2020 Daniel Bouland Morgon Delys Vignes Plantees en 1926

“The 2020 Morgon Les Delys Vignes plantées en 1926 is showing beautifully, unwinding in the glass with notes of cherries and raspberries mingled with hints of licorice, sweet soil tones and cracked pepper. Medium to full-bodied, it’s fleshy and concentrated, with a chassis of rich tannins and a generous core of fruit girdled by brighter acids that distinguished either the 2019 or 2018 renditions. This is correspondingly a touch more reserved out of the gates than those predecessor vintages, and it will reward a bit of patience.

Daniel Bouland had forgotten our scheduled appointment, but I knew where I would find him: in his vineyards. Making a quick tour of his holdings in Corcelette, I discovered him in the heart of his old vines in Delys, where he was applying a treatment with a backpack spray. Such are the efforts to which your correspondent goes to ensure uninterrupted Beaujolais coverage! And it was worth it, as Bouland’s 2020s have turned out very well. As I’ve written before, Bouland works with almost seven hectares of predominantly very old vines in Morgon, Chiroubles and Côte de Brouilly, and he vinifies with whole bunches, pumping over twice a day, giving his wines a classical maceration of two to three weeks. After pressing, élevage is in foudre and cement tank. Concentrated and succulent, Bouland’s wines are beautifully differentiated by site and age unusually gracefully. At this address, 2020 is reminiscent of a somewhat more structured version of the 2018 vintage, with brighter acids and more structuring tannin, and everything reviewed here comes warmly recommended.”