Jean-Paul & Charly Thévenet, Gamay, Morgon "Tradition" Beaujolais, France 2022

The Thévenet Tradition Morgon is made from the estate's younger vines — which are 50 to 60 years old. Aged entirely in concrete tanks, it features less concentration than many Morgons we’ve come to know, but it more than makes up for that in charm. There are those irresistible aromas of sour cherry, violets, and sweet spices that define Gamay grown within this cru. It feels weightless on the palate, grounded only by a tingly impression of minerals. Serve it nice and cool for maximum refreshment.

50-60 year old grapes on granite and alluvial sand. Sourced from climats Douby and Les Charmes. Vinified at low temperature, infusion-style vinification without punchdowns or pumpovers. Fermented and aged in concrete tank. Élevage lasts 8-10 months. Unfined and unfiltered. Sulfur added only at bottling.

When Jean-Paul Thévenet took the reins of his family’s Beaujolais domaine in 1976, the region was in the midst of a productivity boom. Following WWII, modern developments including powerful fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides were introduced as progressive solutions to traditional farming practices and rapidly became widespread. These changes were embraced as welcome improvements to the time-consuming, physically demanding labor to which prior generations had grown accustomed.

Jean-Paul picked up where his father left off until a childhood friend convinced him to return to pre-industrial ways of farming and winemaking. Marcel Lapierre, who also ran a domaine in Villié-Morgon, had been experimenting with natural vinifications of organically farmed fruit with promising results, guided by the mentorship of local biochemist and vigneron Jules Chauvet. With Lapierre’s counsel, Thévenet began by eliminating synthetic treatments in his vines and in 1981 made a first attempt at producing a natural wine, using ripe, hand-harvested fruit fermented whole-cluster with vineyard yeasts, very little added sulfur, and no chaptalization. His first successful vintage came in 1985, and it would take years of additional tastings, discussions, and late nights with Lapierre and two other local boys, Jean Foillard and Guy Breton, before Jean-Paul would achieve consistency with his new methods.

The Gang of Four, as Kermit Lynch later dubbed the Villié-Morgon rebels, soon began winning over hearts and palates with their fine, perfumed, terroir-driven Morgons.

Jean-Paul’s son Charly took an early interest in vigneron life, and specifically the world of natural wine. As a teenager, he worked in Marcel Lapierre’s cellar for three years before returning home to help his father.

Father and son now work together under one label, carrying forth Jean-Paul’s vision of pure and profound Beaujolais from old vines via sustainable farming and low-intervention winemaking. The Thévenets’ plush, mouth-filling Morgon and spicy, stony Régnié are a testament to their status as natural wine pioneers, definitively cementing their legacy in the Beaujolais hall of fame.