Olivier Minot "La Boutanche" Gamay, Beaujolais, France 2025

FROM PRIMAL WINE:

THE WINE: 100% Gamay from Southern Beaujolais, the grapes are harvested from 90-year-old vines, fermented and aged in concrete tanks, and bottled with zero sulfur.

THE PRODUCER: Domaine des Charbonnieres sits in the southern end of Beaujolais, a zone long overshadowed by the famous crus to the north. Olivier Minot and his wife Corinne have spent their careers proving that Beaujolais Sud deserves more than casual dismissal, making Gamay of precision and charm from vines that have been in the family for five generations.

The Minot family has farmed in Pouilly-le-Monial in southern Beaujolais for five generations, building a patrimony of old Gamay vines on the gentle slopes of the Auvergne-Rhone-Alps. Olivier and Corinne took over the estate and have become among the most respected voices for their sub-region, working both under the Domaine des Charbonnieres label and as the inaugural producer for the La Boutanche project, an imprint created by natural wine distributor Selection Massale to spotlight organic producers at approachable prices. Their La Boutanche Gamay has introduced Minot's work to a wide international audience.