Translation missing: en.Thibaud Boudignon + Jean-Louis Chave + Jean-Pierre Robinot + Terre à Terre Tasting Saturday 17th 3pm-6pm: Thibaud Boudignon + Jean-Louis Chave + Jean-Pierre Robinot + Terre à Terre Tasting Saturday 17th 3pm-6pm
Thibaud Boudignon
Thibaud Boudignon is one of the most exciting winemakers from the Loire appellation of Savennières. This estate is very new and fresh with Thibaud having only started this venture in 2009 and still working for Domaine de la Soucheraie until 2015. Since then, he has gradually picked out new plots to work with which are considered some of the absolute best in the region and is making wines that are some of the very best expressions of Chenin in all the Loire Valley.
Thibaud works with all these top vineyards biodynamically, although he is not certified as he would rather invest the money spent on a piece of certification paper into his work in the vineyard or into some nice barrels. During the peak growing season Thibaud employs one person per hectare to manage the vines. This enables greater attention to detail in the vineyard and shows that eschewing the certification for greater commitment to the work itself is not all talk.
In the winery, the grapes are whole bunch pressed without settling and the juice kept cold before starting a long, slow fermentation. Thibaud vinifies with natural yeasts and ages the wines on their lees with minimal sulphur in a mixture of barrels ranging from 300-600 litres. New oak influence is eschewed to keep the wines pure, deep, intense and true to their terroir.
We've picked up a great range of Thibaud's, wines, many from those top sites that we're excited to share with you. First, we have the '22 'Rose de Loire' which is a nice blend of 80% Cabernet Franc and 20% Grolleau. We also have some wine from Thibaud's work in the nearby Anjou appellation: the '22 'Grey Label Anjou Blanc' from 40 year-old vines, planted at 8000 vines/ha on shallow soils of grey schist and rhyolite. We also have the 2021 of this in a magnum size. Another jump up in the vineyard is the '22 'Clos de Fremine' which slopes towards the Loire with a fine cover of sand blown over the underlying schist over many millenia producing a silky, yet distinctive wine that can be enjoyed in its youth (but can still age for over a decade). The 'Clos de la Hutte' is one of Savennières' best vineyards and we've been able to secure some of the 2020 as well as magnum bottles from the '20 and '21 vintages, too. Finally, we have a single bottle of the top-of-the-line '21 'Franc de Pied' which comes from a small parcel within the Clos de la Hutte of close-planted ungrafted vines situated on the highest and sandiest soil of this small vineyard. These are some seriously well-made wines from some of the best vineyards in the appellation. Don't miss out on these profound wines from one of France's best winemakers!Jean-Louis Chave
Jean-Louis Chave are easily amongst the all-time greatest wineries, producing legendary wines that last for decades. Chave is such an icon in the world of wine and his wines sought all over - the 1990 Chave Hermitage Rouge is even in my top 3 bucket list wines. The Chave's have led a winemaking dynasty of over 5 centuries since they began to make wine here in 1481.
The Chave's are traditionalists - despite their large vineyard holdings in the most prestigious lieu-dits of the Hermitage hill, they have never bottled them as individual crus. All the different sites are blended into a single 'Hermitage' bottling despite how great each is by themselves. The exact blend is different every vintage and each site brings something unique, although ultimately the end product is a single cuvée of incredible nuance, harmony, intensity and ageing potential.
The Chave’s methods for all of their wines are of course traditional as well - perfectionist farming, low yields, full ripeness, minimal new oak, minimal intervention and no filtering. There are no secrets, just an unmatched passion, attention to detail and instinctive feel for growing and winemaking to produce a pure rendering of noble northern Rhône terroir.
