Notify me
2016 Régnié “Grain & Granit”
Charly ThévenetIn the ten years since we started importing Charly Thévenet’s lone cuvée of Régnié, we have watched as Charly (through a steady regime of CrossFit) has gotten bigger, while his wine—excellent from the beginning—has become less brawny and gained finesse. Starting with the 2016 vintage, a classic year in the Beaujolais sandwiched in between the warmer 2015 and 2017, Charly now uses cement alone to age his Régnié, giving it a fresh, graceful, ethereal lift. Flowers, minerals, and bright fruit—blueberries, raspberries, and cherries—waft from the glass and dance on your palate. It’s markedly different from the darker, earthier Morgon made by Jean-Paul Thévenet, Charly’s father and original Gang of Four member, despite Morgon and Régnié being neighbors. This contrast, though, is not due to a disavowal of the previous generation. Charly and Jean-Paul share many philosophies and work together closely on the latter’s Morgon, which Charly will eventually take over. In the meantime, we are immensely grateful for this elegant Régnié.
—Tom Wolf
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2016 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Gamay |
Appellation: | Régnié |
Country: | France |
Region: | Beaujolais |
Producer: | Charly Thévenet |
Winemaker: | Charly Thévenet |
Vineyard: | 80 yrs +, 3 ha |
Soil: | Granite |
Aging: | Wines aged on fine lees in old Burgundy barrels, no fining or filtration |
Farming: | Biodynamic (practicing) |
Alcohol: | 13% |
More from this Producer or Region
2021 Morgon “Vieilles Vignes”
France | Beaujolais
If Beaujolais were Burgundy, we might consider Morgon to be Vosne-Romanée, with its haunting perfume and silky texture, the proverbial iron fist in a velvet glove.
2021 Côte de Brouilly HALF BOTTLE
France | Beaujolais
Cassis, blueberry, violets, plum, and blackberry. In other words, a whole lot of Beaujolais in one bottle!
2022 Beaujolais
France | Beaujolais
This Beaujolais offers the drinkability of the most effusive Morgons with the frankness of a chiseled Moulin-à-Vent.
2022 Morgon
France | Beaujolais
Silky and perfumed, with no rough edges, this is dangerously swallowable.
2021 Brouilly
France | Beaujolais
A generous dash of plump, sun-ripened fruit enveloping a granite core.
2022 Beaujolais-Villages “Cuvée Marylou”
France | Beaujolais
French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan says nostalgia is the longing for a past that never was. But, hand to god, this year's Cuvee Marylou tastes just like the raspberry thumbprint cookies my mother used to make for Christmas.
2020 Brouilly
France | Beaujolais
A generous dash of plump, sun-ripened fruit enveloping a granite core.
2021 Morgon “Charmes - Infusion”
France | Beaujolais
This classic, cool-weather vintage of Quentin Harel’s one hectare holding in Morgon spends three months macerating in concrete amphora. The result is a distinct softening of its crunchy, mineral-laced bramble.
2015 Côte-de-Brouilly
France | Beaujolais
Nicole's thick, chewy Côte de Brouilly is a delicious and satisfying wine aging at a glacial pace.
2022 Morgon “La Roche Pilée”
France | Beaujolais
The newest addition to the Thévenets’ Morgons, La Roche Pilée is lush and light at the same time, with a balance of soft minerality referenced in the name (which means crushed rock).
About The Producer
Charly Thévenet
About The Region
Beaujolais
After years of the region’s reputation being co-opted by mass-produced Beaujolais Nouveau and the prevalence of industrial farming, the fortunes of vignerons from the Beaujolais have been on the rise in the past couple of decades. Much of this change is due to Jules Chauvet, a prominent Beaujolais producer who Kermit worked with in the 1980s and arguably the father of the natural wine movement, who advocated not using herbicides or pesticides in vineyards, not chaptalizing, fermenting with ambient yeasts, and vinifying without SO2. Chief among Chauvet’s followers was Marcel Lapierre and his three friends, Jean Foillard, Guy Breton, and Jean-Paul Thévenet—a group of Morgon producers who Kermit dubbed “the Gang of Four.” The espousal of Chauvet’s methods led to a dramatic change in quality of wines from Beaujolais and with that an increased interest and appreciation for the AOC crus, Villages, and regular Beaujolais bottlings.
The crus of Beaujolais are interpreted through the Gamay grape and each illuminate the variety of great terroirs available in the region. Distinguishing itself from the clay and limestone of Burgundy, Beaujolais soils are predominantly decomposed granite, with pockets of blue volcanic rock. The primary vinification method is carbonic maceration, where grapes are not crushed, but instead whole clusters are placed in a tank, thus allowing fermentation to take place inside each grape berry.
Much like the easy-going and friendly nature of many Beaujolais vignerons, the wines too have a lively and easy-drinking spirit. They are versatile at table but make particularly good matches with the local pork sausages and charcuterie. Though often considered a wine that must be drunk young, many of the top crus offer great aging potential.
More from Beaujolais or France
2021 Morgon “Eponym”
Jean Foillard France | Beaujolais
2021 Morgon “Charmes - Infusion”
Quentin Harel France | Beaujolais
2020 Brouilly
Alex Foillard France | Beaujolais
2022 Beaujolais
Domaine Dupeuble France | Beaujolais
2022 Côte de Brouilly “Cuvée Zaccharie”
Château Thivin France | Beaujolais
2021 Brouilly
Foillard, Alex France | Beaujolais
2022 Morgon
M. & C. Lapierre France | Beaujolais
2022 Brouilly “Reverdon”
Château Thivin France | Beaujolais
2022 Morgon “Vieilles Vignes”
Jean-Paul et Charly Thévenet France | Beaujolais
2022 Beaujolais MAGNUM
Domaine Dupeuble France | Beaujolais
2021 Côte de Brouilly
Château Thivin France | Beaujolais
2021 Régnié
Guy Breton France | Beaujolais
2021 Morgon “Eponym”
Jean Foillard France | Beaujolais
2021 Morgon “Charmes - Infusion”
Quentin Harel France | Beaujolais
2020 Brouilly
Alex Foillard France | Beaujolais
2022 Beaujolais
Domaine Dupeuble France | Beaujolais
2022 Côte de Brouilly “Cuvée Zaccharie”
Château Thivin France | Beaujolais
2021 Brouilly
Foillard, Alex France | Beaujolais
2022 Morgon
M. & C. Lapierre France | Beaujolais
2022 Brouilly “Reverdon”
Château Thivin France | Beaujolais
2022 Morgon “Vieilles Vignes”
Jean-Paul et Charly Thévenet France | Beaujolais
2022 Beaujolais MAGNUM
Domaine Dupeuble France | Beaujolais
2021 Côte de Brouilly
Château Thivin France | Beaujolais
2021 Régnié
Guy Breton France | Beaujolais
Kermit once said...
Kermit once said...
I want you to realize once and for all: Even the winemaker does not know what aging is going to do to a new vintage; Robert Parker does not know; I do not know. We all make educated (hopefully) guesses about what the future will bring, but guesses they are. And one of the pleasures of a wine cellar is the opportunity it provides for you to witness the evolution of your various selections. Living wines have ups and downs just as people do, periods of glory and dog days, too. If wine did not remind me of real life, I would not care about it so much.
Inspiring Thirst, page 171