gaëtan Morel, Boder’Wine
Deeply coloured. Wide, interesting, ripe dark fruit – slightly floral. Ooh – that sits very well in the mouth – a certain tannin but also a wine of impressive stature – hardly yet drinking but the best wine so far
Mommessin, Bio
Quite deeply coloured. Airy, with a little graphite aroma. Supple, wide, an almost grainless but slightly drying tannin – it’s actually a lovely texture. Long, delicious finishing – another excellent wine…
Pierre-Marie Chermette, Origine / Vieilles Vignes
Deeper colour. Wide, fresh, inky aroma. Hmm, another wine with plenty of scale. Red fruit with good energy. Very tasty !!
Jean-Marc Lafont, Ephemère
Deeply coloured. A fine, concentrated dark-fruited nose. Really good scale and extra freshness. Wide, finishing with some dryness but a very tasty wine – yum!
Antoine Viland
Deep colour again. A very bubble-gum nose, but also with concentration – yet also slowly adding some floral interest. The most fluid wine yet tasted with impressive concentration. The last flavours are delicious and perfumed – I’d like a bit more flavour in the first impressions but this is great !!
Quentin et Gaëtan Morel, Les Frangins
Quite deeply coloured. Dark, slightly savoury aromas. Direct and with plenty of intensity, modestly framed by a fine tannin. The finish is tasty and moreish. Another really worthy wine…
Famille Girin
Deeply coloured. Slightly savoury aromatics again. Large in the mouth, super texture that’s quite velour. That’s a very lovely wine, despite the nose today…
Mommessin, Miss Mommessin
Quite deeply coloured. Rounder, with nice transparency of fruit. Good scale in the mouth – quite wide, slowly fading flavour. Worthy…
Jean-Yves Sonnery
Less deep colour. Saline, red fruit. Supple, quite tannic but not too drying. The red fruit flavour works well in a mouth-watering style. Long and tasty…
Pierre-Marie Chermette, Griottes
Deeply coloured. A mix of tones, dark fruit, graphite and more. Fine scale and very fine tannin too – hardly a grain – very velour – it just needs to be a bit more delicious !!
Domaine des Terres Dorées, Cuvée Première
More modest colour. Red fruit energy. A more insistent intensity of red fruit and some acidity. The finish is tasty with some bitters…
Célia et David Large, Massaï
More modest colour again. A more perfumed nose. Wide and decently textured. The finish is similarly wide and juicy – plenty of tannin but not overtly drying – though still some !
Château de L’Eclair
Deeply coloured. A nice width of fresh, dark, perfumed fruit. Extra flavour energy. Juicy and delicious – Excellent !!
Domaine de Champ Fleury
Almost deeply coloured. Very perfumed dark fruit. Supple, fine sweet fruit a little more tannic finishing, but also with a very good fruit. Almost as good !!
Vignoble Perras
Medium-plus colour. A more stewed dark-red fruit. In the mouth, there’s tons of red-fruited flavour-energy. The finish is long. Modestly astringent. Good…
Domaine des Terres Dorées, l’Ancien
Moderate colour. Saline, quite savoury. Easy red, tasty wine…
Famille Chasselay
Modest colour. Another nose of easy accessibility – lite vs most this vintage. Extra energy in the mouth, a little more flavour intensity too – very red fruit. It’s okay, but I wouldn’t guess that it’s from 2025…
Julien Mathon, Toutencanon
Deeply coloured. A slightly anonymous nose. Large in scale, saline, energetic, quite long. Okay…
Domaine Romany
Medium-plus colour. Another modest volume of aroma. Fuller in the mouth with a more incisive start. Good flavour here – juicy finishing. Very good…
Domaine Chevalier-Métrat
Deeply coloured. A deep, slightly stewed fruit, tighter in the high tones. Broad-flavoured, also a stewed aspect to this dark fruit. Concentrated with good energy and finishing quite perfumed – the best part of this wine
Pierre-André Dumas
Deeply coloured. Airy, but with a growing focus – quite nice. Impact, depth of flavour, complex. Slightly austere today, but I like the finish…
Famille Chasselay, La Marduette
Deeply coloured. A more vibrant depth and width of darker fruit. Lots of scale, lots of energy – the flavours are a little sour, but they finish well.
