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Two of our most favorite Loire Valley wines return in today's email: the Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet "Château Thébaud" and Stéphan Guion's magnificent and miraculously priced Bourgueil "Domaine" now called "Candide."
2019 Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet "Château Thébaud"
The Château Thébaud comes from old vines in vineyards with great terroir on slopes overlooking the river Maine. The granite here (Granite de Château Thébaud, oddly enough) is fissured and permeable by the vine roots which have access to water during dry spells and absorb micro-nutrients along the way. 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2014 here were among the best of the vintage in Muscadet and the 2019 will stand out as well due to the combination of density and minerality with the firm acidity and great ripeness of this very good vintage year for Muscadet - those of you lucky enough to have the 2014 in your cellar understand just what a special wine this is. Remi Branger points out that the 2019, although it was a hot, dry growing season, shows more acidity and structure than the 2015, for example, making this a great candidate for cellaring. The 2019 was kept on the lees for 40 months. Our tasting in February revealed a superb Muscadet, not marked by the heat of the vintage, showing crystalline white fruit and stone flavors with firm acidity, fantastic purity, density and length. Of course this will offer brilliant drinking as a young wine, but try to put some away for ten years at least...
2019 Domaine de la Pepiere "Gorges" We opened a bottle of this last week and didn't finish it until 3 days later - wow, what a great glass of Muscadet that was! Not more mature, really, but with fabulous density and mineral/stone flavors that were quite astonishing - put some of this Gabbro magic in the cellar along with the Château Thébaud! And of course it's always good to have some "Gras Moutons" in the fridge...
The Superb Bourgueils of Stéphane Guion in Benais
Every year we taste with the shy and friendly Stéphane Guion, either at his cellar or in Angers at "La Levée de la Loire," and every year we come to the same conclusion - these are among the most authentic and delicious red wines of the Loire, regardless of price. The estate has been certified organic since 1965 (one of the first in France) which of course contributes to the firm acidity and great terroir expression always found in Stéphane's wines. The vineyard is in conversion to Biodynamic farming beginning in 2021.
New this year: The Cuvée Domaine as of 2020 is now the "Cuvée Candide" and the 2020 vintage is an astonishing wine! The Candide is from 15 to 40 year-old vines, on clay/limestone terroir in Benais and is equal to the superb 2018 and 2019, perhaps even better! The balance is just perfect at 12% alcohol. The wine shows a deep, vivid black/red color with bright rim with intense, pure aromas of cassis, black raspberry and blackberry confit (a little bighter than the 2019), stone and violets - very deep and ripe but still bright with earth and minerals as well.... You get the idea. We have good stock, so should you!
And...drum roll, please - Stéphane has made his first ever methode traditionnelle sparking rosé from Cabernet Franc vines in a new parcel on clay/limestone soils in Benais. We can't say that it's equal to the Marie-Courtin "Indulgence," but it's a delightful wine! The color is a pretty very pale pink with subtle aromas of raspberry and earth; the palate is refreshing and dry, but not too dry, with a creamy mousse and classic Cabernet Franc berry fruit and mineral flavors that linger in the finish. $15.99! (The label commemorates (?) a monstrous wolf or wolves who attacked hundreds of people around the village of Benais in Bourgueil in 1693, if we believe the folk-tale. Google "La Bête de Benais" for many accounts in French and English)
Returning from Stéphane: 2018 Cuvée Prestige (will be called Cuvée Authentique beginning with the 2019) Tasted with Stéphane last winter, the 2018 is beginning to soften and open slightly, showing very floral, perfumed aromas, with great length. Beautiful now or in ten to fifteen years. 2018 Cuvée Deux Monts From "Grand Mont" and "Petit Mont" high on the slope in Bourgueil. This showed beautifully in February with great material, complexity and length - yes, it's enjoyable now, best to wait ten years, enjoy until 2043. (Note: Beginning in 2020, this wine will be from "Grand Mont" alone, Stéphane is putting the juice from "Petit Mont" into the "Authentique) 2020 Bourgueil Rosé We're very happy to have the 2020 back in the store, what a great glass of Cab Franc Rosé! Not for sipping on the beach, but for enjoying with food all year round. The wine shows bright strawberry/raspberry aromas with citrus, rose and earth. Raspberry, blood orange, melon and earthy flavors on the bone-dry palate which is framed in firm acidity and saline minerals....Yum!
"Working in the vineyard is a task that requires a lot of time, patience and also experience. In order to perpetuate the family tradition and to offer quality wines, we till our vines from winter until the beginning of summer. For the rest of the year, they are worked only underfoot and we retain green cover throughout the vines. Finally comes the time of harvest, which is always done manually, for greater precision. Stéphane conducts the vinification with indigenous yeasts, without ever using any input (sulphur, yeasts, etc.). All this know-how and this work allow us to offer wines of character and authenticity, in the image of our terroir." - Guion website
Wines are in stock, please allow until Tuesday 5/23 for pick-up or shipping. 10% case/mixed case discount applies except to sparkling.
