Lambert, Patrick 2021 Chinon Les Deuzelles

The wines of Patrick Lambert have been a staple in our shop for some time now. His wines are classic, expressive, and made exclusively from his organically farmed estate. The 'Deuzelles' is selected from his 25-30  year old  vines planted on gravel, clay with limestone and silex, and sandy soils. The juice is fermented in concrete vats for 15-18 days, then aged in old barriques for 3 to 6 months. This is one of the best values I can find for excellent Cabernet Franc. This bottling is denser and more concentrated than the 'Gourmandises' but just as pleasurable and easy-drinking. The nose has notes of blackberry and raspberry bramble, freshly turned soil, and savory herbs, and the on the palate the wine is juicy with supple tannins. This was lovely when I tasted it on day one, and even better on day two, so if you have the time, give this some air before you enjoy!

Lambert, Patrick 2018 Chinon Vieilles Vignes

The delicious Chinon Vieilles Vignes of Patrick Lambert is from 55 - 60 year-old vines on sandy clay soils over limestone. Hand harvested and fermented with wild yeasts, as are all of Lambert's wines, the Vieilles Vignes gets 12 months of aging in old barrels. The wine shows a deep red/black color and ripe blackberry and strawberry aromas with pepper, earth and citrus. The palate is deep and ripe in 2018, showing earthy blackberry and strawberry compote with prune and bitter chocolate and firm structure. This is a complex, old-fashioned Chinon that will accompany roast chicken and anything off the grill, served a bit cool. Age for five to ten years for a mature experience. David Lillie

Chateau Favray 2021 Pouilly-Fumé

Located in the north-east corner of Pouilly-Fumé we find Chateau Favray, an ancient farm with abandonned vineyards that was ressurected by Quentin David and family begining in 1981. The soils in this corner of the appellation are Oxfordian limestone of Villiers and hard grey limestone of Tonnerre with limestone pebbles and fossilzed shells and corals. The 2021 has great energy with bright grapefruit citrus, peach, white flowers and fresh cut grass on the nose. The palate is clean and focused with a mineral core and vibrant acidity giving a sense of power while still feeling light and pure. It's a wonderful value and would pair nicely with seafood or lighter vegetable dishes while being equally enjoyable on its own. Jeff DiLorenzo

Chevalerie 2015 Bourgueil Les Galichets

The Chevalerie "Galichets" vineyard is on mid-slope Turonian limestone with clay and alluvial sand and gravel topsoil, rich in silex; the vines average about 60 years of age - similar to the "Chevalerie" parcel but a bit lower on the slope, giving a wine that is more open and easy for early drinking.  The 2015 vintage is excellent, with a bit more ripeness and lower acidity than 2014, while retaining the core of minerals and acidity always found in the Chevalerie wines. The aromas of black raspberry and blackberry fruit are ripe and floral. The palate is dense and silky, very mineral with ripe red and black fruits and a clean vibrant finish. Still quite youthful, but drinking beautifully now.  David Lillie

Guion 2018 Bourgueil Cuvée Prestige

 2018 brings us another great Cuvée Prestige from Stéphane Guion in Bourgueil, whose domaine has been certified organic since the 1960s. From vines averaging 45 years old on thin topsoils of sandy clay over limestone (tuffau jaune) in Benais, a terroir that produces some of the most elegant and age-worthy Bourgueils. 2018 is a great vintage for Loire reds, despite the very warm and humid spring that brought attacks of mildew. The summer was perfect, warm and dry, without spikes of heat, and the soils retained enough moisture to bring freshness to the very ripe grapes. Tasted with Stéphane in February 2020, the 2018 Prestige showed elegant intensely perfumed aromas of red and black fruit liqueurs. The palate was complex and earthy, very calcaire, dense but not heavy with beautifully supple ripe red and black fruits, with a long finish of saline and mineral flavors quite present below the sappy fruit. We look forward to a more thorough tasting after the wine rests from its voyage, but it's quite clear that this will be delicious to drink as a young wine, and - although it may seem crazy to cellar a $17 wine for 20 to 30 years - those that do will be rewarded with a unique expression of this great terroir. I'm hoping to live to be 100 to have that experience myself!  David Lillie

Pépière 2021 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Les Gras Moutons

(Arrives 5/23)  Les Gras Moutons is a great parcel on gneiss, in layers that permit a deep penetration by the vines, with sandy clay and amphibolite stones. The vines are at the top of a hill and on the south facing slope overlooking the Maine. (The name, by the way, does not refer to fat sheep, despite their presence on the label, but rather in local dialect, to the hilltop vineyard site.) This terroir produces lovely, classic Muscadet to drink over the next 5 to 8 years."It has a more perfumed and precise style than the granite cuvées (in 2021), although the wafting aromatics of crushed chalk and white peach feel familiar. The palate has a nice tension though, with a polished richness countered by a chalky oyster-shell freshness, with a white-peach purity. It is pervaded by a fine grip, with firm phenolics, and modest acidity."(winedoctor)

