2023 Chateau de La Chaize Fleurie

Château de La Chaize might be one of the oldest names in Beaujolais, but it’s definitely not stuck in the past. With new energy behind the scenes and a shift toward organics and minimal handling, the wines have taken on a real sense of clarity and charm. This Fleurie shows that shift in full flight.

The fruit comes off old vines grown on the classic pink granite soils of the cru. It’s all handpicked, wild-fermented and aged in a mix of concrete and large old oak, keeping things fresh and letting the vineyard do the talking. There’s nothing fancy or overdone here — just straight-up, delicious Gamay made the right way.

It’s light, savoury and quietly complex, with that gentle Fleurie perfume and a clean, fine-boned structure that makes it dangerously easy to keep going back to.