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    Granite

    A rock that cooled deep underground, and the soil of the Beaujolais crus.

    Granite in the atlas

    1. Atlas regionCôte-Rôtie and Hermitage
    2. Atlas regionAlsace
    3. Atlas regionWachau
    4. Atlas regionStellenbosch

    Atlas regions where this rock appears in the text or the soil profile.

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    What it is

    Granite is an igneous rock formed when molten rock cools slowly deep underground. It contains quartz, mica and feldspar.1

    granite
    gravel
    clay

    Schematic: how fast water drains through the rock. A qualitative comparison based on the sources on this page.

    For the vine

    Geologist Alex Maltman lists granite with gravel and chalk as rocks that can give vines good drainage while storing enough water.2 In the Beaujolais crus, granite soils are described as poor and acidic; where the rock has broken down to sand, they drain quickly.3

    Morgon is mostly pink granite, and Chiroubles is almost entirely pink granite, thin and sandy in places.3

    Sources

    1. Rock set general cards (education resource). The Geological Society of London. level 4 · checked 2026-10-13
    2. On rocky ground: The science of soil and wine taste (Prof. Alex Maltman). Decanter, 2018. level 4 · checked 2026-10-13
    3. The 10 crus of Beaujolais: what do they share, how do they differ. Wine Scholar Guild, 2025. level 4 · checked 2026-10-13