Red wine. Beaujolais, France. 100% Gamay. Sustainable. "The 2020 Beaujolais Cœur de Vendanges Vignes Centenaires is showing very nicely, bursting with aromas of juicy cherries, ripe berry fruit, licorice and peonies. It's medium to full-bodied, fleshy and gourmand, with an enveloping core of fruit, melting tannins and succulent acids. This is a comparatively rich, gourmand rendition of this reference-point cuvée—consistently one of France's finest wine values—but that additional power doesn't come at the expense of its habitual charm and facility." — 92 Points, William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (August 2021)

This limited edition wine was only known to a small circle of amateurs for several years. It was baptised ‘Cœur de Vendanges’ (heart of the harvest) by Jean-François Abert, a food journalist in Lyon. A rather rare and atypical cuvée for a Beaujolais. Pierre-Marie chooses a rich and powerful cuvée of wine made using the grapes from old vines and matures it in oak until the April following the harvest. The subtle wooded notes intermingle with very ripe red and black fruit. The mouthfeel is long and suave.

Grape variety: Gamay 1 hectare of 100-year old vine in Saint Vérand on granit soil and 1 hectare of 100-year-old vines in Vaux en Beaujolais (a.k.a Clochemerle) in the Beaujolais Villages appellation area on black granite soils. Integrated vinegrowing, universal cordon and goblet pruning, manual harvest at full ripeness. Traditional semi-carbonic Beaujolais vinification, no yeast seeding or chaptilisation, pneumatic pressing, 7-day maceration in vats followed by fermentation in barrels that have already held 5 to 10 wines, maturing for 6 months half in barrels and half in old oak tuns.