Beaujolais - BROUILLY: From the Middle of the Road to Heaven on Earth

By Stuart Pigott – last revision: 15.04.26 

Vineyard Area: 1,196 hectares (2024)

Proportion of  Total Production: 10.75% (2024)

Appellation Established: 1938

PART ONE: The Golden Mean?

Something like 6-7 million bottles of Brouilly are filled each year, giving it the largest production of the Beaujolais Cru, so there’s no question that this is a popular wine. However, it’s popularity is of a very different nature to that of Morgon, the second largest of the Beaujolais Cru. Morgon’s image is all about structure and strength (of character, tannins, etc). And Fleurie, in third position, is perceived to be focused on elegance and vivacity (of floral and red fruit aromas). As we’ve already seen there are plenty of wines that conform to those contrasting tast profiles. So what’s Brouilly all about?

The logic of Brouilly is more difficult to pin down, perhaps because it’s appeal is as much about what it is NOT as what it is. That might sound negative, but for the millions of people who enjoy the wine each year it’s certainly not. I think that the appeal of Brouilly is about it has generosity but is NOT heavy or overbearing; that it has bright fruit aromas, but is NOT loud; that it is refreshing, but NOT tart. This is just what a lot of people who drink red, but don’t go for muscular reds with tannic „grip“ are looking for. And the great majority of Brouilly fits neatly into this consumption slot.

Although popular vocabularly for this sort of wine is so diverse it's confusing for people in the wine scene, it strikes me that what Brouilly is the Golden Mean of French red wines that you can buy and enjoy the bottle tonight. The downside of being the Golden Mean is that you can rather easily slide down from there into the Middle of the Road, i.e. boring simplicity, which is not a good place for any appellation to land. And one problem here is that there’s often a gap - sometimes a chasm! - between what somms and scribes percieve and the reality in the glass. A bunch of my colleagues and somms seem to have the feeling - or is it just a hunch? - that Brouilly is Middle of the Road, definitely NOT sexy, or just an easy-going alternative to Morgon. So what did I actually taste?

PART TWO: Beauty and Grandure

The fact is that I didn’t encounter many wines of that kind, certainly no more than in Fleurie or Saint-Amour. The majority of those I encountered give very much what the consumer expects from Brouilly in a technically competent and well-crafted form. Look at the notes below and you’ll find a slew of good wines with 90-92 points. What I missed a bit was greatness:just three wineswith 95+. However, there were 16 wines in the 93-94 zone and the moderate prices make these bargains. So there’s no lack of good news.

If you want silkiness then go for the incredibly consistent Château des Tours, and if you want more structure and minerality, Pierre-Marie Chermette, Domaine D’Argenson and  Richard Rotiers delivers exactly this. I love the juciy vibrancy of Michel Guignier’s Brouilly. The appellation also has a couple of exciting new winemakers in the form of Sarah Perrusset (try her excellent Transmettre Cuvée Fille-Pêre 2024 if you can find it). Even more daringly the stunning Brouilly 2023 from  Domaine Les Garcons, launched by Loic Crespin and Fabien Pinguet in 2022, which is what I call Very Good News!

When you stand in front of the 17th century Château de La Chaize (as always, I write the name as it appears on the label to make identification easy) set in gardens designed by André Le Nôtre, then all I have just described above suddenly seems insignificant. This is unquestionably France’s most beautiful wine Château, putting not just Château Margaux, but ALL the  château of Bordeaux in the shade. Maybe this is the most beautiful Château in France, full stop! Yes, Versailles is more imposing, but it’s pompous, bombastic and overbearing compared with Château de La Chaize. And yet, in spite of this deep and aestehtically rich history what you see here is also NEW.

Christophe Gruy, the chairman of the Lyon-based construction, engineering and property management group MAIA  bought the property in a run-down state in 2017, since when he has renovated everything. Yes, he spared no cost because he has the money to do so, but this was also all about love.The first time I visited the property in 2024 he told me that, „when I saw the Château for the first time I knew I’d found my life’s work.“ I don’t think it would shine quite as it does if this wasn’t the case.