We have some Jean-Louis Chave wines from both the negociant 'J.L. Chave Selections' line and the legendary Hermitage estate wines. There is a single bottle of the '21 'Mon Couer Cotes-du-Rhone' left from the Selections line as well as the '20 'Silene Crozes-Hermitage' and 'Farconnet Hermitage'. These are both serious, high-quality wines even though they are not from the estate line - Chave wouldn't put their name on the bottle if they weren't. From the estate, we have the '21 'Saint-Joseph' which is an excellent introduction to the Chave style made from some of the oldest vines in the appellation with the same attention to details that the Hermitage wines receive. Finally, we have the big boys - 3 bottles each of the '21 'Hermitage' Rouge and Blanc. These are always in the conversation of the best red and white wines in the world. I've already spoken about the Rouge above but the Blanc comes from a plot of century-old Marsanne vines in their Péléat monopole, which provides rich and intense fruit without heaviness. The usual final blend for the blanc is 80 to 85% Marsanne with 15 to 20% Roussanne. These are some of the best wines you could ever drink and built to age. There is still some value to be had as well in the negociant line so there is something here for everyone. Don't miss out!Jean-Pierre Robinot
Jean-Pierre Robinot is a legend of the natural wine movement in France who opened one of France's first natural wine bars called L'Ange Vin (which is the name of his estate line) and was one of the founders of one of the country's most influential wine magazines: 'Le Rouge et Le Blanc'. Today he is in his 70s and making some of the most exciting wines in France that are being poured in the very best wine bars around the world.
Robinot farms about 10 hectares split across a few locations, some of which would be classified as Jasnières if he decided to follow the appellation rules, but then he wouldn't be making these thrilling wines that have captivated the world if he did. Jean-Pierre and his wife Noella began purchasing smaller plots of old vines and planting new vines themselves dedicated to the Loire's flagship white - Chenin Blanc, but also to the lesser-known local grape - Pineau d'Aunis. This red grape shares a similar light colour and body to Pinot Noir, although the flavor profile tends to lean more spicy and herbal. Fermentations take place in the labyrinth of ancient limestone caves beneath the vines, fermenting slow and steady and can often last over a year, with the wines resting on their lees in old barrels for as long as they need, often over 5 years.
We have quite a few different Robinot cuvées but only a couple bottles of each. The 'L'Ange Vins' label represents wine made from estate-grown grapes while the 'L'Opera des Vins' are grapes that he buys from his nearby friends, but still made in the same way at the estate. The bottlings can be difficult to navigate so I will try my best to elucidate them here. The '22 'Fetembulles Pet Nat' is 100% Chenin aged with lees in bottle for 12 months. Then from the '21 vintage we have: 'L'Opera des Vins Lumière de Silex', 'L'Opera des Vins Concerto di Venezia' and 'L'Ange Vins Le Regard'. The first of these is 100% Chenin from organic grower Damien Bureau from the Anjou region where Chenin thrives in the shale soils. We also have a single bottle of this from the 2006 vintage which is the perfect chance to see how these brilliant wines age. The 'Concerto' is a new cuvée from the Robinot family and consists of a blend of Pineau d'Aunis and Cabernet Franc grown by well-known Loire organic and biodynamic producer Philippe Tessier in Cheverny. 'Le Regard' is 100% estate-grown Pineau d'Aunis which is fermented with whole bunches and then aged in fibreglass tanks for about nine months before being bottled and rested for some time before release. Moving up the ladder still, the '20 'L'Opera des Vins Prelude' which is made from Cabernet Franc using grapes they purchased from their friend Jean-François Chéné and aged in old barrells for 2 years before bottling. The '18 'L'Ange Vins Juliette' named after his daughter Juliette (who also works on the estate and will most likely take over in the future) is 100% Chenin Blanc and one of the most complex in the range. This has 25g of residual sugar and has the capacity to age for decades. These are some of the most intriguing and captivating wines in France and we don't have many to go around after selling through our last order of these so quickly. Don't miss out!Terre à Terre Tasting Saturday 17th August 3pm-6pm
Join us this Saturday to taste the wonderful wines of Wrattonbully's Terre à Terre. This producer is making arguably the best-valued wines in the country, being able to hold their own against other Aussie classics for 2-3 times the price. The Crayères Vineyard has become one of Australia's best vineyards - sitting on the crest of a north-south 35-million-year-old Oligocene limestone ridge covered by terra rossa soil. These are the wines that we'll be pouring on the day for you:
NV Daosa Natural Reserve 7th Release
2023 Terre à Terre Sauvignon Blanc
2014 Terre à Terre Cabernet Sauvignon
2022 Terre à Terre Cabernet Franc
2022 Terre à Terre Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz
2019 Terre à Terre Crayères Reserve
The Daosa sparkling wine is from their project in the Piccadilly Valley of Adelaide Hills. The Sauvignon Blanc is easily the best in the country and we even have a Cabernet with 10 years of age on it. I'm not even working on Saturday and I'll be dropping in to the store to taste these. See you there!