Domaine des Voûtes Dorées
Medium-plus colour. A higher-toned red fruit – nice. Another mouthful of energy with a good depth of finishing flavour with a small lick of tannin. That’s a good one…
Louis Tête, Le Pot
Clear glass bottle.
Medium-plus colour. A pretty red fruit nose. Large in the mouth, full of fresh flavour energy – that’s a super wine, quite fluid and long, tasty, finishing…
Domaine de Roche Cattin
Another clear bottle
Modest colour. Pretty, lite, red fruit aromatics. Wide, supple, and really very tasty finishing – pot a powerful 2025 but a tasty one…
Les Vins J.M Aujoux, Le Bistrot d’Aujoux
Deeper colour. Dark fruit and perfume – a good nose! Mouth-filling, fine texture and lovely fruit flavours – properly excellent and long too !!
Vignerons des Pierres Dorées, La Rose Pourpre
Dark coloured. Another very nice nose – less open but still with dark perfumed fruit. Mouth-filling, less optimal tannin vs the last, fine grained but drying. But this finish is a very good one !
Grands Terroirs du Beaujolais
Deeply coloured. Dark, quite vibrant aromas. Large in scale – full of energy. This is juicy despite a frame of slightly drying but grainless tannin. That’s a very good one…
Domaine de la Revol
Medium-plus colour. Higher tones – fruit and just a suggestion of perfume. Good volume in the mouth a slightly different texture to this tannin – but grainless. Finishing well in a dark-fruited and juicy style. Yum!
Les Vins J.M Aujoux, Le Cochon Chic
Medium-plus colour again. Narrow but deep fruit aromas. Wide, melting, becoming juicier. Here’s another that finishes very well – in fact, it’s delicious finishing !!
Vignerons des Pierres Dorées, Terra Iconia
Medium-plus colour. Broad and energetic aromas of darker fruit. Another wine that fills the mouth with energetic flavours. Finishing well…
P.Ferraud & Fils, Cuvée d’Autrefois
Deeply coloured. Dark fruit already with the impression of some bitters. Lots of scale, slightly sour first impression, the width of fresh finishing fruit brings a nice finish – tasty here…
Domaine de la Grosse Pierre
Medium-plus colour. A vertical nose – with some salinity in the top notes. Wide, with a good, juicy energy but also some dryness of tannin. The finish is a good one – tasty wine.
Grans Vins Sélection, Sans sulfites ajoutés
Deeply coloured. A cushioned width of dark fruit. Hmm, depth of flavour and a fine texture – both concentrated and balanced – but the finish is too savoury – like a beer – perhaps a hint more sulfur needed… 75% of a great BJN !!
Domaine Perrusset
Deeply coloured. A pretty width of fresh, perfumed, dark fruit. Lots of fresh flavour energy, drying in the finish but it’s a tasty finish – like a BJV – I’d keep this at least 6 months before drinking…
Domaine des Marrans
Medium-plus colour. Airy, saline, savoury. Hmm – but here’s a very direct red fruit, almost a compote of red berries – the only one like this. The finish is wide, a little sweet-gooseberry in style. Tasty finishing and quite the individual…
Steeve Charvet
Medium-plus colour. A depth of stewing dark fruit. Extra wide – lots of impact. High tones. A wine with lots of high-toned flavour – maybe even a little volatile, but it drinks very well !!
Jean Foillard
Medium-plus colour. Here’s a nicely fragrant dark-red fruit nose. Incisive, a little structural, but with nice juicy red fruit. I wouldn’t drink this straight away, but the finish is very tasty and lasting.
P.Ferraud & Fils, Le Couple
Deeply coloured. A narrower nose – but clean and fresh, even a little perfumed. In the mouth are some bitters with sour cherry notes – the finish fades with deliciously perfumed flavours. Too young but very tasty !!