The wines are his nephew Boris Gruy’s life work. He’s just completed his wine studies, however, the 2023 and 2024 vintages are already excellent. (You can find my notes for the 2023s on the James Suckling website), and I mean right across the range from the property’s 106 hectares of vineyards. Yes, the entry level wines are less dramatic than the top wines, but that’s how it should be. And none of these wines are the least Versailles-like! Instead they are never oaky or over-extracted, but always  have the restrained strength and elegance of Château de La Chaize! 

Then, there’s the mind-blowing Brouilly Lieu-dit “Clos de la Chaize”  2020, which is clearly the best wine I ever tasted from Brouilly. It comes from the walled clos vineyard behind the Château. The clos is one of only 3 such vineyards that are French National Monuments, a status that the cellar - construction started in 1771 - shares with the Château itself. This wine is the most expensive in Beaujolais, the German importer listing it for 165 Euros. However, the Brouilly liex-dits / single vineyard from Château de La Chaize cost just 20% of that price, which is friendly for this excellence.  And the story of Boris’s new wines is just beginning,which is GREAT NEWS!

43 tasting notes, one with 97 and three with 95.

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2024 REDS

Château de La Chaize  Brouilly  Les Deux Amis  2024 – 12.5% / With its “sweet” cherry fruit and positive creamy texture, this is a delightful wine that has the vitality and healthy body I associate with the appellation. Charming and uncomplicated in the very best sense of those word.  91

Château de La Chaize  Brouilly Lieu-dit “Vers les Pins” Monopole  2024 – 13% / This excellent Brouilly has impressive depth of red and black cherry, candied citrus peel and delicate spicy aromas. Although the fruit is forthright the fine tannins and rooty complexity build at the long, beautifully crafted finish. 93

Château de La Chaize  Brouilly Lieu-dit “Combialiaty”  2024 – 13% / Very floral and elegant for the vintage with a sleek and focused palate, the slightly austere finish very stony and fine-grained. Excellent concentration for the vintage, but the power is understated. Try to be patient! Cork closure. 94

Château de La Chaize  Brouilly Lieu-dit “La Chaize” Monopole  2024 – 12.5% / A very serious wine with excellent structure and animating freshness. Still really young, but the depth of fruits rouge at the core is seriously impressive. Very long mineral finish that's so precise and cool. 95 

Château des Ravatys  Brouilly  Vin Biologique  2024 – 12.5% / Cool and restrained, this is quite a delicate wine. Wild flower, savoury and some wild blackberry, but neither loud nor particularly fruity. Then comes a wave of crisp tannins at the refreshing finish. Needs some time in bottle! 91 

Château Thivin  Brouilly Reverdon  2024 – 13% / The very attractive violet and cherry pastille nose pulls you into this juicy and zesty wines that is animating and moderately structured. Long, dark finish where the velvety tannins make themselves felt. A very successful result considering the vineyard suffered hail damage just one day before the harvest. 92

Château des Tours  Brouilly  2024 – 13.5% / This is exactly what a lot of sophisticated consumers are looking for in the wines of Brouilly: fragrance and red berry juiciness backed up by a polished tannin structure that never demands the limelight! 93

Château des Tours  Brouilly Lieu-dit “Les Tours”  2024 – 13.5% / The violets and the velvet really make this stand out in the crowded field of this large appellation! As silky as it is concentrated, this is a poised beauty who moves with abundant self-confidence. Long, refined finish. 94

Pierre-Marie Chermette  Brouilly Pierreux  2024 – 13% / Still a bit of youthful funk (from reduction), but behind that is a wealth of Amarena cherry and mulberry aromas that slowly expand in the glass. Excellent tannins and depth for this cool vintage on the mid-palate, then a long polished finish with nice mineral freshness. 93

Domaine Gaget  Brouilly au Plateau  2024 – 13.5% / Plenty of ripe redcurrant fruit and fresh acidity on this animating and lightly-structured wine makes it a pretty Brouilly rather than a profound one. Good length. 90 

Domaine de la Grand Cour  Brouilly Lieu-dit “Vuril”  2024 – 12.5% / Very cool and crisp, this is an extremely delicate and stony expression of the appellation with underplayed power. Very long, straight finish. Still extremely youthful it should gain a lot through additional bottle age. 92  

Domaine des Maisons Neuves  Bouilly “Bergeron”  2024 – 13% / This attractively juicy Brouilly is easy to understand and well-crafted, but it has modest depth and length. No denying the appeal of the generous strawberry fruit. 90 