Arrives 5/23 (Retasted in September 2022 - the wine is showing beautifully, with fabulous complexity of fruit and mineral notes, with a great finish - drink over the next 2 years.) 50 years of organic farming and great traditional winemaking give this refreshing, perfectly balanced rosé from our friend Stephane Guion in Bourgueil. The wine shows bright strawberry/raspberry aromas with citrus, rose and earth. Raspberry, blood orange, melon and earthy flavors on the bone-dry palate which is framed in firm acidity and saline minerals. This is a real rosé of terroir, dry and balanced with moderate alcohol which needs a bit of time to open up. Drink now and through 2024, with grilled tuna, roast chicken, quiche lorraine, grilled pork and charcuterie.
Guion 2019 VdF Methode Traditionnelle Rosé "Bête de Benais"
(Arrives 5/23) Stéphane has made his first ever methode traditionnelle sparking rosé from Cabernet Franc vines in a new parcel on clay/limestone soils in Benais. We can't say that it's equal to the Marie-Courtin "Indulgence," but it's a delightful wine! The color is a pretty very pale pink with subtle aromas of raspberry and earth; the palate is refreshing and dry, but not too dry, with a creamy mousse and classic Cabernet Franc berry fruit and mineral flavors that linger in the finish. $15.99! (The label commemorates (?) a monstrous wolf or wolves who attacked hundreds of people around the village of Benais in Bourgueil in 1693, if we believe the folk-tale. Google "La Bête de Benais" for many accounts in French and English)
Guion 2018 Bourgueil Cuvée Prestige
(Arrives 5/23) 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 2019 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Cru Château Thébaud
(Arrives 5/23) The Château Thébaud comes from old vines in vineyards with great terroir on slopes overlooking the river Maine. The granite here (Granite de Château Thébaud, oddly enough) is fissured and permeable by the vine roots which have access to water during dry spells and absorb micro-nutrients along the way. 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2014 here were among the best of the vintage in Muscadet and the 2019 will stand out as well due to the combination of density and minerality with the firm acidity and great ripeness of this very good vintage year for Muscadet. Our tasting in February revealed a superb Muscadet, not marked by the heat of the vintage, showing crystalline white fruit and stone flavors with firm acidity, fantastic purity, density and length. Of course this will offer briliant drinking as a young wine, but try to put some away for ten years at least...
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)
Guion 2020 Bourgueil Cuvée Candide
(Arrives 5/23) This is another beautiful wine from the shy and affable Stéphane Guion who is quietly making some of the best wines in Bourgueil. His 2020 Cuvèe Candide (Formerly Domaine) is from not-so-young (15 to 40 year-old) vines, on clay/limestone terroir in Benais and is equal to the superb 2018 and 2019 perhaps even better! The balance is just perfect at 12% alcohol. The wine shows a deep, vivid black/red color with bright rim with intense, pure aromas of cassis, black raspberry and blackberry confit (a little bighter than the 2019), stone and violets - very deep and ripe but still bright with earth and minerals as well. The palate is medium-bodied, finely textured, sappy and very fresh with firm acidity and chalky, saline mineral flavors framing the very pure blackberry and black cherry liqueur fruits, which continue in the long chalky finish, which somehow remains light and balanced. Great wine! 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 brilliant wine, especially given the ridiculous price - enjoy! David Lillie
Guion 2018 Bourgueil Cuvée Deux Monts
(Arrives 5/23) From 70-80 year-old vines in "Petits Monts" and "Grand Monts" towards the top of the slope above Benais, facing roughly south-west, clay over Turonien limestone (tuffeau, craie micacée). 18-month élevage ; 40% in cuve inox, 20% in one new 400 liter barrel, 20% in one-year and 20% in two-year old barrels, assembled two months before bottling. This is the terroir giving the most elegant and age-worthy Bourgueils and 2018 is a magnificent vintage for this wine! Tasted July 2022, the wine showed a deep red/black color and lush aromas of ripe cassis and black raspberry with hints of brown spice and oak. The palate is a lovely combination of ripe black fruits and bright acidity, dense and supple with graphite and saline minerals under the deep fruits in the very long finish. Forward enough to enjoy now, this will need time to unfold its mysteries and will be a very complex and beautiful mature wine, best to wait 5 years then drink until 2042 and beyond.
Pépière 2019 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Gorges Cru Communal
(Arrives 5/23) We're ecstatic to have another vintage of this superb new Muscadet from Pépière. The product of an exchange of juice with Fred Lailler at Domaine Bregeon from a tiny parcel of old vines on Gabbro bedrock with clay rich in quartz. The wine undergoes a slow fermentation and is then aged 36 months on the lees. (Marc Ollivier considers this a favorite of Pepiere's bottlings, along with the Château-Thébaud.) The 2019 Gorges is a complex, dense and beautifully structured wine, with a bit more brightness and acidity than than the superb 2015. The Gabbro terroir brings unique aromas showing almond, smoke and petrol notes in addition to stone, pear, quince and mushroom. The palate is dense and intensely mineral with ripe pear and quince, earth, almond, anise and citrus notes, with stone, lemon peel and white fruits lingering in the very long finish. If drinking young please give the wine a lengthy decant to release the unique character of this wine - best to wait at least 5 - 6 years before opening, then enjoy until 2042 and beyond. David Lillie