Domaine de la Grand’Cour is one of the oldest domaines in Fleurie and carries a tradition for producing some of the most renowned wines of this cru. Back in 1969 Jean Dutraive purchased the commune-like buildings and surrounding vineyards of the domaine. He was then joined by his son Jean-Louis Dutraive, a fifth generation Beaujolais winemaker in 1977. Today the wines are quintessential Fleurie and among the finest of all Beaujolais.

The domaine now comprises 9.1 hectares in Fleurie - the lieux-dits of Grand’Cour, the 8-hectare walled Clos surrounding the house and cellar, Chapelle des Bois and Champagne; plus 1.6 hectares in Brouilly. Jean-Louis began farming organically in 2002 when he moved to live at the house inside the Clos and was certified organic in 2009. Only natural inputs are used. All work is carried out manually and harvesting is exclusively by hand to ensure best quality whole bunches in the winery. The soils across the vineyards are variations on the classic coarse granite sand and gravel of Cru-Beaujolais, with some clay-limestone plots.

The classic natural Carbonic fermentation is carried out in cement vats with sulphur eschewed until a micro-dose pre-bottling, and some bottlings are available sans soufre.

Grand’Cour wines are a beautiful blend of classicist and natural philosophies; producing finely structured Gamay of great mineral purity and freshness, with a natural vitality only present in the best Beaujolais.

Justin Dutraive is a legend in the making. Still in his mid-20’s, this shipment represents his 5th vintage already. Initially Justin’s style has been one of concentration and ripeness, sometimes expressing liqueured fruits. From 2019 he has now refined his style with a shorter carbonic fermentation and reduced extraction to add an ethereal layer of finesse. They are moving closer to the Grand’Cour style but even lighter. Justin is considered to be a leader of the second gen of natural Beaujolais masters along with Jules Metras, Damien Coquelet, Alex Fouillard etc, all of which are his best mates. The future of high-class natural Beaujolais is strong!

Justin currently leases his old parcel of Beaujolais, but he was able to buy his Beaujolais-Villages vineyard before the 2016 vintage. The Beaujolais vineyard sits in between corn and wheat fields. It is isolated from other vineyards, which probably helps shield it from disease. This cuvée represents excellent value with quality far above the supposedly average terroir. The Beaujolais-Villages Les Tours vineyard is in the villages of Sainte-Etienne-la-Varenne on the edge of the southern part of Brouilly; just a stone’s throw from Jean-Claude Lapalu’s house and adjacent to his Beaujolais-Villages ‘Vieilles Vignes’ vines. Also from old vines, the granite influence is very strong here, with shallow soil of coarse pink granite sand directly above the granite bedrock.

After renting the Fleurie La Madone vineyard from his mother, Justin was able to purchase it in late 2018. The vines are located at the top of the hill, directly behind the famous chapel of La Madone with a south-eastern exposition on stony soils above the granite bedrock. Justin’s prized 100-year-old Fleurie Chapelle des Bois came directly from his grandfather Jean-Claude. It sits on richer soils than Jean-Louis’, producing a richer style only available in magnums again this year – we got 6!

All the vineyards are worked organically with everything except spraying done by hand, including weed removal. Justin Dutraive’s wines are made with similar techniques and philosophy to those of his father, albeit with some slightly different fermentation vessels (stainless included). Aside from his work at Domaine de la Grand’Cour, Justin has worked with Jean Foillard and Julie Blagny in Beaujolais, at vineyards in Oregon and spent the 2016 vintage working at Sinapius and Gentle Folk in Australia.

Growing up with an iconic winegrower as your father has its benefits, especially when your dad is the warm and gregarious Jean-Louis Dutraive. Knowledge can be passed down, but nothing can replace the lessons learned from making one's own mistakes. As Jean-Louis's daughter Ophelié explained it, "On the domaine, we all make decisions together, but we listen to my father a lot because he is the one who has all the experience." She yearned for the chance to make her own decisions, to try new things, and to learn from her trials and errors.

In the 2019 vintage, Ophélie launched her own project with a rented 0.3 hectare plot of 100-120 year-old vines in the lieu-dit of Les Métérées in the Cru of Moulin-à-Vent. The following year, she planted another 0.2 hectare on well rested soils that had never been planted to vine and had never been treated with chemicals. With her half hectare of organically farmed Moulin-à Vent, Ophélie is able to make her own cuvée from plots that she works on her own.

In the cellar, carbonic maceration is carried out with indigenous yeasts and only 15 mg/L of sulfur is added. The wine is aged in a combination of demi-muids and neutral barrels for seven months and sees no fining or filtration. Ophélie's inaugural cuvée was vibrant and nervy with the meatiness of a classic Moulin-à-Vent and the thirst-quenching fruit we have come to expect from any label bearing the Dutraive name. We can't wait for what's to come!