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2020 Beaujolais-Villages
Jean FoillardJean Foillard
Whenever we talk about bistro wines, my mind drifts to the streets of Paris. But the more I’ve thought about them lately, the more I’ve wondered if I should instead daydream about Lyon, which is arguably France’s culinary capital—or even, according to Curnonsky, France’s most famous food writer of the twentieth century, “the gastronomic capital of the world.”
With a bottle of Beaujolais-Villages in particular, from one of Beaujolais’ greatest talents, it is perhaps most appropriate to imagine yourself in a bouchon—Lyon’s bistro equivalent—given the proximity of Jean Foillard’s cellar in Villié-Morgon, less than an hour north. As you swirl a glass of this divine nectar, picture yourself seated at a checkered-cloth table brimming with plates of the famous local quenelles, saucissons, pâtés, and terrines.
Foillard’s wine, with its sensuous notes of red fruit, mouthwatering acidity, and low alcohol, tastes as if he crafted it specifically for this bouchon table. With a slight chill, this rouge, made with Gamay from parcels around Villié-Morgon, Lancié, Saint-Amour, and Saint-Étienne-la-Varenne, is as dreamy as the scene.
—Tom Wolf
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2020 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Gamay |
Appellation: | Beaujolais-Villages |
Country: | France |
Region: | Beaujolais |
Producer: | Jean Foillard |
Vineyard: | 20 to 55 years old, 7 ha |
Soil: | Granite |
Aging: | Aged 7 months in concrete tank |
Farming: | Organic (certified) |
Alcohol: | 13.5% |
More from this Producer or Region
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2021 Chiroubles “Cuvée Léa”
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2021 Régnié “Grain & Granit”
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Here is a rich, bold Régnié, saturated with luscious fruit and earthy spice.
2021 Morgon “Eponym”
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This cuvée shares the satin texture of all Foillard Morgons, and should age similarly well for those willing and able to wait.
2021 Morgon “Vieilles Vignes”
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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.
2022 Régnié “En Voiture Simone”
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The high-toned nose suggests an absolutely electric wine, full of delicate florals and tart berries, and the juice hits the palate like a dreamy cloud of Gamay.
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A relatively new addition to Guy Breton’s Beaujolais lineup, this exuberant Côte de Brouilly is flat-out delicious.
2020 Côte de Brouilly
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Alex Foillard fashions a Côte-de-Brouilly that strikes a deeper register, saturating the senses with tooth-staining fruit, gritty earth, and just a touch of the good funk.
About The Producer
Jean Foillard
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.
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Vintage Chart Mentality
Vintage Chart Mentality
Trust the great winemakers, trust the great vineyards. Your wine merchant might even be trustworthy. In the long run, that vintage strip may be the least important guide to quality on your bottle of wine.—Kermit Lynch