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Beaujolais’s Moulin-à-Vent 2019 Harvest Delivers Reduced Quantity But Optimal Quality The Power Of Terroir Manifested In Six Locations at Château du Moulin-à-Vent (6-Bottle Pack $293)

The image of a windmill is a perfect metaphor for humanity’s communion with nature; harvesting the air and using the rotation of a man-made propeller to generate power is synergy at its most basic, and it is also a good reminder that our favorite French vinelands have an equally strong association with cereal grains. In Beaujolais, Moulin-à-Vent’s iconic 300-year-old mill exists in both symbol and substance, standing nine hundred feet above the vines overlooking the villages of Romanèche-Thorins and Chénas.

In fact, there is no commune on a map called ‘Moulin-à-Vent’, so the symbol, the mill and the storied ‘Lord of Beaujolais’—noted for its noble red fruit aromas and arc of development within the bottle that may span a decade—are all a resting place for the imagination.

Moulin-à-Vent’s original superstar was a woman called Philiberte Pommier (1763-1862); an eccentric of de Gouges proportions who first discovered that the Gamay grape reached remarkable heights when planted on the granitic soils adjacent her property. Once that genie was out of the bottle, she put it back in, and for the remainder of her long life, Madame Philiberte worked to perfect techniques of parcel selection, pruning and aging of her wines, just before she died at the age of 99, her wines were still winning awards at the Universal Exhibition in London.

Her secrets have aged as well as her wines, and when Jean-Jacques Parinet and his family purchased the estate in 2009, they wisely opted to make full use of her legacy, creating wines that represent the unique long-lived potential of the appellation: Along with Jean-Jacques’ son, co-proprietor Édouard Parinet, Château du Moulin-à-Vent embodies the prestige and pride of its namesake and the wines in this week’s package are each exemplary of the many noble faces that the appellation adopts as it adapts to changing climate and consumer tastes.


Moulin-à-Vent Rocks

A sense of place—the Grail of French winemaker—begins with the substance of place, the soil. In Moulin-à-Vent, this is a tale of thin, weathered granite sand, pink and white, enriched by high mineral nutrients and granite bedrock striped with seams of manganese, copper, iron and similar metallic oxides. In fact, the climats around the windmill are littered with abandoned manganese mines, and this is unique among the Crus, giving the wine its color, density and signature minerality—an invaluable feature of its power and longevity. Longevity and beneficial bottle aging is a concept that crops up regularly in descriptions of Moulin-à-Vent, and for good reason: In way, this quality makes it the antithesis of what most people imagine when they think of Beaujolais.


Vintage 2019:  The Rhône Drifts North

Whether it is Burgundy drifting south or the Rhône drifting north depends on your perspective; Beaujolais’ ten Crus and 12 appellations are found north of Lyon between the Rhône Valley and Burgundy. What is clear is that climate change continues to march through French vineyards like a conquering army. In 2022, picking began on August 17, and as long as local winegrowers can remember, the harvest has never started so early. The start of harvest is calculated according to grape maturation, and the record for early ripening may be laid directly at the door of climate change.

Says grower Jean-Pierre Rivière about this year’s harvest: “We have never experienced a drought of such intensity or, more precisely, for so long. The lack of water began back in March. In 2019, the drought was only limited to the summer months, but this year, it’s been going since the spring. The foliage is struggling. The vines are suffering. The grapes have not fully developed.”

In 2019, Beaujolais enjoyed one of the sunniest growing seasons on record, but the balm followed devastating frosts in April and was punctuated by horrendous hailstorms that struck mid-to-late August and dramatically reduced yields. Still, despite the challenges, the smaller harvest made wines that are richly concentrated with fine, balancing acidity that offer the sort of verve and structure to make them candidates for the long haul.


Château du Moulin-à-Vent

That the complex geologies of Moulin-à-Vent ensure its reputation for being one of the best of the Beaujolais Crus is beyond question, but its elevation to such a status is primarily down to the work of a single, eponymous estate: Originally called Château des Thorins, Château du Moulin-à-Vent was then in the hands of Madame Philiberte Pommier who (more than 250 years ago) recognized along the wind-beaten slopes of Moulin-à-Vent several microclimates that were so suited to the Gamay grape that they could elicit from this rustic grape robust textures, deep flavors and an age-worthiness that might bring sensory changes to rival those of Pinot Noir.

The Parinet family bought the property in 2009, and under Jean-Jacques and Edouard Parinet (with Brice Laffond as winemaker) the focus has been to recapture the estate’s glory days with detailed, site-specific Gamay. It’s not only been a labor of love, but a labor of luck—like your family, you can’t choose your terroir. Says Édouard, “Three things make Moulin-à-Vent the ‘Lord of the Crus’: First, the drying winds during harvest time, then the eroded granitic, sandy-textured soils, and lastly, the presence of heat-reflecting silica, especially in the upper areas of the appellation. Each of these features creates stress for the Gamay vines, resulting in smaller, more concentrated berries than those of the other crus.”