Domaine Perrusset  Brouilly  La Folie  2024 – 13% /  This crisp, but well-balanced wine has a lovely aroma of violets and a spring-like freshness. Some gentle tannins at the rather supple finish. Not complex, but easy to enjoy. 90

Domaine Perrusset  Brouilly Lieu-dit “Les Samsons”  Transmettre Cuvée Fille-Pêre  2024 – 13% / A seriously-structured and very mineral wine for this appellation, also with herbal liqueur complexity (from stems included in the fermentation?) Long crisp and stony finish! Congratulations to Sarah Perrusset on this daring innovation! 93 

Domaine Ruet  Brouilly Voujon  2024 – 13% / Although this retains a certain lightness of touch on the front palate, the effusive strawberry fruit (both the wild and cultivated kinds) is wrapped around quite a firm tannic core that makes the finish slightly drying. Should improve with further bottle age. 89

Domaine Ruet  Brouilly  Vieilles Vignes  2024 – 13.5% / Thanks to the good concentration and elegant structure this is a serious expression of Brouilly that has the potential to age well in bottle. Interesting soy sauce and liquorice complexity and a moderately dry crescendo finish. 93

Georges Duboeuf  Brouilly  Bio  2024 – 12.5% / With its generous aromas of summer flowers and ripe strawberries this is an enticing wine, but there’s also the characteristic freshness of cool vintage Gamay and enough supple tannin to neatly underline all the fruit. Quite dry finish with touches of liquorice and cinnamon. 91

Georges Duboeuf  Brouilly La Martingale  2024 – 12.5% / This serious Brouilly has fine tannins and quite a complex interplay of black berry fruit with savoury and elegant acidity to create a refined package. Long finish. 93 

Petit Pérou  Brouilly  Pisse-Vieille  2024 – 12.5% / This starts well with restrained, candied red berry fruit, but fades quite fast in spite of some good gentle tannins. Moderately dry, rather simple finish.  In case there’s any doubt, Pisse-Vieille really is a Lieu-dit, or single-vineyard site. 88 

D. Piron  Brouilly  2024 – 13% / At once mouthfilling yet fresh and exuberantly joyful expression of the appellation with soft tannins, but a wealth of blueberry and violet flavours. Builds very nicely at the long, well-rounded finish. 92

Richard Rottiers  Brouilly  2024 – 12% /  A very cool and sophisticated Brouilly in spite of the relatively light body. Fine tannins and intense stony minerality drive the very long and fascinating finish!  From 60 year old vines, this was matured for 6 months in oak casks. 94

Mathieu Verchère  Brouilly Beauvoir  2024 – 13% / The black raspberry and wild blackberry fruit are what make this appealing, but the gentle tannins and animating acidity interlock with this to form a convincing whole. The moderately dry and crisp finish pulls you back for more. 91

2023 REDS

Cave du Château des Loges  Brouilly  Coeur de Granit  2023 – 13% / A solid if unexciting expression of this appellation with quite a crisp acidity for the ripe vintage. Rather drying finish. 88 

Château des Ravatys  Brouilly  2023 – 13.5% / Rich and fleshy, but with a delightful freshness this is a concentrated wine for the appellation. At the finish the tannins are just a tad too solid. With a bit more energy this would be even better. 91

Château de la Terrière (Domaines Loron)  Brouilly  2023 – 13% / Lovely cassis and blueberry aromas. Youthful and charming. The balance of gentle tannins, ripe fruit and underlying freshness is very convincing. Long, supple finish. From south-facing sites with granite soil. 92

Domaine D’Argenson  Brouilly  Cuvée la Cadole  2023 – 13% / At once crisp and meaty with ample velvet tannins this is anything but a superficial Brouilly! Plenty of savoury and wet-stone minerality on the mid-palate, then a self-confidently dry finish. 92 

Domaine D’Argenson  Brouilly  Cuvée Prierreux  2023 – 13% / A very solidly-structured wine for this appellation, but also well-balanced and not a jot too much. Still needs some time to open up, but the depth on the medium-bodied palate is already impressive! 93

