Color / Grapes
Red/Gamay
Region
Beaujolais
Appellation
Moulin à Vent "Clos de Rochegrès"
Features
This vineyard shows a high point of 361 metres above sea level. (Au Mont is the effective name of this place). Some blocks of "gray rocks" are emerging in the middle of our vine rows. On these steep slopes, facing South-East, the soils, made of shallow pink granite sand, with some quartz, are very draining These conditions, combined with the winds, altitude and optimal orientation offer very concentrated wines, but with always a bit of freshness and elegance.
Vinification
Picked and sorted by hand, then often de-stemmed, the grapes macerate slowly over the course of three or four weeks. Both pigeage and pumping over take place at different stages of the fermentation according to the vintage profile.
Winemaking and bottling
The wines are aged in our historic cellar for 10 months, a period spent in oak barrels, both old and new. The oak used to make the barrels comes from the forests of Alliers, Limousin and Nivernais.
Tasting / Food pairing
This wine is opulent and generous, but always very fresh. Rochegrès is one of the best Moulin à Vent selections. It is complex and is therefore able to match a large choice of food : meat, cheese, vegetables etc ...
Preservation
The wine needs two or three years to reach its harmony, and can then age comfortably for several decades. Vintages such as 2009, 2005, 1999, 1985 or 1976 are just delicious today.
Vintage
"At last a good-freezing winter that will give a good rest to our vines" were we thinking in January 2024 as snow was covering the vines. Hallas, mild temperatures appeared right at the beginning of February, getting the vegetative cycle started very early on. First buds were out by the end of March. April was sunny, May saw temperatures breaking all records (35°!) and water was scarce. Flowers spread their scents at the end of May. Thankfully, at last, June brought a few rains and thunderstorms helping grapes to develop. But these days, the price to pay for a bit of water is high. On the 24th and 25th of June some plots of Corcelette in Morgon, and Fleurie, was hit by hail. July came with incredibly high temperatures and sunshine, and, for the first time ever, we have seen grapes changing colours as early as the first week of July. August was as dry and hot, and not a cloud on the horizon. We started the harvest on Grand Carquelin plot in Moulin-à-Vent on the 19th of August. Like 2020, the vintage 2022 that we are now tasting, shows incredibly no signs of the turmoil and heat-waves of the year, and together with the dense colour and intensity, these wines are still fresh and elegant.