An iconic castle in Brouilly appellation, which range expresses
the richness, diversity and uniqueness of this terroir through parcel selection.
BROUILLY 2021
GRANDE RÉSERVE

click on one of the vintages below for further information

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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: 10,000 vines/ha
Age of the vines: 85 years
Yields: 25 hL.
Pruning: goblet

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.

100% Gamay

Color: deep garnet.
Nose: very intense, it reveals subtle and varied perfumes. The fruits of the forest blend wonderfully with notes of iris, peonies, dark chocolate and spices that complicate this aromatic panel.
Palate: fleshy and warm, powerful and suave. A palette of black fruits invades our senses to reveal a beautiful length.

The harvest is destemmed 100%. We applied a slow fermentation between 22 and 25°C and a maceration of 28 days. The juices were thundered.
This cuvée will age on fine lees, in the vaulted cellars of the castle, for 6 months.
6,666 bottles were bottled at the end of March 2022.

From 3 to 8 years.

The first quarter of 2021 was characterized by an average temperature and a little excess rainfall. These conditions led to a bud break reached on April 5 on average. This same month was marked by a period of "historic" frosts between April 5 and 8. The month of May was also particularly cold, very rainy and quite sunny. Following these two cool months, the beginning of flowering was reached at a late date (around June 9). July was cool, not very sunny and very rainy. It had not rained so much in July for 44 years. August was cool and dry. The stage of beginning of veraison was reached around August 5th. At this stage, the 2021 vintage was 18 days later than in 2020. This climate has created a lot of work in the vineyards and has not given us any respite. Fortunately, the weather became mild again after August 12, and this until the harvest.
The harvest at Château de Pierreux started on September 13th in rather cool conditions. This makes 2021 the 4th latest vintage since 1992.
The 2021 harvest is marked by heterogeneity from one plot to another, due to the great diversity of the terroirs, with a variable sensitivity to the different hazards of the year, which results in the end in variable yields (from correct to very low). A sorting in the vineyard and in the cellar was carried out at Château de Pierreux. The wines are in "moderation", lighter in alcohol and in tannic structure than some "hot" vintages of the last years.