Domaine Gregoire Hoppenot - 'Beaujolais Blanc' White 2022

Wine Region: Beaujolais

Grape: 100% Chardonnay

Winemaker Gregoire Hoppenot doesn't grow any Chardonnay across his nine hectares of vineyards between Fleurie and Morgon, so for this Beaujolais Blanc he uses grapes offered to him by another organic grower in Crêches-sur-Saône (in northern Beaujolais, just south of Burgundy's Mâcon).

After hand-picking, the grapes are fermented with wild yeasts in stainless steel tanks. A little bit of sulphur is added after malolactic fermentation. No oak here, so expect bright, punchy, fruit-forward and citrusy flavours.

Gregoire might not make another Beaujolais Blanc any time soon, so get in before they're gone for good.

About the winery:
Gregoire Hoppenot decided to start his own business at Les Roches in Fleurie, after years of experience in the wine business. His first wines were launched in 2018, and with success. His domain includes two slopes with very different characteristics, and between those slopes there is also a lot of diversity, variations in geology, aspects and exposures, and altitudes. He has five different 'climates' across the two slopes. The grapes for this wine come from the vineyards Les Garants and Les Roches. The first is really typical of Fleurie, poor granite soils with quartz are clearly visible here and have a special effect on the vines. The vines in Les Roches are deeper in the ground and dominated by granite and sand. The harvest is entirely manual in order to select the best grapes directly in the vineyard.

Named ‘Discovery of the Year’ in 2021’s Revue des Vins de France, Grégoire Hoppenot installed himself in Fleurie following two years as director of the Chapoutier-owned Maison Trénel in Beaujolais. Grégoire has leased nine hectares, along with a small plot in Morgon, which comprises several enviable parcels: Les Moriers, Les Garants, Poncié, La Roilette and Les Roches in Fleurie, and Corcelette in Morgon. Grégoire is meticulous and gentle in both vineyards and cellar. He describes his winemaking as ‘intuitive’, using indigenous yeasts and low sulphur, and practises organic farming in the vineyard.