Questions for Beaujolais fans...

Actually, it's a question for fans of Cru Beaujolais.

If you had to name choice producers (or a choice producer) for each of the Cru to recco, which would they be?

Brouilly
Cote de Brouilly
Chiroubles
Regnie
Fleurie
Saint-Amour
Chenas
Julienas
Morgon
Moulin-a-Vent

I can't list favored producers for every village, but my go-to rule of thumb for Beaujolais is "simple". Look at the back of the bottle. If it says "Kermit Lynch", "William Dressner" or "Rosenthal" I will at least give it a try. Doesn't ALWAYS work, but it is a great rule of thumb.

I am most familiar with Morgon, and I have consitently, over the vintages, enjoyed the usual "natural wine" suspects. I really enjoy the funkyness of Beaujolais which appears to result from a non-interventionist philosophy.

So....Georges Descombes, Lapierre, etc. My favorite producer, whose wines are becoming quite expensive (expensive Beaujolais>? Who'd a thunk it?) is probably Foillard. I love Foillard. Just love it. Even the Nouveau blew me away this winter! I would rather drink Foillard Beaujolais Nouveau than most expensive cabernets!

http://kermitlynch.com/our_wines/jean-foillard/

Brouilly - Descombes
Cote de Brouilly - Descombes
Chiroubles - Damien Coquelet
Regnie - Christian Ducroux
Fleurie - Coudert, Vissoux (unless you're able to source Metras from France)
Saint-Amour - No idea
Chenas - Pascal Granger
Julienas - Tete
Morgon - Foillard, Lapierre, Burgaud, Jadot
Moulin-a-Vent - JP Brun

Salil,

Thevenet doesn't do it for you?

Thanks for the quick bouncebacks, guys. Good citations there.

Brian: could you do me a big favor? Instead of "non-interventionist", of which there is no such oenologist/winemaker existing, could you consider using a more appropriate term, say, "limited intervention". I have yet to see a non-interventionist winemaker or a wine made without the intervention of a winemaker. (And I don't want to either. )

Sure, Hoke. I actually worried about setting off another natural wine flame war when I typed that! But most mention of these producers uses this term in the description, so...

I just stick with the importers I trust. And some good wine shops I have also learned to trust (Terroir San Francisco and the new, tiny, but wonderful Dig in Dogpatch, and Arlequin, also in SF; Vintages Berkeley, Paul Marcuse, 58 Degrees in Sacramento)

Salil has assembled a pretty good list, though!

I can't list favored producers for every village, but my go-to rule of thumb for Beaujolais is "simple". Look at the back of the bottle. If it says "Kermit Lynch", "William Dressner" or "Rosenthal" I will at least give it a try. Doesn't ALWAYS work, but it is a great rule of thumb. /

William Dressner?

Good suggestions through here; my list would closely resemble Salil's, except I don't really know Granger and Burgaud, and have had decent experiences with Coquelet,but not enough to look for his wines.
I'd add the Drouhin wines as good values.

I can't list favored producers for every village, but my go-to rule of thumb for Beaujolais is "simple". Look at the back of the bottle. If it says "Kermit Lynch", "William Dressner" or "Rosenthal" I will at least give it a try. Doesn't ALWAYS work, but it is a great rule of thumb. /

William Dressner?

Joe's younger brother. Much more cynical than Joe was, with a more wicked and mordant sense of humor. Joe refused to speak to him any more after Bill started drinking White Zinfandel.

Salil,

Thevenet doesn't do it for you?

Too bretty.

I can't list favored producers for every village, but my go-to rule of thumb for Beaujolais is "simple". Look at the back of the bottle. If it says "Kermit Lynch", "William Dressner" or "Rosenthal" I will at least give it a try. Doesn't ALWAYS work, but it is a great rule of thumb. /

William Dressner?

oops. Bad, bad bad typo

[David M. Bueker]

Salil,

Thevenet doesn't do it for you?

Too bretty.

Not lately.

I can't list favored producers for every village, but my go-to rule of thumb for Beaujolais is "simple". Look at the back of the bottle. If it says "Kermit Lynch", "William Dressner" or "Rosenthal" I will at least give it a try. Doesn't ALWAYS work, but it is a great rule of thumb. /

William Dressner?

