A Unique Historical Heritage
Founded in 18th century (we find traces of its wine-growing vocation as early as 1732), the Château du Moulin-à-Vent takes its name from the famous historic windmill which watches over the vineyards, classified as a Historic Monument.
The domaine truly took off in modern times in 2009, when the Parinet family (Jean-Jacques and his son Edouard) take the reins, accompanied by the technical expertise of Brice Laffond. Together, they undertook a titanic work of restructuring the vineyard and modernizing the cellars to raise the wines to the top of the hegemony of French grand crus.
An Exceptional Terroir and a Precise Approach
The domaine extends over a thirty hectares exclusively located in the AOC Moulin-à-Vent appellation.
- The Ground: The terroir is characterized by granite sands rich in iron and manganese, which give the wines a unique structure and complexity, close to that of the great Burgundy wines.
- The grape varieties: The Black Gamay with white juice reigns supreme here. The vines are old (more than 40 years on average, some plots exceeding 80 years), which allows controlled yields and a high concentration of berries.
- Philosophy: The domaine practices ultra-reasoned viticulture, High Environmental Value (HVE), with a gradual return to tillage (horse plowing on certain plots) and exclusively manual harvests.
The Style of Wines: Gamays for aging
Far from the sometimes simplistic image of Beaujolais primeurs, the Château du Moulin-à-Vent produces wines of a great distinction, deep, fleshy and cut for la garde.
The domaine popularized a Burgundian approach to plot selection, isolating the largest localities to express the quintessence of each terroir.
The Flagship Cuvées
- The Château from Moulin-à-Vent: La cuvée emblematic of domaine. A harmonious blended wine, combining notes of black fruits, spices and an elegant tannin structure.
- Verillats: Coming from a pink granite terroir facing east, it is a powerful, mineral wine with superb aging potential.
- Court Field: Located at the foot of the mill, this clay terroir produces a denser, full-bodied wine with accents of black cherry and undergrowth.
- La Rochelle: La cuvée prestigious, from vines overlooking the mill. A wine of immense complexity, noble and remarkable length.
The Château du Moulin-à-Vent is irrefutable proof that Beaujolais produces very great gastronomic wines. By combining the natural delicacy of Gamay with the rigor of Burgundian breeding, the domaine a sign of bottles that defy time and seduce the most demanding wine lovers around the world.
