Pascal Joulin and Domaine Michel Vattan

Autumn colours@Maimbray

I was very pleased yesterday to get an email from Pascal Joulin, who I first met around 1995 when he was working for the La Cave des Hauts de Seyr in the Coteaux Charitois. He was making Chardonnay from vines planted in the Montaillant vineyard and Pinot Noir from vines at Saint-Lay. I think I first met Pascal in London at a tasting, impressed by the wines I later went to visit him at Hauts de Seyr. Much later La Cave des Hauts de Seyr ran into financial problems and in 2005 it was bought by Alphonse Mellot who renamed it Les Pénitents.

In 1998 Pascal moved on to Domaine des Granges in Suilly la Tour. Here he made vin de pays de la Nièvre as the property is just outside the Pouilly-Fumé appellation. In 2002 he moved to AC Sancerre to Domaine Michel Vattan in Mainbray. When Michel Vattan retired in 2008 Pascal bought the domaine, which has 7.80 hectares of Sauvignon Blanc and 1.30 ha of Pinot Noir. This year at the Decanter World Wine Awards we gave the 2010 Cuvée Argile from Domaine Michel Vattan a bronze medal. In the UK his wines are imported by The Sampler.

I think the last time I saw Pascal was when he was at Domaine des Granges, so I'm delighted he has made contact and brought me up to date and I look forward to meeting him again when I'm in Sancerre.

2009 Sancerre, Pascal Jolivet

Rich, opulent – ripe yellow plum and peach – but less aromatic than one would normally expect with Sancerre, this is a typical 2009. The label indicates 13% alcohol and, although this is not unbalanced I suspect that it is a good 13.5%. This is really a Sancerre to drink with food rather than to serve as an aperitif. A little smoked salmon, for instance, cuts the opulence a little and reveals more acidity. With age it may be that this 2009 and others, just like 2003 will lose some of its puppy weight making the acidity more apparent and giving this Sancerre more zip.

Pascal Jolivet's winery is just off the road between Saint-Satur and Chavignol. He has nearly 50 hectares of vines (49.50 to be exact) and has vineyards in Bué, Verdigny and Sainte-Gemme. For this cuvée 50% of grapes come from limestone soils (caillottes), 30% clay and limestone (argile calcere) and 20% flint (silex). I assume that, like other producers, his vineyards in Bué were hit by the hail storms, while those in Verdigny and Saint-Gemme escaped.

Available from Winerack@£14.99 a bottle.

2009 In Poculis, Sancerre, Olivier Thierriaz

This is another from Wine Rack's Loire list and in comparison to the other three already reviewed I'm not at all enthusiastic about this Sancerre that comes from Olivier Thierriaz, a négociant based in Maltaverne, small village between Cosne and Pouilly-sur-Loire. This 2009 is short, unbalanced with quite harsh, unripe acidity. It is possible that this was a poor bottle, although it wasn't corked. Equally it may reflect the difficulty for négociants to source wine in a severely hail affected vintage. If it was a poor bottle it further makes the case for putting Sancerre into screwcaps.   

The back label

Wine Rack: a couple of Loires – 2009 Sancerre + 2008 red Haut-Poitou

2009 Sancerre Domaine Gérard Millet

This is a typically rich example of a 2009 Sancerre from the sector that was badly affected by hail with overall yields often well below 30 hl/ha. Gérard Millet's domaine is in Bué and this Sancerre is distributed through Rémy Pannier, part of the Saumur based Ackerman group. The Millet 2009 is lightly aromatic with grassy aromas, mouthfllling yellow plum fruit but it still has some freshness in the finish. Although Loire classicists are likely to prefer the lean 2007s and 2008s, this Sancerre will please those who like some roundness in their Sancerres. My guess is that the 2010 Millet will again be leaner and more minerally.

The 2009 Domaine Millet, Sancerre is £11.49@Wine Rack.

**

2008 Haut Poitou – Pinot Noir, Gamay and Cabernet Franc

This is a typically easy-drinking red from the Western Loire's most southerly vineyard with its bright red fruit flavours and acidity – typical of the 2008 vintage. It ought to keep two or three years and the acidity is likely to soften, although I think this is best drunk young to enjoy the bright fruit. Produced by the Cave du Haut-Poitou in Neuville-de-Poitou.

Haut-Poitou was promoted by the INAO along with the Côtes d'Auvergne from VDQS to appellation contrôlée status on 16th November. Both decisions await ratification by the French government.

The 2008 Pinot Noir, Gamay, Cabernet Franc, Haut Poitou is £6.99@Wine Rack.

