Côte de Brouilly Des Lys

Côte de Brouilly is one of the 10 Beaujolais 'Crus' all made from the Gamay grape, which seems to have a sublime affinity with the schist and granite soils of the region. However, the real secret behind the fresh grape fruitiness of Beaujolais lies in the way the grapes are fermented - a technique called maceration carbonique.

The activity of enzymes inside whole grapes when they are surrounded by carbon dioxide causes an internal fermentation and the extraction of colour and flavour from the inner skin. The vat is filled with whole bunches of grapes and the weight of the upper grapes crushes the lower ones, which start a normal fermentation with their natural yeasts. The carbon dioxide given off by this process excludes the air from the uncrushed upper layers where the grapes quietly feed on themselves. After a week or so the vat will be about one third full of liquid, which is then run off, the solid pressed gently and the two mixed together. At this stage the liquid still contains unfermented sugar and the fermentation will continue. The earliest the fermentation can be stopped and the wine sold as nouveau is November 15th.

Cru Beaujolais however, is kept in the vats much longer - six months for our exclusive Côte de Brouilly. Our wine is bottled in the May following the harvest and will age for a further year in bottle before being released to Partners. Ripe red and black fruit aromas dominate the bouquet, which then leads to a cherry-pie flavoured palate underscored with a clean mineral acidity that helps make this wine so refreshing. Delicious by itself, our Côte de Brouilly is hard to better as an accompaniment to white meats like chicken and veal, charcuterie snacks and Camembert or goat's cheese.

As a Partner at Domaine Les Roches Bleues your allocation of wine is:

• Côte de Brouilly Des Lys 2007 (red)
  5,95€ per bottle (2008 price *exc. VAT)
  4 cases (48 bottles) maximum

Next option available: May 2009. Partners joining after April 1st in any year will receive their Option the following year.

*Guide price: 2009 prices to be confirmed summer 2008

View our pricing policy