Domaine Foretal
Medium-plus colour. Large in the mouth – a more stony structure here. Really lots of tannin in the middle and finish – drying though grainless. The last flavours are good…
Romuald Petit
Medium-plus colour. Direct, slightly savoury aromatics. In the mouth, sour red cherry flavours and a strongly saline finish. Long but hardly the most appealing today…
Club des Sommeliers
Medium-plus colour. A width of slightly cushioned fruit with a savoury edge to the aromas. In the mouth, this is quite good though – fluid, super texture and a lovely depth of flavour. The nose certainly has to improve for ‘excellent,’ but this is very good…
Georges Duboeuf
Deeply coloured. That’s a good nose – not the largest but it has clean dark fruit and the first with some attractive spicy aspects. Energy, great flavour and a long finish with a modest cushion of tannin – super…
Domaine Famille Couzon, 1ère cuvée Pierres Dorées
Only a bit more than medium colour. A cordial red fruit – nicely focused. In the mouth, too – stylistically very different. Slowly fading finishing flavour – good but different…
2025 Beaujolais Villages Nouveau
Famille Mélinon
Deep colour. A strong dark fruit aroma. Hmm – here’s a lovely clarity and energy to strong dark fruit. That’s got a super finish – really a small step up in general and a large step up in finishing perfume… Yes!
Domaine des Maison Neuves
Dark colour. A more astringent, strong depth of dark fruit aroma. Large in scale, supple, quite sweet – certainly an extra level of ripeness. And long, slowly finishing – very good…
Domaine Bernard Jomain
Medium-plus colour. Lots of freshness of red fruit. Scale, red fruit energy, a little more drying, nicely intense and moreish finishing. Good !
Frédéric Berne
Only medium colour for this series. Airy, but offering no interesting ‘hooks.’ In the mouth, energetic, with a little too much CO2 today. The finish is a tasty one, but it’s a modest wine for this label.
Domaine du Penlois, A l’Ancienne
A larger scale but still very airy and aromatic. Good, incisive start, modest gas. The finish certainly stronger than the last with a good depth of flavour – another very nice finish.
Domaine des Nugues, Sans Souffre
Dark colour again. A more anonymous nose despite an apparent freshness. Width of bubblingly energetic flavour with the best finish so far – yum. Great in parts !!
Domaine de Colette, Natur’elle
Red-wax topped.
A little extra aromatic interest here. In the mouth too – less density but there’s scale and great flavour-energy. Very fine finishing – you really want to take another sip !!
Nicolas Boudeau, Soft Sulfites
Medium-plus colour. A more forward and attractive, darker-red fruit aromatics. A wine of volume but mobile, muscled, flavour. The finish more subtle. But a very good wine…
Domaine Bernard Jomain, Copains de vin
Modest colour for a villages. A width of airy, slightly saline red fruit. Hmm, but this sits very well on the palate, melting modestly muscled red fruit – well structured and fine textured. The nose needs to improve for ‘excellent’ – but only that !!
Domaine des Nugues
Direct – a more salt and pepper spiced nose. Large in the mouth, more overt tannin with some dryness. The finishing flavour is lovely – keep this 6-12 months and it will be lovely…
Domaine des Braves, N°1
Deep colour. Scale of perfume and dark fruit aroma – a great start. Large in the mouth, Tasty, modestly incisive, slowly fading, direct, easy but very tasty…
Domaine de la Madone
Medium-plus colour. Airy, less focused aromas. In the mouth a little lithe muscle and good texture. Saline accented dark fruit that finishes well, though with plenty of tannin. Tasty wine…
Château de Corcelles, Vieilles-Vignes
Medium-plus colour. Dark, energetic aromas. A little more astringent but finishing quite well – keep it 12 months…
Julien Bertrand, Super Canon
A spicy red fruit aroma. Large in the mouth, quite sleek too. The finish with good energy and some modest stony structure – a tasty finish. Also keep for a short time.