Domaine de Bel-Air (Jean-Marc Lafont)  Brouilly Briante   2023 – 13% / Smoky, mineral and spicy, this is a complex Brouilly an excellent harmony of generous, moderately dry tannins and restrained ripeness. Long, complete finish! I love the tension between the wet-stone, violet and liquorice sides of this wine! 93 

Domaine Bertrand  Brouilly Vuril  2023 – 13% / A very herbal expression of this appellation with crisp acidity, but also good depth. Emphatically dry finish with some good power. 90

Domaine Bertrand  Brouilly Pisse-Vieille  2023  - 13% / Powerful and compact, although the alcohol is moderate for the vintage, this is a serious wine that’s been built to age. Builds impressively at the finish. In case there’s any doubt, Pisse-Vieille really is a Lieu-dit, or single-vineyard site. 93

Domaine Les Garcons  Brouilly  2023 – 13% / This daring wine makes a serious and exciting statement! A firm tannic core, such intense forest berry fruit and an electric freshness for this ripe vintage interlock to create a compelling whole. Made for long ageing, but with red meat or charcuterie this should already drinks very well. 95

Pierre André Dumas  Brouilly  Les Pierreuses  2023 – 13.5% / The elderberry and sloe character of this wine makes it an outlier in the Brouilly context. Well-rounded, but weighted towards the front with a rather short finish. 88

Michel Guignier  Brouilly  2023 – 13% / The interplay of fleshy ripeness (think cherry and strawberry), and the blood orange freshness is delightful, but there’s nothing superficial about this hymn of praise to the fruit of the Gamay grape. The base of supple tannins and the delicate minerality beautifully underline this. 94

Olivier Pezenneau  Brouilly Lieu-dit: Combiarty  2023 – 13.5% / With its juicy blueberry and wild strawberry fruit, this is an immediately appealing wine, and the supple tannins nicely underline that. Good length and a nice touch of herbal freshness at the finish. 90

Mathieu Verchère  Brouilly Beauvoir  2023 – 13% / An appealing expression of this appellation with more depth than many thanks to the ample substance, savoury character and fruits rouge fruit on the structured and well-rounded palate. Still many years of life ahead of it! 93

2022 REDS

Château de Corcelles Brouilly Les Roches 2022 - ??% / Vibrant and expressive nose of wild blackberry and herbs. Sleek and very focused for this appellation with slightly grainy tannins at the front, but a much smoother at the long, finish that's quite refined. From a site at the southern tip of the appellation with extremely stony granite soil. 93

Château Pougelon  Brouilly Lieu-dit “Voujon”  2022 – 12.5% / Now beginning to mature nicely, this marries the dark fruit of the vintage (think damson plum and blackberry) with a fresh acidity and moderate body. Long, clean finish. 91

Château Pougelon  Brouilly Lieu-dit “Clos Reisser”  2022 – 13% / Elegant and silky, but with ample depth and enough freshness this delightful Brouilly is just coming to its best drinking age. Long, slef-confidently dry finish in which fine tannins and minerality are deftly interwoven. 93

Domaine Pierre-André Dumas  Brouilly  Racines  2022 – 14% /  Rich and powerful with effusive black cherry and berry aromas, but also with excellent freshness for this hot and dry vintage! The acidity keeps it dancing at the crisp and stony finish. An organic wine that was bottled unfiltered and unfined. 93

Domaine Lathuilière Gravallon  Brouilly Pisse Vieille  2022 – 13% / Very savoury on the nose, but with plenty of blackberry fruit as well as soy sauce and dried thyme flavours on the well-structured palate. Long, quite firm finish. 92

2021 REDS

Château des Tours  Brouilly Combiaty  2021 – 13% /  This is an extremely impressive wine for this challenging vintage and is now coming into its best form. Still some violet aromas at 5 years of age (they often fade early), also deep sour cherry fruit, then crisp acidity and stony minerality at the finale. 95  

2020 REDS

Château de La Chaize  Brouilly Lieu-dit “Clos de la Chaize”  2020 – 14% / By far the best Brouilly I ever tasted! The widescreen red and black fruit aromas are so fresh for this hot and dry vintage. As much concentration as finesse and vitality, this is an extremely sexy wine and if you drink red wine, but it doesn’t do anything for you, then you might want to seek out a therapist. Haunting spiciness at the dense, yet wonderfully suave finish. 97