Moulin a Vent

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Louis Boillot's maiden Beaujolais vintage from 4 ha of his own vineyards in Moulin-à-Vent. 50- to 60-year-old vines yielded 39 hl/ha in 2014. Extraction over three weeks in cuve. Maturation was 50% cuve, 50% barrel, of which 20% new, 80% three years old.
Lightish crimson. Lightly smoky and mineral with a hint of oak entwined with the peppery dark-red fruit. Lithe, juicy and delicious but not at all simple. Has both purity of fruit and an expression of origin. A little savoury note on the long finish. 
When to drink: 2016 - 2024
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com, 25 February 2016

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Although from the same variety (100 percent Gamay), Thibault Ligier-Belair's concentrated, complex Beaujolais is poles apart from the bright and breezy nouveau style with which most drinkers are familiar. From eight parcels of vines of up to 95 years old, on the nose this shows an appealing hint of reduction which gives way to aromas of kirsch and dark berry fruit. The palate is characteristically mineral and tannic, and will benefit from decanting. Drink now to 2029.



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A modern style with upfront, vibrant and chewy oak in a well-executed combination with forward fruit. Glossy, luxurious and enjoyable.
Drinking Window 2018 - 2023
Andy Howard MW, James Lawther MW & Matt Wilkin MS, Decanter, 13th June 2017

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Less “nervous” than on its release, but just as energetic, with lifted red berry and floral aromas, fresh acidity and chalky tannins which seem to channel the eponymous rock beneath Thibault’s vines – this parcel just beside the (also eponymous) windmill. There’s real weight of fruit on the palate, including darker berry flavours behind the initial surge of red. A hugely complex wine which will reward a decade’s cellaring.  
Will Heslop, Wine Buyer




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The 2015 Moulin a Vent Champ de Cour comes from 80-year-old vines and is 30% whole bunch fruit with 30% new oak. This easily has the best aromatics: red cherries, kirsch, a touch of cassis and fresh fig, quite complex and well defined. The palate is vibrant on the entry with a fine line of acidity, crisp and energetic with a sturdy, slightly backward finish that suggests it will need a couple of years to fully mature.
Neal Martin - 31/08/2017

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The 2015 Moulin a Vent la Roche contains 40% whole bunch fruit and is aged in 30% new oak. It comes from 70-year-old vines cropped at 24 hectoliters per hectare. This is much more controlled and sophisticated on the nose compared to the Vieilles Vignes, more mineralité showing through. The palate is well balanced with chewy tannin, grippy in the mouth with black cherries, tar and blueberry on the heady finish. This is a delicious, quite punchy Moulin-à-Vent from Thibault Liger-Belair.
Neal Martin - 31/08/2017

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Les Rouchaux, in the east of the appellation, has deep soils of blue granite which tend to result in “soft”, approachable wines – albeit with big tannins and, in 2015, relatively high (but balanced) alcohol. Expect aromas of blue and black fruit, savoury spice and cola. There’s an enticing sweetness to the front of the palate, which gives way to a fresh, mineral character. All in all, this is an extraordinary wine, which is likely to improve over the next decade and beyond.

WOW! Or should that be WAW (What A Wine!)? 2015 was lauded as a great vintage in Beaujolais, producing wines of tremendous concentration which, in most cases, will benefit from lengthy cellaring. Olivier’s superb La Rochelle is bound to age well – as it always does – but isn’t necessarily typical of the vintage: tasting this wine, finesse is the first descriptor that comes to mind, rather than concentration or power. It’s positively aérien, with red fruit and floral notes to the fore. Olivier has gradually reduced the amount of new oak on this cuvée, and that seems a wise decision.
La Rochelle is an extraordinary vineyard for numerous reasons. Its eighty-year old vines are planted at a density of 12,000 per hectare (10,000 gives one metre between each vine). The granite bedrock lies close enough to the surface to peak through in places. The consequences for us, the lucky drinkers, include a pronounced mineral character to wine. In a warm vintage like 2015, it renders La Rochelle reminiscent of something from the Northern Rhône – let’s not forget, Moulin à Vent is, geographically, much closer to Côte-Rôtie than the Côte d’Or.
In short, this is a cheerful, supremely enjoyable wine, with a rare degree of complexity and serious capacity to develop over the next decade and beyond.
Will Heslop, Buyer. Berry Bros. & Rudd

The 2013 Moulin-à-Vent Vieilles Vignes comes from 60- to 80-year-old vines. It has a very subtle and complex bouquet of blackberry, boysenberry and mineral scents that unfold in the glass.

