Raphaël Beysang & Emélie Hurtubise

Emélie and Raphaël make delicious gamay wines in the far south of Beaujolais, in the commune of Saint-Germain-Nuelles on the northwestern outskirts of Lyon. 

The couple met in the Auvergne, where they were working among the same group of winemakers, including Patrick Bouju, Vincent Marie and Aurelien Lefort. Raphaël comes from an Alsatian family of restaurateurs, and learned about farming and winemaking from Jean-Marc Dreyer, with whom he is very close. Emelie is from Quebec, originally. After being offered the opportunity to manage some old vineyards in Beaujolais, Raphaël moved there in 2017. Emélié followed in 2018 and together they started their own label. 

Both terroir and vine age varies throughout the vineyards. While the fruit for the Nouveau Litre cuvee comes from sandier soil, Paltieries – a single site – is almost pure limestone, with one section of the parcel planted 30 years ago and another section that is around 80 years old. The wines are largely fermented as whole bunches for around three weeks, with little in the way of pigeage or pumpovers, and elevage takes place in large foudres. Some cuvees are bottled in recycled old 1L traditional bottles from the area that have been sterilised in a local facility – distinctive vessels with a star on the shoulder. 

The wines are tremendously fresh and energetic, often with a dark, almost-blue shade of fruit, and drink incredibly well with food, particularly at a slightly lower temperature.