Joe's younger brother. Much more cynical than Joe was, with a more wicked and mordant sense of humor. Joe refused to speak to him any more after Bill started drinking White Zinfandel.

"A more wicked and mordant sense of humor." I don't think that's possible.

Salil,

Thevenet doesn't do it for you?

Too bretty.

Not lately.

Really? That's good to hear. Although I had a bad experience with brett in the 2010 Thevenet which reconfirmed all my biased fears.

[quote="Hoke"]Actually, it's a question for fans of Cru Beaujolais.

If you had to name choice producers (or a choice producer) for each of the Cru to recco, which would they be?


Cote de Brouilly - Daniel Bouland
Fleurie - Vissoux
Morgon - Daniel Bouland or Grange
Moulin-a-Vent - Vissoux

Also I love the Vissoux Cuvee Traditionnelle. Pound for pound there's no stopping it. It's also worth mentioning the ESJ Bone Jolly for to those who love Cru Beau.

If you had to name choice producers (or a choice producer) for each of the Cru to recco, which would they be?

Is this for an article you're writing?

Are you looking for the 'best' wines or the most 'typical' wines?

[James Roscoe]

Why are you guys doing all of Hoke's heavy lifting?

If you had to name choice producers (or a choice producer) for each of the Cru to recco, which would they be?

Is this for an article you're writing?

Are you looking for the 'best' wines or the most 'typical' wines?

Yep! I like input from informed people, and that's what we mostly have around here. Except for Roscoe, I mean...

FWIW, I agree with Salil's list almost to the letter.

Fleurie - Coudert by a length, followed by Vissoux
Morgon - take your pick: Lapierre, Breton, Foillard
Cote de Brouily: Chanrion, Thivin
Julienas - Tete
Moulin-a-Vent - Brun
Chiroubles - Coquelet

All the others: who cares?

Mark Lipton

No love for Chamonard? Our own Eric Texier heralds it as much more of a terroir wine than Foillard, Lapierre et al. I've only just begun drinking Chamonard with the 09 vintage and of course don't see the need to choose just one, but for me in Morgon right now I'm drinking Foillard Chamonard and Descombes, for the three different interpretations.

I still don't really understand the Lapierre love. Sure, it's fine in a restaurant when nothing else is available. But does it really have the character of the other wines?

If I want a more complex, layered expression of Morgon, I'll turn to Foillard. Burgaud or Jadot for something with more power and richness. Lapierre's Morgon is perfect though (for my tastes) for a more elegant, light expression that's all about sheer drinkability. It's not Foillard, Burgaud or anything else, but I've found it distinctive and a wonderful wine that conveys what I expect from Morgon.

Have too little experience with Chamonard to comment, and have never seen the bottles at either of my usual sources.

[James Roscoe]

If you had to name choice producers (or a choice producer) for each of the Cru to recco, which would they be?

Is this for an article you're writing?

Are you looking for the 'best' wines or the most 'typical' wines?

Yep! I like input from informed people, and that's what we mostly have around here. Except for Roscoe, I mean...

Brutal! (true , but brutal nonetheless)
At least Hoke admits he is uninformed. I wonder if we can take this out of context and use it in the F&F Forum?
AS to the question at hand, I just drink this stuff. Will you people keep this info to yourselves so decent Beaujolais doesn't get out of my price range! Keep quiet about the stuff from Provence too!!!!

Lapierre's Morgon is perfect though (for my tastes) for a more elegant, light expression that's all about sheer drinkability.

Maybe you drink more Morgon/Beaujolais than I do, but there are lots of other gamay wines that I prefer for light sheer drinkability (Descombes Morgon regular, Brun Terres Dorees, gamay from other regions) and I just never seem to get around to actively wanting Lapierre.

But hey, we all have our own preferences!

Agree with Salil on Coudert and Vissoux for Fleurie
Brouilly--Chateau de Chaize
I haven't really settled on favorites in the other Beaujolais Cru but ordered various 2009 to try.