The palate is medium-bodied with supple black fruit on the entry, but the back end exerts quite a grip. It does not quite have the panache of other vintages that I have tasted, but it is still an impressive Moulin-à-Vent that will repay those with the patience to cellar for several years.
Neal Martin - Wine Advocate - robertparker.com - Apr 2015

Superb even purple colour. The nose begins discreetly but then begins to expand wonderfully, a lovely smooth rich fruit throughout, total harmony, very lovely long and fine. In recent vintages Olivier has pursued a lighter touch in extraction, allowing the fruit from ancient vines to be expressed more graciously.

Recent vintages of Olivier’s Moulin-à-Vent wines have shown a move to a more elegant, less-extracted style, reducing the proportion of new oak That is not to say, however, that he has lost any of the classic pink granite expression for which Moulin-à-Vent is famous. From vines mostly planted in 1937, there is a real energy and concentration here. Rich red fruit combines with smoky pepper notes and a gorgeous floral perfume, while the stony tannins and incredible length point to great ageing potential. Drink 2020-2028.
Adam Bruntlett, Wine Buyer

The excellence of Cru Beaujolais is something I have held dear for some time, but its ageing potential was first brought to my attention when I was served two Moulin-à-Vent wines from 1961 and 1962 produced by Camille Giroud. The freshness and complexity of these wines was simply astonishing and I have since made it something of a personal mission to return these great wines to their rightful place in the cellars and on the tables of the most discerning wine drinkers. The wines in our offer cover a range of styles; whole-bunch, de-stemmed, oaked, unoaked, elegant and floral, dense and structured. This almost endless variety and versatility is what is most fascinating about Gamay grown on Beaujolais’s volcanic soils. What the wines have in common, however, is that they all offer excellent value for money and great drinking pleasure.

The 2013 Moulin-à-Vent La Roche was tighter on the nose that the 2013 Vieilles Vignes, but I think ultimately it will have more fruit concentration with those powerful bilberry and boysenberry scents intact. The palate is medium-bodied with a saline entry, a light grip to the tannin and a chalky, rather stern finish. It needs to just lighten up a tad, but there is still great potential locked into Thibault Liger-Belair's Beaujolais.
Neal Martin - Wine Advocate - robertparker.com - Dec 2015

A truly special cuvée, hence Thibault’s choice to release it only in magnum, les Vignes Centenaires hails from some of the oldest (a proportion planted in 1872) and best-sited vines in Beaujolais. In ’14, Thibault retained almost half the stems, and aged 40% of this cuvée in new wood, untoasted, to preserve the purity of fruit Thibault regards as one of its hallmarks, alongside extraordinary concentration and length. Best approached from 2019 onwards.
Will Heslop, Wine Buyer

This cuvée is produced from vines planted between 1870 and 1880 (pre-phylloxera, needless to say). Half the grapes are de-stemmed, and the wine raised in a large, tronconic cask. The result is reminiscent of the great wines of the Northern Rhône, with meaty, peppery base notes and a sublime floral lift. Its concentration, complexity and length are remarkable, and make for a wine that will reward patient cellaring for the next decade or more.

An assemblage from five separate plots on the classical pink granite rock, all from vines over 60 years old. This is tightly knit behind the opulence of the vintage, with good acidity to back up the richness of the fruit. There is a taut, mineral tension throughout.
(Jasper Morris MW, BBR Buyer)

This comes from old vines, planted in 1937, in one of the appellation’s best vineyard sites on red granitic sandstone. Medium-deep red-purple in colour, the wine could use another year or two in bottle before showing its full flair. The structure is perfect though to make a wine with great ageing capacity. Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Wine Director

Bright young red Gamay fruit on the nose, notes of strawberries with a mineral edge. Lovely on the palate too, the same light bright red fruit, crisp acidity and a mineral edge keeping it in check. Soft but noticeable tannins will ensure this ages very well, for up to a decade from the vintage. Drink now with food, but will be at its best from 2013.
Chris Pollington, Fine Wine
Serious, spicy deep red fruit on the nose. Lovely deep red fruit on the palate too, amazing depth for a Gamay, great balance with crisp acidity and cleansing fine tannins. A Big, beautiful Beaujolais for drinking now until 2018 at least.
Stuart Rae,  Fine Wine

Rich dark purple, previewing the opulent bouquet which includes some slightly chocolatey notes along with some mulberry fruit, before a crunchy mineral finish. Good weight and length.

