The 10 Beaujolais crus: a guide from north to south

What a Beaujolais cru is

This Beaujolais crus guide starts with a simple point: Beaujolais is not one wine but a hierarchy. At the base comes Beaujolais, then Beaujolais-Villages, and at the top the ten crus, each named after a village or a hill. All of them are red wines made from Gamay, and all lie in the northern part of the region, where granite, schist and volcanic rocks give the wines more depth than the clay and limestone further south.

A practical tip: a cru label often does not mention the word Beaujolais at all. A bottle simply says Morgon, Fleurie or Moulin-à-Vent. The crus are also quite different from Beaujolais Nouveau, the young wine released on the third Thursday of November, which comes from the Beaujolais and Beaujolais-Villages appellations. A good cru is made to be enjoyed at table, and some of them improve for many years in the cellar.

The crus are also close to one another: barely twenty kilometres as the crow flies separate the northernmost from the southernmost, which makes it easy to compare several in a single outing.

Saint-Amour, Juliénas and Chénas: the northern trio

Saint-Amour is the northernmost cru and the only one lying entirely in Saône-et-Loire, on the border with the Mâconnais. Recognised in 1946, it is one of the smallest crus, and its name makes it a favourite for celebrations. The wines are often supple, fruity and charming, easy to enjoy young.

Juliénas, recognised in 1938, owes its name, according to local tradition, to Julius Caesar. Its hillsides produce wines with more structure and a little spice, which hold up well to a few years of ageing. Chénas, one of the 1936 crus, is among the smallest of all; its name is linked to the oak forests, chênes in French, that once covered the slopes. It is rarely seen abroad, which makes a visit to the village all the more rewarding: its wines are generous and well built, and they share some of their land with Moulin-à-Vent.

Moulin-à-Vent and Fleurie

Moulin-à-Vent takes its name not from a village but from an old windmill standing on a rise above Romanèche-Thorins, listed as a historic monument since 1930. The cru stretches over Romanèche-Thorins and Chénas, and it is often called the most powerful of the ten. Its wines, sometimes aged in oak, can keep for a long time and develop notes that bring them close to their Burgundian cousins further north.

Fleurie, one of the 1936 crus, is the one many people remember first, perhaps because of its name. Above the village, the Chapelle de la Madone, built in the late nineteenth century, watches over the vineyards and offers one of the finest viewpoints in the Beaujolais. The wines are often described as floral and elegant, silky rather than powerful, with a lovely balance between fruit and freshness.

Chiroubles, Morgon and Régnié

Chiroubles has the highest vineyards of the ten crus, on steep slopes facing the Saône valley. The altitude gives light, fresh and fragrant wines, ideal for a lunch in the vines. It is also one of the smaller crus, and a drive up to the viewpoints above the village shows the whole Beaujolais at your feet.

Morgon is one of the best-known crus and one of the most generous. Its most famous hillside, the Côte du Py, rises on crumbly blue rock that gives wines of depth and length. Locals even have a verb, morgonner, to describe a wine that has taken on the character of Morgon with age. Régnié, just to the south, is the youngest cru: it was recognised only in 1988, after decades of campaigning by its winemakers. Its wines sit between the fruit of Brouilly and the substance of Morgon.

Brouilly and Côte de Brouilly

The two southernmost crus share the same landmark, Mont Brouilly, a hill of around 484 metres rising above the vines. Brouilly, recognised in 1938, is the largest of the ten crus, spread around the foot of the hill, and produces fruity, round wines that are often the most approachable of the family.

Côte de Brouilly, recognised the same year, occupies the slopes of the hill itself, on hard volcanic blue stone. The wines are more concentrated and more mineral. At the summit stands the chapel of Notre-Dame-aux-Raisins, inaugurated in 1857 after winegrowers asked the Virgin to protect their vines from powdery mildew. A pilgrimage still takes place there every year on 8 September, often at the start of the harvest, and the view from the top is one of the most beautiful in the region.

Which cru to choose, and how to taste several in a day

There is no single answer to the question of which Beaujolais cru to choose, but a simple rule helps. For lighter, fragrant wines, look at Chiroubles, Fleurie, Saint-Amour, Régnié or Brouilly. For more structure and ageing potential, turn to Morgon, Moulin-à-Vent, Juliénas, Chénas or Côte de Brouilly. Then forget the rule, because each estate and each vintage has its own personality, and the best discoveries usually happen at the cellar door.

In one day, three or four estates are plenty. Following the crus from north to south, or the reverse, avoids zigzagging: the northern crus are around twenty minutes from Mâcon, and Brouilly is under an hour from Lyon. Add a lunch in a village, a stop at the Madone or on Mont Brouilly, and you have a full, unhurried day. MCM Prestige, the bespoke range of Mon Chauffeur Mâconnais, designs exactly this kind of day: our teams book the estates in your name, and your chauffeur-host, Mathis, drives, tells the story of each village and translates during tastings. A few stops can remain a surprise, tastings are paid on site, and the price per person is announced before any booking.

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