Yvon Metras

Yvon Métras wines at Fleurie in Beaujolais: natural and exclusive wines sought after by enthusiasts the world over

Wines from Domaine Yvon Métras: buy at the best price

Located in the heart of Fleurie, on the lieu-dit Grille-Midi, Domaine Yvon Métras is one of the most mythical and sought-after estates in Beaujolais. Over just five and a half hectares, this discreet winemaker crafts Gamays of such purity, texture, and depth that they are readily compared to the great reds of the Côte de Nuits. A pioneer of natural wine alongside Marcel Lapierre and a direct heir to the school of Jules Chauvet, he vinifies without chemicals, without additives, and with virtually no sulfur. Production is minuscule.

Read more
See more
Filters

Price

€120.00 - €140.00

Appellation

Estate

No choice available on this group

Color

Vintage

Parker WA rating

87 - 95

Burghound rating

89 - 89

Revue du Vin de France rating

No choice available on this group

Bettane & Desseauve rating

No choice available on this group

Prices drop

No choice available on this group

Download this list
There is 1 product.
Download this list
  • Name, A to Z
  • Name, Z to A
  • Price, low to high
  • Price, high to low
  • By quantity
  • Latest Arrivals
Yvon Métras Fleurie 2023 Magnum
1 in stock
131396
Red
150cl
Add to cart
Beaujolais | Fleurie

Yvon Métras Fleurie 2023 Magnum

€132.00 inc-VAT per bottle
€110.00 ex-VAT
The TOP winemakers of Beaujolais

History of Domaine Yvon Métras

Yvon Métras inherited the family estate in Grille-Midi, one of Fleurie’s finest hillsides, after working at the local cooperative winery. He made his first vintage on his own in 1988 and immediately broke with the practices of the time. The decisive influence came from his neighbor Marcel Lapierre, who had embraced the teachings of Jules Chauvet, the Beaujolais chemist and wine merchant considered the father of natural winemaking. By the late 1980s, Yvon Métras had adopted winemaking without sulfur, a radical decision at the time, and had abandoned chemical treatments in the vineyard altogether.

He quickly became Fleurie’s leading figure in natural winemaking and is often described as the unofficial fifth member of the “Gang of Four,” alongside Marcel Lapierre, Jean Foillard, Guy Breton, and Jean-Paul Thévenet. His reputation extends far beyond Beaujolais, though he has never sought the spotlight: he turns down certain markets, releases his wines sparingly, and lets word of mouth among enthusiasts carry his bottles. A guiding figure in the appellation, he has encouraged and supported many young winemakers establishing themselves in Fleurie, including the late Julie Balagny, who made her first vintage at his winery in 2009. Since 2014, his son Jules Métras has made wine under his own name from around three hectares of old family vines and leased plots, with the same exacting standards and rejection of artifice.

Terroirs and Vineyards of Domaine Yvon Métras

The vineyards are concentrated mainly in the Fleurie appellation, the most floral and elegant of Beaujolais’s ten crus. The historic plots lie in the Grille-Midi and La Madone sites above the village, where pink granite breaks down into highly free-draining, sandy decomposed granite. These poor, acidic soils, often just a few dozen centimeters deep above the bedrock, force the vines to send their roots deep and naturally result in very low yields. This combination of altitude, exposure, and decomposed granite gives the estate’s Fleurie wines their signature: radiant fruit, a silky texture, and distinctive saline minerality.

The estate also has a few plots in Moulin-à-Vent, a neighboring cru known for its structure and manganese-rich granitic soils, as well as vines in southern Beaujolais that supply its regional-appellation cuvées. The age of the vines is the property’s true heritage: the oldest, bush-trained and pruned short, are well over half a century old and provide the fruit for its most sought-after cuvées. All work is done by hand, without herbicides, pesticides, or synthetic fertilizers, with regular soil cultivation and rigorous shoot thinning. The grapes are harvested by hand into small crates and carefully sorted in the vineyard.

Winemaking at Domaine Yvon Métras

The method closely follows the Chauvet and Lapierre school. Whole grape clusters go into the vats without destemming, where carbonic maceration proceeds slowly at a controlled temperature. Fermentation starts spontaneously with indigenous yeasts alone, without added yeast, chaptalization, or any enological adjustments. Time on the skins is tailored to the vintage and each cuvée, with deliberately gentle extraction intended to preserve finesse rather than pursue power.

No sulfur is added during winemaking, and the amount added at bottling is either minute or zero, depending on the year and the lot. The wines are neither fined nor filtered. They age in old large-format oak casks and used barrels for varying lengths of time, refining their texture without ever imparting an oaky character. This exacting approach comes at a price: not every cuvée is made in every vintage, and when one is released, production is often only around three thousand bottles. The wines can be reserved in their youth and sometimes benefit from decanting, but they age magnificently for those willing to wait.

The Cuvées of Domaine Yvon Métras

Beaujolais 1ère Mise opens the range. Bottled first, it embodies the easy-drinking wine at its best: a pale, translucent color, vibrant aromas of fresh red fruit, raspberry, and red currant, and a lively, light, mouthwatering palate with the exceptionally fine tannins that are a hallmark of the estate. It is the ideal introduction to the estate’s wines, best enjoyed slightly chilled and without delay. Beaujolais 2ème Mise comes from the same vines but spends longer aging before bottling. It gains depth and substance, with more spice and dark fruit, a denser palate, and a longer finish, while retaining the easy-drinking appeal that defines the winemaker’s style.

The enigmatically named Madame Placard cuvée completes the series of regional-appellation wines. Made only occasionally and in tiny quantities, it comes from distinctive plots in southern Beaujolais and stands out for its wilder character, singular aromas, and caressing texture, as intriguing as it is seductive. It is a bottle for the curious, revealing the complete freedom Yvon Métras allows himself in the cellar.

Fleurie Le Printemps is the cru’s early-bottled cuvée. Made to be enjoyed young, it offers an immediately appealing Fleurie, full of iris, violet, and crisp red berries, with fresh acidity and a light structure that make it one of the most joyful wines in the range. Fleurie Vieilles Vignes is the heart of the production. Made from the oldest vines in Grille-Midi and La Madone, it impresses with its density and the velvety texture that tasters liken to great Burgundies: deep aromas of black cherry, peony, and sweet spice, a generous yet perfectly fresh palate, supple tannins, and an exceptionally long mineral finish. It improves over ten to fifteen years and ranks among the world’s most sought-after Fleurie wines.

Fleurie L’Ultime lives up to its name. Made only in great vintages and exclusively from the oldest vines in Grille-Midi, it is produced in quantities of just a few thousand bottles. The wine combines remarkable density with exceptionally pure aromas, where crystalline red fruit meets penetrating granitic minerality. Its balance of ripeness, structure, and elegance reaches a level rarely seen in Beaujolais, and it has the capacity to age for fifteen to twenty years. It is a wine for the table, pairing beautifully with slow-cooked lamb shoulder or game birds. Finally, the estate’s Moulin-à-Vent explores a more tannic, structured style, shaped by the metal-oxide-rich granite of this neighboring cru. Darker, firmer, and more austere in its youth, it reveals an almost Burgundian depth and bearing after a few years in the cellar, extending the house’s unmistakable signature to another terroir.

WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT US

5 good reasons to buy wines on V&M

...

EXPRESS DELIVERY

In a secure polystyrene packaging

...

INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING

Find out more about VAT-EX sale for outside EU deliveries

...

COLLECTION NEAR PARIS & VAT REFUND FOR TOURISTS

Free collection in our warehouse near central Paris (92)

...