The Domaine de la Grand'Cour
Origin: One of the oldest estates in Fleurie, it was bought by Jean Dutraive in 1969. He took over the 9 hectares in Fleurie across three different parcels, Grand'Cour, Chapelle des Bois and Champagne. He also maintained 1.60 hectares in Brouilly from his fifth-generation family estate in the village of Charentay, Vuril.
Jean Dutraive, then president of the Beaujolais winegrower’s association, was joined by his son Jean-Louis in 1977, who subsequently took over the domain in 1989. He continues to ensure the progression of the winery from the vines, to the cellar and sales.
Vinification: Harvested by hand, the whole-bunch grapes are placed in tanks (neither de-stemmed nor crushed), at a low temperature and saturated with carbon dioxide (without any added sulphites). The fermentation takes place naturally, without any intervention up until the moment the grapes are pressed (except in the event of a problem). We do not use any oenological products and allow the natural yeasts of the grapes, known as indigenous yeasts, to characterise our wines. The wines are then transferred to the cellar using gravity, and aged over varying periods of time depending on the cuvée.
Dutraive Family
Following severe grape losses in 2016 and 2017 caused by hail at the Grand’Cour vineyard, Jean-Louis and his children, Lucas, Justin and Ophélie started to buy grapes to vinify at the domain. The grapes are selected from parcels cultivated with an organic philosophy, whether they are certified or not. The wines are made in the same manner as those from the domain, with a focus on single-parcel vinification and no oenological inputs. The first cuvée produced in 2016, Cap Ô Sud, was made from Cinsault and Carignan from the Corbières and the Minervois respectively. Today, the wines produced are mainly made from Gamay from the Beaujolais Crus of Chénas, Chiroubles, Fleurie et Saint-Amour.