Édouard Parinet & Brice Laffond

At this point, technique and expertise comes into play: “We do not utilize semi-carbonic maceration, a typical winemaking practice in Beaujolais, which emphasizes fruit while reducing tannic structure. Instead, the grapes for our wines are crushed and then fermented in stainless-steel tanks followed by aging for at least 12 months in mostly used French oak barrels.”

Parinet further explains: “Traditional winemaking enables us to better show the diversity of terroir in Moulin-à-Vent rather than if we used carbonic or semi-carbonic vinification, which is known for really revealing the primary aromas of Gamay. And if you show the primary aromas of Gamay, you don’t show as much diversity of terroir.”

The Power OF Terroir

The nearly one hundred acres under the Parinet name are entirely within Moulin-à-Vent, and encompass the best terroirs and the most prestigious vineyards the appellation offers.

Overall, Moulin-à-Vent comprises around 1500 acres, with around 300 producers and an annual production of around 1.5 million bottles. Unlike other well-known Beaujolais Crus such as Morgon and Fleurie, Moulin-à-Vent’s character is heavily influenced by the presence of decomposed, pink granitic soils which add fragrance to the wines when they are young but allow it to age for 10 or more years, when it may develop characteristics akin to Pinot Noir—although this is less remarkable when you learn that Gamay is actually a hybrid of Pinot Noir and an ancient white grape called Gouais Blanc. Cellaring lends a rich carnality to the fruit, with deep savory notes of dried cherries, leather and chalk along with licorice and spice.

The Devil Is In The Details

Moulin-à-Vent boasts 23 lieux-dits, and an accomplished winemaker understands that slightly refining the specifics to suit to each parcel individually is a means of bringing out the fullest of the terroir’s reflective potential and to produce the most richly sculpted palate. These methods are subject to change based on the variations of each vintage, and may involve double-sorting, blending the use of de-stemming with partial whole-bunch fermentation, altering maceration times and the size/type of maturation vessel. By remaining flexible with the execution and steadfast in the goal for each lieu-dit, Château du Moulin-à-Vent is able to consistently deliver Cru Beaujolais that covers a broader swath of the spectrum than many wine drinkers have been led to expect.

Manifesto For A Sustainable Vineyard

“Château du Moulin-à-Vent manifests a dedication to a natural approach, strict quality standards, and commitment to sustainable agriculture,” says Édouard Parinet.

In the realpolitik of vineyard management, this includes the use of compost and natural soil amendments; use of organic or naturally derived pesticides, herbicides and fungicides; hand-pulling of leaves; integrated pest management and the use of beneficial insects and cover crops. Additionally, Château du Moulin-à-Vent advocates the use of chemical intervention only when needed to fight disease, pests or other problems and only in affected areas.


Château du Moulin-à-Vent’s 6-bottle package contains one of each of the following three lieu-dit cuvées in addition to three bottles of the château’s flagship wine.


“Multidimensional, Complete, And Austere In Youth”

The circular lieu-dit ‘La Rochelle’ lies near the top of Vérillats mountain at an elevation of around nine hundred feet. The soils here are known as ‘gorrhe’—they are granite and schist-based, similar to what is found in Portugal’s Douro, formed three hundred million years ago and brought to the surface in the mid-Tertiary period by the uplift of the Massif Central. The Gamay vines of ‘La Rochelle’ are more than eighty years old and face south, firmly within the wind tunnel that produces the concentrated, multidimensional grapes for which the estate is famous.

Château du Moulin-à-Vent, 2019 Moulin-à-Vent ‘La Rochelle’ ($71) – 1 bottle
75% whole cluster; pumping-over during cold pre-fermentation soak and at the end of fermentation to increase roundness and finesse. Punching the cap at the beginning of fermentation and afterward, aged 12 months in 30% French oak barrels chosen from the Allier and Vosges forests, the remainder in stainless steel. The wine shows elegantly textured inky-purple berries with aromas of violet, cherry and orange zest; the tannins are bright, but not overbearing, and the minerality is quite pronounced. (1,450 bottles made)

 


“Charm And Audacity”

Neighboring ‘La Rochelle’ a bit higher up the slope is ‘Les Vérillats’, one of the earliest delineated terroirs of Moulin-à-Vent. It’s an east-facing vineyard at an elevation of just under a thousand feet. Soils are similar to ‘La Rochelle’ with about two feet of porous granitic sand over bedrock; the vines are around 65 years old.

Château du Moulin-à-Vent, 2019 Moulin-à-Vent ‘Les Vérillats’ ($57) – 1 bottle
30% whole cluster fermentation; pumping-over during cold pre-fermentation soak and at the end of fermentation to increase roundness and finesse. Punching the cap at the beginning of fermentation, then aging12 months; 30% French oak chosen from the Allier and Vosges forests, 70% stainless steel. The wine is full and supple; it shows the characteristic Moulin-à-Vent petrichor behind blackberry and star anise layered with acidity. The tense structure cries out for more time in the bottle to reveal its full panoply of flavors. (3,420 bottles made)

 


“Power And Elegance”

‘Champ de Cour’ sits near the bottom of the Vérillats slopes, and as such, the soils have a heavier clay content, producing a unique powerball profile in the wines. Easterly facing vines are around 35 years old; the soils are deep and do not drain as easily as those of the other climats, and in addition, the vines are sheltered from the drying winds that affect the lieux-dits higher up.

