The vineyards of the Beaujolais region are very hilly. They are delimited on one side by the foothills of France’s Massif Central mountain range and overlook the Saône River’s floodplain between Mâcon and Lyon. Nestled at the foot of Mont Brouilly, Château de Pierreux is one of the most beautiful residences in the Beaujolais region.

Several centuries of history have shaped this ancient 13th-century fortified house of which two towers still stand today. The castle was renovated several times over the centuries. Its vaulted cellars date back to the 17th century while the current building was erected in the 19th century.

Château de Pierreux’s 110 hectares of vines are planted in shallow, well-drained pink granitic, schistous, and siliceous soils which contain deposits of blue porphyry from the volcanic eruptions of Mont Brouilly that date back millions of years.

The estate was certified High Environmental Value (HVE) in 2020.

Planting density: 6,000 to 10,000 vines/ha
Age of the vines: 42% of the plots are over 40 years old.
Pruning: gobelet & Cordon

Work philosophy: Growing methods are decided upon vineyard by vineyard according to lutte raisonnée, an environmentally friendly approach. Everything is analysed in detail: risk of disease, the number of harmful and beneficial insects that can be found in each vineyard, the size and number of bunches of grapes per vine, problems with weeds, the health of the vines’ leaves, etc.

Working of the soil: de-earthing, scraping, hoeing between the vines.

This philosophy has 3 objectives:

100% Gamay

The vintage 2013 is complex, suave and charming. A rounded wine with floral notes of violet, black berries and soft spices. The tannins are rounded and well-balanced ; the wine has an intense purple colour.

The harvesting needed to be late to obtain an optimal ripeness. The vinification is largely with de-stemmed grapes, followed by a 15-21-day semi carbonic maceration. A 6-month ageing in large barrels with a 15%-ageing in oak of French origin to enrich the cuvee.

3 to 6 years

The season began with a chilly first three months, in line with seasonal averages. This was followed by a particularly cold and rainy spring. June was dry but cool and the vines began flowering between 15-20 June, two weeks later than in 2012. Flowering lasted for 10 days and there was a lot of shatter, indicating a late harvest. The sun finally graced us with its presence in July and the grapes began to ripen between 5-8 August. The harvesting began on 27 September in the rain and cold, and the grapes were small but healthy despite everything.