Antoine Sunier

If the name sounds familiar, that's because we've been importing the wines of his older brother Julien Sunier for the past several vintages - some of the most popular wines we offer.

Antoine created his own domaine and produced his first wines in 2014, and has emerged from the cellar with two brilliant examples of why the Crus of Beaujolais are some of the most exciting wines on the planet today.

To change careers is virtually unheard of in France - it nearly never happens. Kids are assessed and put on a track at age 13 or 14 that they're expected to follow the rest of their lives. Antoine has done something very American by re-inventing himself.

He had a successful career as an IT consultant to large companies in France (including big Burgundy houses Drouhin and Bouchard.) But like many of us, he could not resist the siren song of "the wine thing", and decided to start from scratch with a small domaine in Morgon and Regnié. Following his brother's model, while treading his own path at the same time, Antoine has burst onto the scene with lovely wines that are likely the best values we've ever seen.

Antoine, left, with his brother Julien - rockin' the Beaujolais

The approach is pretty much the same as his brother Julien's - intense work in the vineyards,  organic farming, no chemicals, and essentially zero intervention in the cellar. Vinification is 100% whole-cluster in open-top tanks, and élévage is in used Burgundy barrels. No chaptalization, no additions, just pure fruit expression. These are wines of grace and beauty, and they offer astonishing complexity.