A Guide To The 10 Crus Of France's Beaujolais Wine Region

Beaujolais is a French wine-growing area located between Mâcon (in Burgundy) to the north and the city of Lyon (near the Rhône Valley) to the south. It's a region that relies mainly on one grape: gamay — much of which is found in untrellised gobelet-style vineyards. Beaujolais makes up for the lack of varietal diversity with other dynamic assets and hundreds of soil profiles spread across a dozen growing appellations. 

In accordance with French wine regulations, for a bottle to claim an origin site, it must be produced based on the rules of the region. In Beaujolais, this means that a bottle could be labeled in several ways: Beaujolais, Beaujolais Villages, or with the name of one of ten crus (these are specific growing sites within the region that are positioned parallel to the Saone River). Only red wines made from the gamay grape are eligible to be labeled Beaujolais cru. 

Within each cru are many lieux-dits — or, specific geographical areas of a vineyard that are known for their own topographic characteristics — with notable distinctions. These are defined by the appellations themselves. Recent attention to soil mapping (documented by InterBeaujolais and summarized here) and meticulous distinguishment of terroir make this a particularly exciting era to explore. Isabelle Letessier of Sigales is largely responsible for soil study and mapping. It's work that the wine industry relies on to explain the lay of the land in Beaujolais. 

Let's discover each of the Beaujolais crus and find out what makes them unique for the table or cellar.

Legend has it that this cru is named for Julius Caesar, who occupied this part of France. Although some wonder if his namesake is actually the nearby village of Jullié, according to the official Cru Juliénas site. Mostly located in the Rhône area, with a bit in Saône-et-Loire, Juliénas covers four communes (villages): Jullié, Pruzilly, Emeringes, and the town of Juliénas. This village is welcoming to visitors, featuring the remains of Gallo-Roman tombs and the Cellier de la Vieille Eglise (which offers wine tasting in a decommissioned church).

The spot gets adequate sun and has some relatively steep vineyards. In terms of soil, there is very little granite and more of what's considered blue stone, a mix of slate and diorites (hard stone with visible crystals), schist, and some clay. The lieux-dits here are Les Capitans, Les Fouillouses, La Bottière, Les Mouilles, Vayolette, Beauvernay, Bessay, En Rizière, Bois de la Salle, and Cotoyon. These wines are fresh, aromatic, and sometimes a bit spicy when young, but have the chops to age a few years. In fact, more Juliénas producers these days are crafting structured, serious wines that can be enjoyed now or popped in the cellar.

While most of the Beaujolais crus take their name from a local village, Moulin-à-Vent is titled after the eponymous 15th-century windmill in the middle of the vines. This is not just for looks — the area gets plenty of wind, which helps with disease mitigation and also thickens the grape skins. There are two communes that are associated with Moulin-à-Vent: Romanèche-Thorins and Chénas. This is one of the most well-known crus in the U.S. market and elsewhere, and it has enjoyed a prestigious history. According to the Inter Beaujolais wine council, in the years before World War II, a bottle of Moulin-à-Vent sold for the same price as Vosne-Romanée 1er cru. Today, it can be 10 times more expensive and is considered a high-end wine!

The soil here is largely granite (pink granite on the hills) and piedmont, with limestone, sandstone, and marl. There are 71 lieux-dits across the cru's over 600 hectares, according to Jancis Robinson, including Aux Caves, Au Michelon, Les Vérillats, Champ de Cour, La Rochelle, Rochenoire, Le Moulin à Vent, Les Thorins, La Tour du Bief, and Le Dime. These wines can be elegant, powerful, and age-worthy. Depending on the producer, wines from this cru are crafted in both semi-carbonic macerations (a method commonly associated with Beaujolais) as well as in the Burgundy style with a traditional maceration.

The village of Régnié-Durette, as well as Lantignié, is home to the eponymous cru Régnié. While the other crus were established in the 1930s and 40s, Régnié was born in 1988 (via Cru Régnié). But that doesn't mean that viticulture is anything new here — like its neighbors, vineyard cultivation in Régnié dates back to Gallo-Roman times.

This is a highly granitic cru varied with piedmont formations. The inclines here exhibit soils in various evolutionary stages with unique features such as "blocks" of sandstone that add to the diversity, according to documentation from the Beaujolais wine council. Overall, Régnié wines are considered easy to drink (perfect for a wine-tasting party) and aromatic, with light and bright cherry characteristics. Notable lieux-dits include La Haute Plaigne, Les Chastys, Vallières, La Pierre, Les Reyssiers, Aux Bruyères, Oeillat, Croix Penet, Les Bois, and Les Braves

The vineyards on the slopes and summit of Mount Brouilly (mentioned above) fall within the Côte de Brouilly cru. This appellation includes four communes: Saint-Lager, Odenas, Quincié-en-Beaujolais, and Cercié. According to the council of Terres de Brouilly, a walking circuit to the top of the mountain is one of the most enjoyable ways to experience the setting and learn about its history. The chapel at the top is said to have been built by the winegrowers in the 19th century as an appeal to the heavens in the face of environmental challenges that sound familiar today — frost, hail, and powdery mildew. 

The steeply sloped vineyards sit on blue stone, granite, and piedmont soil. Lieux-dits include Chardignon, L'héronde, Croix Dessaigne, Brouilly, Chavannes, Le Pavé, Godefroy, Berthaudières, and Côte De Brouilly. Côte De Brouilly wines are structured and can also age generously. In youth, they are aromatic and show red fruit, spice, and mineral characteristics.

Large and geologically diverse, Morgon contains the largest town in all of the crus: Villé-Morgon. Morgon is also known for its vineyards on the Côte du Py slopes. This cru is associated with a movement that began in the 1980s involving a group of rebellious-at-the-time winemakers that believed in low-interventionist, old-timey ways of farming and producing wine. Wine importer/merchant Kermit Lynch labeled these grape rebels the "Gang of Four." For many wine drinkers today, their method is recognized as natural winemaking, and Marcel Lapierre, Jean Foillard, Jean-Paul Thévenet, and Guy Breton (the gang) are considered icons.

The cru is built on several different soil zones including granite, blue stones, and alluvial soils on the foothills. There is also some clay, decomposing schist, and fractured volcanic rock. This is known locally as '"rotten rock" — or, la roche pourrie according to Jancis Robison. Lieux-dits include Aux Charmes, La Côte du Py, Les Micouds, Les Grands Cras, Corcelette, Bellevue, and Douby. Morgon wines are thought to improve over time, with fleshy fruit characteristics and a powerful structure.