Legrand, Clotilde 2020 Saumur Blanc A L'Écart

The incredibly delicious Clotilde Legrand Saumur Blanc "A L'Ecart" is 100% Chenin Blanc grown on Turonien limestone soils in Saumur-Champigny. Hand harvested, vinification without SO2 (minimal addition before bottling) aged sur-lie in oval cuves and 2 year-old barrels. An absolutely delightful nose full of minerality, floral notes and tree fruit. The palate is dry and full without being lush; medium bodied with neutral barrel extract, vibrant acidity and more minerality and tree fruit. An excellent winter weight chenin without any heavy handedness, perfect for richer winter dishes such as Blanquette de Veau or Turbot Veronique. Giselle Hamburg

Lambert, Patrick 2021 Chinon Gourmandise

"Gourmandise" is a beautiful "drink young" cuvée from Patrick Lambert, made from Cabernet Franc vines grown on sandy gravel soils near the Vienne. The wine shows a bright black/red color with lush high-toned aromas of crushed strawberry and black raspberry, with hints of citrus and pepper. The palate is supple and bright with luscious black raspberry and red currant fruit, quite lush and supple but still with refreshing  acidity. Serve this lovely wine quite cool with charcuterie and grilled chicken, pork or burgers, it's a perfect quaffing Cab Franc to drink over the next  year or two...  David Lillie

Chateau Favray 2019 Pouilly-Fumé "Tonnerre"

 The 2021  Pouilly-Fumé "Tonnerre" is from a unique terroir on hard grey linestone of Tonnerre, that gives a more structured and age-worthy wine. More textbook stylistically than the entry level Pouilly-Fume, The nose is less grassy and grapefruity and more mineral with a hint of mint. The palate is fuller and rounder while still exhibiting bright acidity and stony minerality. Drink this dense and vibrant Pouilly-Fumé over the next ten years. Giselle Hamburg

Baudry 2020 Chinon Cuvée Domaine

Back in stock, not much left!  The Baudry Chinon "Domaine" is always one of our favorite reds from the Loire Valley and it's a sensational value as well.   All Cabernet Franc of course, a blend of 75% from a parcel in St. Louans, where the thin clay over limestone soils give earthy well-structured wines, with 25% from gravel soils near Cravant, giving supple fruit and freshness. Organic farming, wild-yeast fermentation, aging in 5 to 10 year-old wooden vats and cement with almost no added SO2. The 2020 shows a pretty red/black color with bright rim. The aromas are quite floral and bright, a pretty melange of boysenberry, black raspberry and tart cherry, very pure with hints of earth and pepper. The palate is supple, sapid and ripe and the tannins are firm. At 13% alcohol, the balance seems perfect. Firm acidity and mineral flavors are mostly hidden under the beautiful melange of ripe red and black fruits. This is a beautiful "Cuvée Domaine" that is sensational now, served slightly cool, and that will cellar ten years and more due to the firm acidity. We loved the rather brawny 2019 which needs a few more years to drink at its best - drink the 2020 while you wait but put some away as well. Very highly recommended, and thanks to the Baudrys for producing such honest and soulful wines. David Lillie

Guion 2019 Bourgueil Cuvée Domaine

The World's Best Value in Cabernet Franc is back! - This is another beautiful wine from the shy and affable Stéphane Guion who is quietly making some of the best wines in Bourgueil. His 2019 Cuvèe Domaine is from not-so-young (15 to 40 year-old) vines, mostly on clay/limestone terroir in Benais and is equal to the superb 2018 with perhaps a bit more brightness to the fruit. The wine shows a vibrant black/red color and lush aromas of raspberry and blackberry confit, dark chocolate and violets - very deep and ripe but still bright with earthy hints as well. The palate is medium-bodied and very fresh with firm acidity and chalky, saline mineral flavors framing the very ripe, chalky red and black fruits, which continue in the long sappy finish. Drink now, served cool, with grilled chicken and pork, charcuterie, green vegetables and mild cheeses, or hold 5 to 8 years for a velvety mature experience. This is a beautiful wine and a sensational value! David Lillie

Pellé 2021 Menetou-Salon Blanc "Morogues"

The "Morogues" cuvee originates from seven parcels which total 12 hectares on the Kimmeridgian slopes, the highest in the appellation. The vines average 30 years old and the fermentation is in a mix of stainless steel and wooden cuves. This jumps from the glass upon opening, the nose full of pink grapefruit, daffodil and fresh green herbs. On the palate, this has terrific weight and balance, with more grapefruit, orange sherbet, and little hints of fennel frond. The finish is incredibly stony, with plenty of dry extract. This is my kind of Sauvignon - a little bit of grape and a whole lot of soil. Excellent and incredible value. Sam Ehrlich