Jean Foillard is a member of the Gang of Four. No, that’s not an underground East Village band from the 1980s, but four guys who make really good wine in the Beaujolais Cru of Morgon.... Read More

Jean Foillard is a member of the Gang of Four. No, that’s not an underground East Village band from the 1980s, but four guys who make really good wine in the Beaujolais Cru of Morgon. They are linked together by two things. Two dudes, actually. The first is Jules Chauvet, who figured out how to make clean and pure wine in Beaujolais without the use of sulphur. Chauvet never really made it big in America as a winemaker; Beaujolais just wasn't considered a "great" wine back in the '80s. But he taught Foillard — and the three others, Lapierre, Breton, and Thevenet — how to do it themselves.

The second dude is Kermit Lynch, who fell in love with the magic of what they were doing, back when all his neighbors in California were drinking Chardonnay with ice cubes. To this day, Kermit imports all four producers. They're all great, of course… But we all have our favorites. If like many of us you prefer Beaujolais with depth and age-ability, then Foillard is probably your fave.