Juliénas

A Cru above the Saône

The commune sits in the northern Beaujolais, between Saint-Amour and Chénas, looking east toward the Saône plain. Around 580 hectares of vines are classified Juliénas AOC. The village itself is small — a church, a square, cellars, a handful of tables — while the hamlets of Les Poupets, Emeringes and Jullié climb into the granite. Château des Poupets stands on the hill beside the chapel, with the Cru at its door.

What distinguishes Juliénas among the Crus is energy: strawberry and spice over a stony frame, more muscle than Fleurie, earlier-drinking than Moulin-à-Vent, and built to sit at table. Walk the D17 at dawn and the slopes show why — steep enough for drainage, open enough for sun, with clay pockets that hold a dry summer. From the estate you can be in the village in minutes, in Fleurie or Beaujeu in a quarter of an hour, and in Lyon for dinner.