Château du Moulin-à-Vent, 2019 Moulin-à-Vent ‘Champ de Cour’ ($57) – 1 bottle
75% whole cluster; pumping-over during cold pre-fermentation soak and at the end of fermentation to increase roundness and finesse. Punching the cap at the beginning of fermentation and aged13 months; 20% French oak barrels, 80% stainless steel. The deep red color of the wine offers a hint of its massive concentration; the nose is an explosion of red fruit, with roasted and spicy pepper and saffron notes. A full-bodied wine of considerable elegance, lively tannins and superb length, with a mineral finish. (2,915 bottles made)

 


“The Essence Of Moulin-à-Vent”

A selection of 3 top terroirs in Moulin-à-Vent—‘Les Thorins’, an iconic south-facing lieu dit, ‘Le Moulin-à-Vent’, facing east and ‘Aux Caves’, characterized by shallow soils rich with silica and 80 year old vines.

Château du Moulin-à-Vent, 2019 Moulin-à-Vent ($36) – 3 bottles
The Château’s flagship wine: 60% whole cluster; pumping-over during cold pre-fermentation soak and aged 12 months; 20% French oak, 80% stainless steel. Rich, opulent and complex, the wine displays ruby-red with purple tints and offers up lovely aromas of ripe red and black berries, hints of spice and floral notes, especially rose, peony and violet. Excellent body with a firm, dry core of tannins and beautiful length. (16,800 bottles made)

 

 


Spoiled For Choice:  More Than One Way To Make Beaujolais

The truism about the Germans and Riesling holds equal validity in Beaujolais with Gamay: They each have but a single grape, but build better wines from it than anyone else on earth. This is not to suggest that Beaujolais and its ten fascinating Grand Crus are homogenous—the opposite is true. Each region, each climat and each winemaker provides slight variations in terroir and technique.

Nowhere does the dual nature of Beaujolais appear more profoundly than in the choice faced by winemakers to vinify in the traditional ‘Burgundian’ way, or to rely on the semi-carbonic macerations that produce the fruity, ridiculously early-drinking Nouveau-style wines. Both techniques have their place in Beaujolais, and both produce strikingly different flavor profiles.

Traditional Burgundian-style production relies on destalking and crushing the grapes prior to fermentation, a mean of opening up the fruit up and bringing out the tannins. Only then does fermentation start, either through natural yeasts on the grape skins or from a commercial additive. In most cases, wines made this way in Beaujolais will also have wood aging. Alternately, semi-carbonic maceration involves fermentation that starts in closed containers. The wine is then transferred to traditional fermentation vats and yeast is added to continue the process. While some of the wines will go into wood, many will continue to age in tanks, which highlight the fruit and lower the tannins.


Notebook ….

Moulin-à-Vent is Capable of Long-Aging, Pleasurable While Young

‘Decanter Magazine’ recently staged a vertical tasting of Château du Moulin-à-Vent, vintages 2010-2019 (and published in the July 2022 issue), believing that the revitalization of the estate by the father-and-son team of Jean-Jacques and Édouard Parinet (and their brilliant winemaker Brice Laffond) has been so successful that they were willing to give Master of Wine Andy Howard a crack at determining if all the hype around the ageability of Moulin-à-Vent is warranted. Wines from 1996 and 1976 were also tasted.

No cliffhangers here: Howard MW’s opinion was a resounding ‘yes’.

As most Beaujolais fans know, the wines of the ten Crus of Beaujolais can be among the world’s most terroir-expressive. Subtle shifts in sun exposure and soil structure from commune to commune can be detected in the glass, even among those with untrained palates. The wines from Château du Moulin-à-Vent are traditional standouts for their robust texture, deep flavor and age-worthiness made possible by Jacques and Édouard Parinet’s adherence to Burgundian winemaking methods and their steadfast refusal to employ semi-carbonic maceration. Because of that, their wines reveal the best of Beaujolais’ most powerful Cru, the wind-funnel slopes of Moulin-à-Vent.

According to Howard MW: “The tasting certainly demonstrated a distinct shift in style with the change in oak management. Whereas the older vintages (although with undoubted aging potential) demonstrated a firmer tannic structure, the more recent vintages were much more expressive, floral, delicate and refined. However, there is every reason to suspect that these wines will deliver the same ageing capacity as the more ‘traditional’ style.”

With investment in both vineyard and winery, Château du Moulin-à-Vent is the clear leader in producing a more elegant and refined exhibition of the Gamay grape. Still capable of long-ageing, many wines are perfumed, smooth on the palate and very pleasurable while young. And all of this is combined with price-points which are mind-blowingly inexpensive in the context of good Pinot Noir from nearby Burgundy.

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Posted on 2022.10.14 in Moulin-à-Vent, France, Beaujolais, Wine-Aid Packages

 

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