- Members of the Chasselay family have been making wine in the Beaujolais village of Chatillon d'Azergues since 1464.
- The current iteration of the estate extends over 13 hectares and has been certified organic since 2006.
- Biodiversity is practiced in the vineyards, and vinification follows the lunar calendar.
- All grapes are hand-harvested and only indigenous yeasts are used in the cellar. No sulfur is added during fermentation.
- Though the wines have a wide stylistic range, they are all aromatic, concentrated, and sophisticated.
An integral part of the fabric of the small village of Chatillon d'Azergues, the Chasselay family has been making wine here since 1464. This southern part of Beaujolais is locally known as the Pierres Dorées, or the "land of the golden stones." Flatter than its northern counterpart, the soil is more fertile, mixed with granite and a fair amount of limestone.
Domaine Chasselay extends over 13 hectares in Châtillon d'Azergues, Côte de Brouilly, and Brouilly. Fabien Chasselay, his sister Claire, and their father, Jean-Gilles, are pioneers of organic viticulture; they have been practicing since 2000 and were certified in 2006. Fabien Chasselay trained under Bruno Clavelier in Vosne-Romanée. Here, he adopted the idea of destemming his Gamay instead of the more traditional 100% whole cluster technique. The resulting wines are definitely Burgundian — delicious and silky, yet saline.
Biodiversity is vital in the vineyards. The estate's natural philosophy includes cover crops between the vineyard rows, following the lunar calendar, indigenous yeasts, and no sulfur during fermentation (only at bottling). All wines ferment in concrete tanks and only the Crus age in older demi-muids and barrels.
The wines have a stunning stylistic range, from the playful "Beaujolais is Not Dead" and "Pour Quoi Pas" to the more serious Crus, the wines are always gourmand in style, with darker fruit notes and concentration. Put plainly, these wines are simply stunning.
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