Beautiful vineyards on the south western border between Fleurie and Beaujolais-Villages.
Some of you will remember that not long ago I visited the wonderful Beaujolais producer of Henry Fessy – read about it here. I really admire their wines and what they do as they seem to be one of the major wineries that is reinventing Beaujolais and reintroducing this wine style to modern drinkers.
When I first joined the wine trade Beaujolais was hugely popular, because fruity red wine did not really exist back then. Beaujolais was just about the only “fruity” red wine and was made fruity by being kept light and acidic. Well, ever since the British love affair with New World wine really took off thirty odd years ago, our definition of a fruity wine has changed. Nowadays we want wines to be fruity and ripe and bold and so Beaujolais has somewhat slipped down the scale of regions people enjoy.
Well it is about time that people revisited Beaujolais and my new Wine of the Week is a perfect time to start.
Fleurie’s Chapelle de la Madonne was built around 1870 to ward off vine diseases. It seems to have worked!
2014 Fleurie Le Pavillon
AC / PDO Fleurie
Henry Fessy
Beaujolais
France
Henry Fessy is one of the great producers of Beaujolais. They have been around a long time and make wines from every single appellation in the region as well as growing grapes in 9 out of the 10 crus.
I like what they do. They have never been tempted to go for the carbonic maceration which often gives those bubblegum chad cherryade flavours and aromas to Beaujolais. Instead Fessy ferment in a more normal, traditional way. The grapes are de-stemmed, except for 20% that adds a little tannin and structure, and crushed and then fermented in stainless steel at low temperatures. This retains the freshness without getting the stalky character than can make some Beaujolais feel unbalanced. The wine is handled very gently to ensure it retains that silky character that defines Fleurie and finally it aged for a few months in tank before bottling.
We have been so lucky with Beaujolais vintages of late, so pretty much all the Beaujolais in the shops right now comes from excellent ripe vintages – and 2014 is no exception.
The extra bottle age on this wine has done it nothing but good – I have noticed repeatedly that Fessy Cru Beaujolais respond well to a little time. They retain that zip, but gain some extra depth too. When first released the wines are all about bright, primary fruit, but a year or so introduces some earthy and smoky complexity that makes the wines feel more complete somehow.
This is a terrific wine that should convert many Beaujolais doubters to appreciate the style. It has weight and substance, while still fundamentally being a lighter wine. The nose gives that gorgeous lifted floral note that is Fleurie’s calling card together with a little touch of spice and ripe red fruit. The palate is succulent an full of raspberry, cherry and cranberry fruit while the age has introduced a little earthy savouriness, while the whole thing feels silky, refined and irresistible – 89/100 points.
Available in the UK at around £13.49 per bottle from Waitrose, Waitrose Cellar. Grab it before 27/11/18 and it is only £9.99!
Quentin Sadler's Wine Page 