Sancerre: Monday 4 October 2010

Les Aristides 2009 Sancerre Blanc

As forecast it has been wet during the night and now (8am) there is steady rain. Hopefully it will clear up later in the day. Tuesday is forecast to be better.

We are staying at Hotel Les Monts Damnes, the very comfortable hotel run by Karine and Jean-Marc Bourgeois in Chavignol. We had a very good meal here last night. As I often do, I chose the tagliatelle with the fresh goat’s cheese sauce, which is always wonderful and really Jean-Marc’s signature dish.


We drank the 2009 Vieilles Vignes Les Aristides, Sancerre Blanc from Thomas Labaille (Chavignol) – an attractive combination of richly textured fruit and mineral acidity. Then a silky mid-weight 2008 red Sancerre from Yves Martin (Chavignol), which confirmed the good impression I have of this small estate now run by Pierre-Yves Martin.

2009 Sancerre, François Crochet

2009 Sancerre, François Crochet

I have already posted about the 2009 Sancerre from François Crochet – it was one of my top white Sancerres from the tasting at the Bureau du Centre in early June. See here. We drank a bottle of it with friends in Pauillac on Friday night and again it showed brilliantly. It is always impressive when people recognise how good a wine is spontaneously without any prompting at all. This was the case with François' 2009 Sancerre – lovely mineral character and precision of fruit.

Marcigoué
18300 Bué

Tél. 02 48 54 21 77
Fax 02 48 54 25 10

E-mail : francoiscrochet@wanadoo.fr

2009 Sancerre Blanc: results of tasting in early June

Pickers in Vincent Grall's Sancerre vineyard late September 2009

This post continues the results from the tasting held at the Bureau du Centre in early June. Unsurprisingly the biggest contingent of wines tasted from the three appellations – Quincy, Pouilly-Fumé and Sancerre – were from the latter. A total of 70 Sancerres tasted blind – 63 vinified without any wood, while seven were fermented and aged in wood.

As I have already indicated on posts on Pouilly-Fumé and Quincy, the Sancerres were more variable and less homogeneous than the two other appellations. The summer hail damage seen in the Bué, Chavignol and Sancerre sectors may well have been a factor here for a number of the Sancerres showed a lack of freshness allied with very ripe fruit and high levels of alcohol. This may prove to be a stage they are passing through. In the 2003 vintage a number of Sancerres were initially dismissed as lacking acidity and zip. However after several years in bottle they came into balance, which of course is fine for those who age their Sancerre but less good for the vast majority of the wines that are drunk within a year or eighteen months of the vintage.

My top wines
Michel Thomas et Fils
Michel Thomas has 17 hectares in Sury-en-Vaux. The yield for this cuvée was 60 hl/ha, so no hail damage here. The grapes were picked by machine from vines on argile-calcaire. This wine has attractive weight, balance and a long mineral finish.

Domaine François Crochet, Classique

François Crochet has 10.5 hectares in Bué, so was affected by the hail. The yield for this cuvée was 37 hl/ha. The grapes were hand picked and come from Sancerre's three types of soil – caillottes (80%), 10% argile-calcaire and silex (10%0. The distinguishing mark of François's wines is their precise minerlaity and this is no exception, although in quite a ripe style it has a lovely fresh, mineral quality in the finish.

Domaine Michel Girard et Fils
This is a domaine of 11 hectares in Verdigny, which I understand escaped the hail damage. The average yields here in 2009 were 44 hl/ha and the grapes were picked by machine. Although the wine has 14% alcohol it has attractive citric freshness.

Dionysia, Vin d'Homme
This is from Auguste Natter, the son of Henry and Cecile. Auguste has 3.7 ha in Montigny, the furthest west commune in AC Sancerre. Picked by machine from young vines planted on argile calcaire yielding 37 hl/ha. Although in a leaner style (just over 13% alc), this has attractive, delicate ripe fruit, concentration and length.

Well noted:

Roger and Didier Raimbault, Vieilles Vignes
André Vatan, Les Charmes
Dionysia, Vin d'Olympe
Domaine Chatelain, Sélection
Paul Prieur et Fils
Domaine Fouassier, Les Romains
Claude Riffault, Les Boucards (20% futs)
Claude Riffault, Les Chailloux (100% fûts)
Domaine Thomas, Le Perrier

Noted

Roger and Didier Raimbault, Domaine
Domaine des Vrillères
Domaine La Gemière, Cuvée Initiale
Vincent Pinard, Clémenence