As has been well-established here and anywhere else you get your wine information, Beaujolais is now a destination wine region. In fact, it may have France’s densest concentration of “new-generation” winemaking talent—and it isn’t limited to the locals. Brothers Antoine and Maxime Graillot, of Crozes-Hermitage fame, now count the Beaujolais
cru of Saint-Amour among the many places in the world their family has explored in search of great wine.
Centered around a prized five-hectare vineyard parcel called “En Besson,” Domaine de Fa is a chance for two curious and talented
vignerons to work with a different grape and terroir than the one they grew up with. Yes, the granite soils of Saint-Amour and Fleurie are a lot like those of the Northern Rhône, and the Graillots do employ a few of the same techniques with Gamay (namely, whole-cluster fermentation) as they do with Syrah, but this wine is finessed, perfumed Beaujolais through and through. “En Besson” sits at one of the highest elevations in the region, lending this wine lots of aromatic lift and nerve—very much in the spirit of wines from other new-generation producers such as Julien Sunier and Moron-Garcia. This is an exciting new find at an inviting price, so do like we did and stake your claim!
Those who are familiar with the Graillots—dad Alain, who founded his estate in the mid-1980s, and sons Maxime and Antoine—know that this is a winemaking clan that is not content to stay in one lane. In addition to crafting benchmark wines in Crozes-Hermitage, Alain Graillot famously sought collaborative Syrah projects in Morocco (with the Ouled Thaleb Winery) and in the Heathcote region of Victoria, Australia. Maxime created his own acclaimed label, Domaine des Lises, in Crozes-Hermitage, while Antoine has collaborated with Spanish superstar Raúl Pérez on a wine in Bierzo, called “Encinas.” Domaine de Fa, which launched with the purchase of “En Besset” in 2013, is a team effort of the two younger Graillots that now includes other cru-designated vineyards in Saint-Amour and Fleurie.
Saint-Amour is the most northerly of the 10 cru villages of Beaujolais, and “En Besset” is more northerly still, situated at 450 meters’ elevation on a slope that falls just outside the official Saint-Amour appellation boundary (thus the name “Beaujolais,” with the vineyard designation, on the label). In the true “new-generation” spirit of the region, the Graillots are farming and vinifying their wines as naturally as possible: Their vineyards are Certified Organic with an eye toward becoming fully biodynamic, while their approach in the cellar is all about simplicity and transparency. Grapes for the “En Besset” bottling are not destemmed, fermentation is carried out in concrete tanks, and aging is done in a mixture of used, large-format barrels. Wines are bottled unfiltered, with minimal sulfur—the result being a transparent, vibrantly fresh, high-toned expression of Gamay.
Given its makers, you might be expecting this 2018 to hint at Rhône Syrah, but in fact I found it had more in common with Pinot Noir from Chambolle-Musigny—lots of florals, gentle tannins, and a kind of pretty persistence. In the glass, it’s a bright ruby moving to magenta and pink at the rim, with lifted aromas of red cherry, raspberry, cranberry, pomegranate, violets, wild herbs, black pepper, licorice, and wet stones. It is medium-bodied, silky, and full of lively freshness—mouth-watering and ready to delight right out of the bottle. Serve this with a slight chill (say 50-55 degrees) in Burgundy stems as an early-course red with charcuterie or roasted tomato bruschetta, or uncork several bottles and let it carry you through a full meal with friends. It’s a wine that leaves you feeling energized rather than weighed down—exactly the kind of red I find myself craving the most these days. Check it out with the attached chicken dish, pointed up with some red wine vinegar—perfection!
