Domaine Cousin-Leduc "Yamag" 2023

100% Gamay from old vines planted in 1966. The grapes are hand-harvested, brought to the winery by a horse, and undergo carbonic maceration to create a light, fresh, and zippy example of an endlessly drinkable Beaujolais. Bottled unfined, unfiltered, zero SO2 added.

Forever a rebel against the French classification system, Olivier named this cuvée “Yamag” — reversing the letters of Gamay — after a new law passed banning winemakers from naming the grape on the label of table wines. Clever as ever, it’s Olivier’s way of suggesting the grape without breaking the law. 

Olivier Cousin cultivates 12 hectares of vines in and around Martigne Briand, which is nestled in the fertile and generous Loire Valley. His vineyards are planted with Gamay, Cabernet Franc, Grolleau and Chenin Blanc. Since 2012 Olivier has passed on the production of Gamay, Grolleau, Chenin Blanc, and Pineau d’aunis to his son Baptiste. Olivier, in semi-retirement now, only works with Cabernet Franc, which was always his favorite grape to vinify.

All of the wines Cousin crafts are certified biodynamic. He plows his vineyards with his horse, Joker, and only uses indigenous yeasts and shuns enzymes, sugar, and sulfites. Cousin crafts wines that celebrate the harmony that exists between man and nature. His hard work and understanding of the vines in his small Loire Valley vineyard represent some of the finest natural wines that are currently available in the United States.