In my 25+ years working in the wine industry, this is one of the top 2 or 3 Cru Beaujolais values I've ever encountered. Vintage 2022 was especially strong, and Colette's Old Vine Regnie is sensational.
This is not Beaujolais Nouveau, it's not light and simple, and it's not a fruity little number. What it is is world-class, old vine Gamay with serious depth of flavor, concentration, and nuance. It also comes from a highly-touted vintage and producer.
It all adds up to a satisfying bottle of wine from the village just west of Morgon. Keep reading, it just gets better!
2022 Domaine de Colette Regnie Vieilles Vignes
93-94 points -- Josh Spurling
Domaine de Colette's 2022 Regnie Vielles Vignes is a prime example of why the wines of Beaujolais are better and more popular than ever. Located in the village of Regnie, less than a mile from the border of Morgon, this estate was founded in 1953. Today, husband and wife Jacky and Evelyne Gauthier run the estate and farm their old vines without any chemical sprays or fertilizers.
Their Regnie vines are 55-80-years-old, and old vines are the key to great Gamay. As the vines get older, yields lessen and the grapes get smaller and their skins get thicker. It is these smaller and thicker-skinned grapes that yield a delicious mouthful of ripe, sappy, and fresh Gamay. The Gautheir's choice to ferment and age in cement vats really lets the purity of the Gamay grape shine here.
For those who suffer from headaches and sneezing/sniffling when you drink red wines, Gamay could be the cure. While grapes like Cabernet, Syrah, and Malbec can taste great, these are wines that tend to run high in grape and oak tannin, alcohol, and histamine-activating compounds. It's this combination that can wreak havoc on your system. Gamay, on the other hand, is naturally low in tannin, it rarely sees new oak, and it produces a wine with more moderate alcohol.
Long story short, if you suffer from any of the aforementioned maladies, you should try this wine! Right out of the gate, this one offers up ripe and enticing aromas of dark plum, dark cherry, forest floor, cinnamon, and damp earth. There's some serious power here folks, and I recommend decanting this full and structured red for an hour or two before you enjoy it. Drink now through 2032, perhaps even longer....
I love to serve this one lightly chilled with a platter of bread, cheese, and charcuterie, but it's also a thought-provoking wine to sip over the course of an evening. Once you buy it, it's your call!
