Thanks to its mind-blowing garden designed by André Le Nôtre, renowned landscape architect to King Louis XIV in the 1600s, Château de la Chaize is a hard place to miss.  But just because the château is called the ‘crown jewel of Beaujolais’ and is the region’s largest tourist destination doesn’t mean the wines produced from the estate are necessarily any good. 

Ah, but they are!  Very.  They are dead serious about their ‘Bo-Joe’ here having gained their organic certification for their vineyards several years ago and spending as much on their gorgeous cellar as their extravagant gardens.  With vineyards that straddle the appellations of Fleurie and Brouilly, this is not a house that produces a score of different wines; instead, they concentrate their production of several good ones and do it well. 

The 2022 Fleurie was a wonderful surprise for us.  With a string of warm vintages and the general trend toward making larger-boned Beaujolais, there has been a sort of resurgence of interest in the area’s ‘lesser’ villages as that’s where elegance can still be found. It was lovely to stick our noses into this lighter, lacier, ultra-pure version of Gamay. Dark purple and extremely aromatic, it exudes the floral flamboyance of a lady’s hat someone might have worn in those gardens a few centuries ago.  Crunchy purple fruit, violet pastilles, fresh figs, Indian spices—such a pretty, pretty wine. 

Drink now, even with a light chill, with lamb burgers off the grill or a seared duck breast. 

James Suckling: An elegant and fragrant Fleurie that has the light-footed character and floral delicacy we associate with this appellation. The wine's structure is very discreet, completely beneath the surface on the front palate, then slowly emerging in the long, precise finish. 93 points