Jean Foillard
The Inside Word
Back when Beaujolais was flooding the world with fast, forgettable Nouveau, Jean Foillard (alongside a few equally stubborn mates) took the long road. No chemicals and strictly no shortcuts; no interest in turning Gamay into something it’s not.
Guided by Beaujolais royalty, Jules Chauvet, he pushed in the other direction While most vineyards were scrubbed clean with herbicides, his were left to live. Where others corrected and controlled, he let the wine carry its own edges.
He started in 1982—family Domaine first, then out on his own, slowly gathering ground. Renting, buying, waiting for the right parcels to come loose. Eventually landing a prize piece on Morgon Côte du Py—the most lauded slope in the region. Today, it’s around 11 hectares all up, including a newer parcel in Courcellette, where granite replaces schist and the wine shifts accordingly.
Cult Status
Just north of Lyon, Beaujolais rolls out like a fairytale—stone villages, dense forest, winding rivers, hillsides stitched with vines. The cradle of natural wine in France, and the perfect backdrop for wines that feel both effortless and exacting.
Jean Foillard’s role is to not get in the way—but even that takes precision. Cooling fruit before fermentation, long before it was fashionable. Stretching carbonic maceration to pull perfume without losing spine. Ageing in old barrels—often ex-Domaine de la Romanée-Conti—not for flavour, but for calm.
This is Beaujolais at full tilt—light on its feet, but far from simple. Hauntingly beautiful, expressive, transportive. The kind of wine that holds a place the way great Burgundy does. Pure. Focused. Cult stuff. We say do it. Always.
