WTN: Jean-Paul Brun "Le Ronsay" Beaujolais

[Robin Garr]

I'm a big fan of J.P. Brun's Beaujolais style, but his wines are hard to find and typically justify high-end prices by the standard of Beaujolais. This one, made from young vines, is absolutely delicious and a steal in the middle teens. In a word, "Yum."

Jean-Paul Brun 2022 "Le Ronsay" Beaujolais ($15.99)

Made with organically grown Gamay grapes from young vines, Jean-Paul Brun 2022 "Le Ronsay" Beaujolais shows an attractive bright red-cherry color in the glass. Ripe cherries and fresh red berries mingle in the aroma with a spicy back note of floral black pepper. The flavor is full of juicy red fruit and perky acidity that persists in a very long finish. Fermented in concrete vats with never a touch of oak, it's a fruit cocktail but not a fruit bomb: A balanced, delicious young Beaujolais from J. P. Brun. 12.5% alcohol. U.S. importer: LDM Wines LLC, NYC; Louis/Dressner Selections (Dec. 27, 2023)

FOOD MATCH: It's good enough to enjoy on its own but like its cousins from nearby Burgundy, should be a versatile pairing with a range of foods from pork or poultry to egg or bean dishes or almost anything mushrooms. It was a delight with a deeply flavored mushroom risotto.

WHEN TO DRINK: While it's possible that its Burgundian style could shepherd it into something fascinating with time in a good cellar, it's so fresh and delicious now, and so affordably priced, that it seems silly not to buy it and drink it up.

VALUE:
This is a spectacularly good basic Beaujolais, and Wine-Searcher.com's $18 average U.S. retail is more than fair.

WEB LINK:
Here's a fact sheet on Jean-Paul Brun and his wines from importer LDM Wines. There's also a transcript of an interview with J.P. Brun about the 2022 vintage at this link.

FIND THIS WINE ONLINE:
Check prices and find vendors for Jean-Paul Brun "Le Ronsay" Beaujolais on Wine-Searcher.com.

Follow this Wine-Searcher link to read more about Jean-Paul Brun's Domaine des Terres Dorees find listings for a portfolio of wines from this producer.

Read about Beaujolais at this Wine-Searcher link and browse dozens of other Beaujolais wines and their vendors.

Thanks, a Brun fan, but have never seen this bottling. Doesn't seem to be in NY, but in CT. But pricing not significantly cheaper for me than L'Ancien. But if I was in a store that had it would love to try.

[Jenise]

Ditto what Dale said.

Robin, any intel on what "Le Ronsay" means? Is it French for something to do wtih young vines or a vineyard name?

[Robin Garr]

Ditto what Dale said.

Robin, any intel on what "Le Ronsay" means? Is it French for something to do wtih young vines or a vineyard name?

Jenise, it’s apparently the vineyard. A patch of youngish (15 years) vines that Brun has started vinifying separately for just a few years.

[Robin Garr]

Thanks, a Brun fan, but have never seen this bottling. Doesn't seem to be in NY, but in CT. But pricing not significantly cheaper for me than L'Ancien. But if I was in a store that had it would love to try.

Dale, my local wine shop guy got them for me and figured his markup, but this one was $15.99 while the 2022 L'Ancien (which is in the tasting queue) was $21.99. Not a different order of magnitude, but a noticeable difference in my mind.