Domaine du Penlois, Tu m’fais tourner la tête
Medium, medium-plus. Not a lot of aromatic clarity to start, but there’s some slowly growing perfume. In the mouth, this has another level – wide, sinuous, melting with flavour. Today a nose away from excellent, but maybe that will come as the finish is a good one; quite long, framed by some modest tannin…
Maison Piron
Deeply coloured. Rather perfumed over the dark fruit – a great start. Large-scaled, melting with great, intense flavour. For keeping, but maybe the first of these wines that could be better than excellent.’
Passot Rémy et Fils
Good depth and quite good width of aroma, too. Vibrant, really juicy wine – some hardness but long and holding. Good…
Domaine le Fagolet, Pur Jus de Granit
Almost black! Larger scaled, quite structural but never hard. Lots of finishing bitters and much complexity – a wine for keeping but with lots in reserve too. Super.
Maison Trénel
Also very deeply coloured. An extra cushion of sweetness to this dark fruit. Wide, extra dimensions here – juicy fruit, plenty of structure too. So much concentration and quite delicious finishing. For keeping, but it’s excellent…
Domaine Lagneau
Medium-plus colour. Dark fruit with a little bubble-gum. Large in scale once more. Really intense, slowly – only very slowly – fading. Intense, clean – quite linear but impressively finishing. This is another super wine – a fine small series of wines here.
Famille Descombe, Granite
Medium-plus colour again. Open, with a little more austere aromatics. Large, intense – quite incisive starting – the acidity is strong with this one – plenty of bitters too. I wouldn’t drink it for 2 years…
Domaine de la Plaigne
Deeply coloured. A supple width of slightly cushioned dark fruit. Large, textural, fine depth of flavour. This is super – great intensity too. Excellent !!
Domaine Després
Medium-plus colour. A more perfumed width of aroma – some density of fruit in support. Supple, and nicely textured – a small, slightly drying velour. The finish is very tasty. For keeping a while, but this is a lovely wine…
Cave du Château des Loges
Medium-plus colour again. Good flavour energy – dark fruit of clarity. Large in the mouth, more relaxed in style, though still with a wave of slightly drying but almost grainless tannin. Lovely finishing – but structural too…
Domaine les Capréoles, Le Nouveau
Only medium colour. Airy, red fruit. A little gas and red fruit energy. A calm, tasty finish. Good…
Jean-Marc Lafont, Cuvée 100
Plenty of colour. A deep, narrow nose – not so expressive. Large in the mouth with a growing frame, almost a cover of fine-grained but drying tannin. Long, modestly expressive but clean finishing flavours. Keep it a while – it’s good!
Jean-Yves Sonnery
Medium-plus colour. A nose with flashes of clean dark fruit. Energetic, with a more fluid delivery of flavour. Intense, dark, with some finishing bitters, but this is good…
Yannick de Vermont, Sans sulfites ajoutés
Deeply coloured. A freshness and clarity of aroma that’s slightly spiced. Large, slightly cushioned, full of flavour. Another for keeping, but this finishes well if slightly drying with a little beer-style finishing flavour today…
Domaine du Sallerin, En attendant le Printemps
Deeply coloured again. A good width of fresh, quite pure dark fruit. Large, mouth-filling wine but with an extra depth to the flavour. Young but excellent!!
Domaine Chevalier-Métrat
A dark red fruit with an implied dryness. In the mouth, this is quite juicy, though with plenty of tannin showing some astringency. Clearly for keeping, but the finish fades with good style.
Domaine Grange Masson
Dark, slightly bubble-gum fruit. Mouth-filling – there’s a lot of scale here. In the mouth I like the detail and the energy – this will be very good – but keep it a year…
Aurélie Dunérin
Deep colour. A pretty nose with a small cushion to the implied texture – it’s a fine invitation. Large in the mouth, modestly drying tannin, but round, pretty flavours envelop the tongue. Long and attractively finishing – Lovely…
Louis Tête, Cuvée Tradition
Medium-plus colour. A more graphite, and direct, aromatic. Wrapping the mouth in a small cushion of slightly drying tannin. Finishing well – another that will be lovely in 12 months…
Domaine de Croifolie
Medium-plus colour. Not the largest nose and here with a peppery accent to the dark fruit. Silky, wide, and supple. Really excellent in the mouth – texturally one of the best – nicely finishing too with some small but attractive bitters. Excellent !!
