Top Beaujolais negociant Georges Duboeuf introduced the first Beaujolais from his own estate on Wednesday.

It is named Château des Capitans and is a Juliénas. It will be sold only in restaurants in America and France, Duboeuf said.

Until he acquired Château des Capitans for an undisclosed price last summer, Duboeuf had never marketed his own chateau-bottled wine, he told decanter.com.

Presenting the 2003 and 2004 vintages of Château des Capitans in New York, Duboeuf said at the present time he did not expect it to go to the United Kingdom. The 2004’s base price will be about US$15 in New York.

A négociant, Duboeuf not only makes wine from purchased grapes and buys finished wine, which he sells under his name, he also markets Beaujolais from independent growers. They include Domaine des Quatre Vents in Fleurie and Jean Descombes in Morgon.

The 7ha of vines, grown at Château des Capitans on ‘terroir of schist with hints of clay,’ will yield 5,000 cases annually, he said.

Les Vins Georges Duboeuf, in Romaneche-Thorins, produces 25m bottles yearly, at least 10% of the region’s production

Written by Howard G Goldberg

Howard G Goldberg
Howard G Goldberg
Decanter Magazine, Food & Wine Writer

Howard G Goldberg is a wine writer and critic based in New York City. He made his name writing about wine for The New York Times, where he worked for 34 years. He has written various books on food and wine, including Prime: The Complete Prime Rib Book and All About Wine Cellars. He compiled The New York Times Book of Wine – a collection of the publication’s best wine articles.