Charnay domaine making Gamay with Burgundian vinification, indigenous yeasts, and granite and limestone vineyard settings.
The producer
Domaine des Terres Dorées is based in Charnay in southern Beaujolais, where the terrain is slightly warmer and more limestone driven than the granite rich villages farther north. Brun rejects carbonic maceration in favor of Burgundian vinification. Fruit is hand sorted and destemmed, then fermented longer and slower with indigenous yeasts. The wines are released approximately one year after harvest, a quick schedule for Burgundy wines.
Known for
Gamay with Burgundian vinification
Notable facts
Gamay plantings on granite soils impart characteristic smoothness and strength.
55% of production is exported internationally.
Fruit is hand sorted and destemmed before longer, slower fermentation with indigenous yeasts.
The story
Brun rejects carbonic maceration
In 1979, Brun founded Domaine des Terres Dorées with four hectares in Charnay. He rejected the carbonic maceration technique of modern Beaujolais and chose Burgundian vinification. Fruit was hand sorted and destemmed, then fermented longer and slower with indigenous yeasts. Brun also adopted organic and biodynamic principles, an approach that had begun in 1977. The wines were released approximately one year after harvest, a quick schedule for Burgundy wines. The early method stayed visible in the bottles as the domaine expanded its range across Beaujolais crus.
From the atlas
Domaine des Terres Dorées
A Charnay domaine in southern Beaujolais making Gamay with Burgundian vinification, hand sorting, destemming and indigenous yeast fermentation.
At A Glance
Field
Detail
Region
Southern Beaujolais
Village
Charnay
Main grape
Gamay
Named cru wine
2015 Moulin-à-Vent
Defining practice
Burgundian vinification with indigenous yeasts
The Producer
Brun founded Domaine des Terres Dorées in 1979 with four hectares in Charnay. He rejects carbonic maceration in favor of Burgundian vinification, a method built around hand sorting, destemming and longer, slower fermentation with indigenous yeasts.
Gamay plantings on granite soils give the wines characteristic smoothness and strength. Today, 55% of production is exported internationally.
Place
Charnay lies in southern Beaujolais, north of Lyon. Its terrain is slightly warmer and more limestone driven than the granite rich villages farther north. The domaine also works Gamay on granite soils, where the ground imparts smoothness and strength. The local limestone setting and the granite plantings provide two distinct vineyard conditions within the range.
Wines
The range centres on Gamay, with wines from granite soils and cru bottlings. The 2015 Moulin-à-Vent is a floral wine with strawberry and cherry undertones, full to medium body, dense and chewy tannins, and a medium fruity finish.
Brun releases his wines approximately one year after harvest, a quick schedule for Burgundy wines. The bottles combine early release with the tannic shape of Gamay grown on granite soils.
Final Word
Domaine des Terres Dorées links southern Beaujolais limestone with granite grown Gamay, then ferments with Burgundian methods and indigenous yeasts.