Cave du Château des Loges, Le Monde en Fête
Deep colour. Pretty, fresh, dark fruit. Large in the mouth, more fluid and cool but with a tannic frame that will require at least 12 months to calm – potentially excellent too, but be patient !!
Domaine Béroujon
Large aromatics, a little less enticing, more herbed, though. Supple, really concentrated but with sufficient roundness that there’ a hint of balance to the scale of drying tannin. Very good…
Domaine Longère
A redder, slightly bitter-almond width of fruit. Intense but also slightly bitter red fruit flavours. Long though…
Domaine du Clos du Fief, Beaujolais Jullié
Medium, medium-plus colour. Direct, a little sulfitic(?) But wide and fruity. The palate is very tasty, the nose today is not very inviting – it’s a mixed bag !!
Georges Duboeuf
This has a much more engaging, dark-fruited nose. Wide and with a good flavour energy. This finishes well too – very good !!
Richard Rottiers
Medium, medium-plus. Overt red fruit clarity. Hmm, super texture with really direct and engaging flavours. Very different in style but in a classy package.
Domaine des Combiers
Medium, medium-plus colour. An open, airy, attractive nose. Large in the mouth – also with cool fruit and a good texture. Long, quite red fruit with a fine clarity. Very good !!
Château de Lavernette, Le Jeune
Red-wax capped. Only medium colour. A subdued nose of red fruit. Supple, growing in concentration – a tiny grain of tannin but much less astringent than most – a sophisticated texture here. The finish is lovely, mouth-watering, and only slowly fading. That’s an excellent if less forthright wine…
Château de la Terrière
Deeply coloured. Airy, fresh, implying some astringency. Another supple, nicely textured wine. Round at the edges and with plenty of tannin, though not too drying. This will be super…
Domaine de la Milleranche
Deep colour. Dark, slightly strained fruit – but of intensity! Another mouth-filling wine but with cool energy and dark fruit with good sucrosity. This finishes very well. This is just a nose short of being young but excellent today…
Château de Poncié
Medium-plus colour. A more compact nose with a little herbed complexity. Really wide – there’s super energy here with quite some intensity to the flavour. This finishes very well on a long, slow, diminuendo. A fine finish!
Aucagne Julien
Medium colour. A modest size and distinction to these aromas. Concentrated but wide and supple – the structure working with the wine instead of against it. A super finish. Maybe the most complete wine if there had been a bit more perfume – it’s certainly excellent…
Domaine Chardigny
Medium, medium-plus colour. A modest nose with good higher tones. Large in the mouth with plenty of gas today. Modest bitters and some good finishing energy – a good wine…
Château Bonnet, Chat’au Bonnet
Medium, medium-plus colour. Airy, faintly herbed aromatics. Cool – large in scope. The subtly grained tannin is only moderately drying. Very long finishing. A baby and only a nose short of being a super baby!
Jérôme Lacondemine, Cœur de Vigneron
Medium-medium-plus colour. More depth and attractive fruit to be found on this nose. Super shape and texture – mouth-filling. This finish has lots of energy – still very young but also clean flavours. Another baby, but super sophisticated.
Frédéric Perrier
Medium, medium-plus colour. A fresh width of slightly herbed aroma. Scale, intensity, concentration, but in this case, that also means some concentration of slightly drying tannin. Long and satisfying in the finish though – Excellent.
André Colonge & Fils, Gatsby Gamay
Quite deeply coloured. A more inky, mineral nose – and of scale too. Mouth-filling, texturally very good. Then slowly widening with an attractive dark fruit with a little almond style. Holding well. Keep it !!