Though happily established in Nuits-St Georges, Thibault trained at a viticultural college in Beaujolais where ancestors of his once had vines. Starting with the 2009 vintage, Thibault has begun to build up a portfolio of vineyards within the appellation of Moulin-à-Vent. His wines are some of the most fabulous we have ever tasted from the region. This is the first vintage made from two small plots of ancient vines, planted in 1879 and 1882. The vines appear to be ungrafted – a moment of pre-phylloxera history! No new barrels have been used, to allow the fruit to speak for itself.

With an intense, full purple colour, the bouquet has a lively, lifted quality far removed from simple Beaujolais. The wine is incredibly velvety on the palate, yet refreshed by excellent minerality. Very suave and long.

Thibault has made this cuvée since the 2009 vintage, having identified the site as special and isolated it from the blended Vieilles Vignes wine. The vines are at the bottom of the hill, on quite deep soils with a mix of blue/pink sandy granite and silt. The result is a rounded and soft expression of Moulin-à-Vent, arguably the most approachable of the range. There is a spicy, peppery Syrah note to the nose, then a touch of black olive and rich, concentrated red-black fruit, with sophisticated, silky tannins on the palate. Drink 2020-2026.
Adam Bruntlett, Wine Buyer

The excellence of Cru Beaujolais is something I have held dear for some time, but its ageing potential was first brought to my attention when I was served two Moulin-à-Vent wines from 1961 and 1962 produced by Camille Giroud. The freshness and complexity of these wines was simply astonishing and I have since made it something of a personal mission to return these great wines to their rightful place in the cellars and on the tables of the most discerning wine drinkers. The wines in our offer cover a range of styles; whole-bunch, de-stemmed, oaked, unoaked, elegant and floral, dense and structured. This almost endless variety and versatility is what is most fascinating about Gamay grown on Beaujolais’s volcanic soils. What the wines have in common, however, is that they all offer excellent value for money and great drinking pleasure.

The Vieilles Vignes is effectively Thibault’s Moulin-à- Vent business card, a blend of 10 parcels spread across seven hectares, with vines between 65 and 105 years of age. The 2016 vintage is the first for which he has used large foudres to raise the wine. There is a wonderful, old-vine intensity and concentration to this wine, great depth of flavour and power, but without reaching excess. The granite soil really comes through on the persistent, saline finish. Drink 2021-2029.
Adam Bruntlett, Wine Buyer

The excellence of Cru Beaujolais is something I have held dear for some time, but its ageing potential was first brought to my attention when I was served two Moulin-à-Vent wines from 1961 and 1962 produced by Camille Giroud. The freshness and complexity of these wines was simply astonishing and I have since made it something of a personal mission to return these great wines to their rightful place in the cellars and on the tables of the most discerning wine drinkers. The wines in our offer cover a range of styles; whole-bunch, de-stemmed, oaked, unoaked, elegant and floral, dense and structured. This almost endless variety and versatility is what is most fascinating about Gamay grown on Beaujolais’s volcanic soils. What the wines have in common, however, is that they all offer excellent value for money and great drinking pleasure.

This vineyard is situated on the south side of the Moulin-à-Vent appellation, on a terrace below a large amphitheatre. The name refers to the field ( champ) into which water runs (cours). When it rains heavily, the topsoil from the slope above is washed into this vineyard, leaving a fascinating mix of pink, blue and yellow granite soil around a metre deep. Thibault compares this to Chambolle-Musigny; soft on entry, but with a firm grip at the finish. Forty percent whole- cluster was used here, and 15 percent new oak. There is a touch of spice on the nose, along with both red and black fruit. There is a spicy aniseed profile, suave and supple fruit in the middle and a very granitic finish. Gorgeous. Drink 2021-2030.
Adam Bruntlett, Wine Buyer

The excellence of Cru Beaujolais is something I have held dear for some time, but its ageing potential was first brought to my attention when I was served two Moulin-à-Vent wines from 1961 and 1962 produced by Camille Giroud. The freshness and complexity of these wines was simply astonishing and I have since made it something of a personal mission to return these great wines to their rightful place in the cellars and on the tables of the most discerning wine drinkers. The wines in our offer cover a range of styles; whole-bunch, de-stemmed, oaked, unoaked, elegant and floral, dense and structured. This almost endless variety and versatility is what is most fascinating about Gamay grown on Beaujolais’s volcanic soils. What the wines have in common, however, is that they all offer excellent value for money and great drinking pleasure.