Yann Bertrand
BEAUJOLAIS, FRANCE
The stylishly coiffed Yann Bertrand grew up in Fleurie but flew the nest to pursue other interests, including business school and the favorite pastime of French men in their twenties: backpacking around the Alps. During his travels, Bertrand worked in wine shops and wine bars to earn a modest living, and that’s where his true passion for wine growing was ignited. Upon returning home, he was mentored by the likes of Yvon Métras and Jean Foillard, who instilled in him the importance of organic farming. When he began working with his parents in their vineyards, he carved out a 2 ½-acre plot to experiment with biodynamic principles and made wine for the family domaine (they had previously sold juice to négociants).
The Famille Bertrand’s holdings span 16 acres in Fleurie and 3 acres in Morgon with vines between 30 and 110 years old. Grapes are harvested by hand and rest overnight to cool before going into large concrete tanks. Vinification is plot-by-plot, using carbonic maceration in the Beaujolais tradition (semi-carbonic for certain cuvées, cold carbonic for others) and native yeasts. After a cuvaison of up to 25 days, the wine is devatted into used oak barrels for 7 to 10 months and bottled using little sulfur. Due to the 2017 hail, Bertrand had to buy in some fruit, as did many vignerons in the area. Hence the addition of a Julienas—from clay, schist and sandstone soils.
The Wines
Julienas Pur Ju…
variety: gamay soil type: clay, schist & sandstone avg vine age: 60 years
From an organic plot called En Rizière (“the rice paddy”), the grapes for this cuvée were hand harvested and fermented using semi-carbonic maceration and native yeasts without SO2 for 10 to 15 days. One third was aged in used barrels and two thirds in tank to preserve fruit-freshness.
