Domaine Jean-Paul BRUNCharnay
Jean-Paul Brun is a legend in his own lifetime, making some of the finest, most age worthy Beaujolais from a range of the region’s finest vineyards.
Background
Early in his career Jean-Paul rejected the industrial approach to wine making which was taking over Beaujolais and began making wine in ways his ancestors would have recognised. He began using only indigenous yeasts, eschewing 71B, the designer yeast popular in the region which is responsible for the banana and candy aromas found in so much mass-produced Beaujolais. He stopped automatically chaptalizing his wines and began to concentrate on drawing out the characters of each individual site. He totally de-stems the grapes from his Crus before fermentation and vinification begins with a light cold soaking followed by maceration for 10-12 days. Elevage is partly in tank, partly in barrel, depending on the wine and the nature of each vintage. In other words, more Côte D’Or than traditional Beaujolais. The results are Beaujolais of unusual density, but which are also beautifully poised, fresh and elegant and which reflect with great clarity the subtle soil differences and age of vines of each Cru. Parcel selection is key. The domaine owns old vine plots on the local limestone rich clays as well as vineyards on the granite of Moulin-a-Vent and Fleurie. Recent vintages have been tremendous, producing some electric wines which will age beautifully
Current Vintages
| Whites | Vintage |
|---|---|
| Terres Dorées Beaujolais Blanc Classic [Read More] From a plot of 80-year-old vines grown on Charnay’s distinctive clay and limestone soils. Fermented and aged in stainless steel this is a beautiful racy wine with citrus and stone fruits. | 2018 |
| Domaine Jean-Paul Brun Crémant de Bourgogne Charme [Read More] From the same plot of old vines Jean-Paul also makes this astonishingly good champagne method sparkler. Aged for three years on its lees, hand disgorged, this is terrific value. | NV |
| Red Wines | Vintage |
|---|---|
| Beaujolais l’Ancien [Read More] Produced from old vines grown on clay and granite this wine is synonymous with Jean-Paul's domaine. Hand harvested and vinified with great care before ageing in old wood and cement. Outstanding value. | 2018 |
| Cote de Brouilly [Read More] 50+-year-old vines growing at around 950ms altitude on the thinnest of soils over granite. A serious vineyard. The granite gives this wine its cool, concentration and finesse. So much concentration and flavour at just just 12.5% alcohol, masses of pure, chiselled fruit and fine powdery tannins. | 2018 |
| St Amour [Read More] The most northerly Beaujolais Cru with complex soils that mix granite, clay and limestone, known for lighter, ethereal wines. Jean-Paul says wines from granite, like his, have more structure and can age well while still retaining their elegant, red fruit and peach perfumed character. | 2017 |
| Morgon Côte du Py - Javernières [Read More] If the Côte du Py is known as Morgon's finest site, locally they go further: Javernières is the finest part of the Côte du Py! The soil here is a mix of clays which sit in a thin layer over pure granite. Jean-Paul's vines were planted in the 1950s, their roots now deep in this complex terroir | 2017 |
| Moulin a Vent La Rochelle [Read More] La Rochelle sits at around 260-300ms and its poor shallow soils over granite give wines which are structured and age worthy | 2018 |
| Fleurie Grille Midi [Read More] A south facing slope which can get warm, yet its poor granite soils and cooling winds always seem to retain freshness. A structured, refined wine with delicate floral perfume and wonderfully pure red fruits. | 2018 |
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