2015 Domaine de Javerniere Cote du Py Morgon

94-Point “Powerful and Balanced” Cru Beaujolais

During a recent dinner with friends, we could tell our ordering frenzy sent our server for a loop—from steaks to oysters, pork belly, and chicken marsala the combination would be a pairing nightmare for some, but we were unfazed. Our choice was simple: Beaujolais.

Specifically, we chose the 2015 Domaine de Javerniere Côte du Py Morgon, a fantastic Cru Beaujolais that pairs like a dream. Beaujolais like this one are a sommelier’s secret weapon, moving from one dish to another with ease, and perfectly taking a chill.

James Suckling praised Domaine de Javerniere as a “serious wine” that “can age many years, but it’s already excellent.” He loved its “aromas of tar and blackberries,” calling it “powerful and balanced.” Vinous likewise couldn’t get enough of its “ripe red and blue fruit scents, complemented by suggestions of licorice, violet, musky earth and a hint of smoky minerals that adds vivacity. Sappy and focused on the palate, offering mineral-accented bitter cherry and boysenberry flavors that tighten up slowly on the back half.”

Made from the Gamay grape—a light, fruit-driven cousin of Pinot Noir—this red is perfect with slight chill, meaning that right now, in this summer of hot temperatures across the United States, the 2015 Domaine de Javernière Côte du Py Morgon is absolutely perfect to be opened during barbecues: It’s fresh enough to cut through the heat, structured enough to stand up to the entire range of meats charred on the grill, and boasts enough fruit that, even alongside lighter dishes, it’ll shine.

It makes sense, of course, once you taste this wildly delicious red that’s crafted from grapes grown on the Côte du Py—a slope in which the vines sink their roots deep into the schist and granite soils in order to get the water and nutrients to survive, gaining layers of complexity and concentration from the effort. This is the sort of unexpectedly long-lived Beaujolais Cru that none other than Jancis Robinson was referencing when she wrote that “those looking for better-value alternatives to red burgundy might well look south to Beaujolais. The grape may be different—Gamay rather than Pinot Noir—but the build is the same especially since more and more Beaujolais is being made using traditional Burgundian techniques…”

• Fruit Intensity
• Oak Intensity
• Body
• Acidity
• Tannin

• ABV 13.50%
• 15 mins
• Drink Up
• % Gamay
• Serving temperature – 58°
• Cork