There’s no more exciting corner of Burgundy today than the Beaujolais. Long looked down upon by winemakers further north, the wines made here today are as dynamic and delicious as anything in the Côte d’Or – and at a fraction of the price. Wine writer Stuart Piggott calls Beaujolais “the best value reds in the world,” and it’s easy to see why.
A new wave of exciting winemakers priced out of the land market in the north of Burgundy has landed in the Beaujolais, bringing energy and enthusiasm for the region’s diverse terroirs. Frederic Berne is a leader in this new Beaujolais. He’s passionate about agroforestry, planting trees among the vines to enrich the organic material of the soil and enhancing biodiversity in the vineyard. And his wines are more than proof of concept.
Berne’s just-arrived 2024 Morgon is everything you want in an autumn red: clear and crisp fruit, excellent freshness, earthy undertones. It caught Neal Martin’s eye (a notoriously exacting grader), who found it “nicely focused” with a “simple but clean bouquet of wild strawberry and raspberry.” Serve this with roast chicken, sautéed mushrooms, and crispy potatoes.
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Berne Morgon 2024
bottle price: $32
