Jules Desjourneys 'Songe' Pinot Noir 2021

Fabien Duperray started his career as a kind of super-agent (think Mino Raiola with far better taste) for some of Burgundy’s most fabled names – Coche-Dury and Domaine de la Romanée-Conti among them – and began making his own wine at the end of the 2000s. In the meantime his own Domaine Jules Desjourneys Maconnais whites and Beaujolais reds have become some of France’s most over-performing fine wines bar none.

Fabien’s whites are fermented in custom-made glass globes, an idea he developed alongside his pal Arnaud Ente (one of Meursault’s leading vignerons), which has captured the imagination of many top producers. The exceptions are his Pouilly-Fuissé and Pouilly-Fuissé ‘Vignes Blanches’ which are vinified using what he calls the “Coche method” in oak with long lees ageing – gleaned from watching Burgundy God Jean-Francois Coche. Following biodynamic principles work is done by hand and yields are low in order to create the purest wines.

Fabien’s reds come from three Beaujolais crus: Chénas, Fleurie, and Moulin-à-Vent, with lieux-dits bottled in the best years. Oak ageing has now been phased-out in favour of stainless steel and glass vessels, but older vintages were raised for 24 months in barrel, producing expressive, long-lived wines.

There is a joyful drinkability to Duperray’s wines that makes it difficult to resist pulling their corks – but the best have the quality to age for years. Alongside the iconic likes of Jean-Marie Guffens in Maconnais and Jean-Louis Detraive in Beaujolais, they far surpass their appellations’ humble reputations. For elegance and texture at this price point they are near impossible to beat.

Velvet-soft, perfumed Pinot Noir from Pierres Dorées in southern Beaujolais.