Domaine de la Madone Fleurie Niagara is a bold, rich and spicy wine made from 100% Gamay. There is a distinct black fruit aroma to the wine with touches of dark red fruit also. The spice notes are fantastic with chocolate, coffee granules and savoury notes. The grapes are sourced from a very sunny, south-east facing vineyard at the top of the hill in Fleurie which sits on darker, granite soil. The vineyards’ unique location gives an equally unique and enjoyable expression of Fleurie.
Domaine de la Madone, located in the Beaujolais Cru of Fleurie, is owned and run by Arnaud Despres. Arnaud is the 6th generation of his family to farm these famous hillside vineyards that take their name from the chapel which sits on top of the hill above the village of Fleurie. Arnaud’s 17 hectares, which sit on pink granite, enjoy some of the best growing conditions in the area and are blessed with exceptional amounts of sunlight - perfect for cultivating the Gamay grape. Arnaud now also makes a white wine from Viognier and there was talk of planting some Marsanne in the not-too-distant future. It should also be noted that the winery has a restaurant attached to it which is fantastic.
Picking is done manually, and the wines are fermented in whole bunches in concrete tanks to retain the freshness and terroir of the individual plots. The winery is built into the hillside so the wine can be moved from picking baskets to tanks and then to barrels via gravity. Some of the top cuvees are aged in oak barrels and there is some experimenting with concrete eggs. Filtration is very light and a small amount of sulphur is used.
