Château Grange Cochard Les Charmes 2021

Les Charmes is a lieu-dit of Morgon in cru Beaujolais, and Château Grange Cochard, the 1759 estate revived by Jean-Philippe Manchès with winemaker Pablo de Santiago, makes this Gamay to show the softer, more perfumed side of the appellation. The wine is aged eight months in amphorae and concrete rather than oak, an approach chosen to preserve pure fruit and freshness: these inert, unlined vessels add no wood flavour and allow only a very gentle micro-oxygenation, so the wine keeps its bright aromatics and a clear sense of the granite terroir. Whole-berry fermentation, common in Beaujolais, further emphasises red and blue fruit, floral lift and supple tannins. The wine is vegan, made without animal-derived fining agents. Expect a bright ruby colour, a nose of ripe blueberry and red fruit with hints of baked stems and white pepper, and a light to medium palate with fresh acidity, fine tannins and an earthy, mineral finish. This is a red that can take a light chill. Serve at 13 to 15 degrees, with poultry, pork or lighter dishes.