La Boutanche Rose 2016 AOC Touraine

Cranberry red. A zip of fizz when opened, but no bubble. Lemonade sings. Zing goes the acid on this, Bright. Fresh. Strawberry balsamic. Real depth, hinted again to those cranberries. Not a pissy saignee pink. Wow. Good thing there is a litre in this bottle.

100% Grolleau Cinq Mars which often gets a bad rap. Lots of color, but not a lot of structure or intensity keeps it disallowed in all Loire AOC Reds. Typically it's used for Rosé d'Anjou, and that too is on the outs. Typically they are over-sweet and not the modern soifable style. I made that up. Soifable. Start using it.

Our man Quentin Bourse, Le Sot de L'Ange, took over a friend’s estate in Azay-le-Rideau. Certified Biodynamic. 12 hectares on clay and silex. Native yeast fermented in steel and fiberglass. Cheap and neutral. Low sulphur. Less than 20ppm.

La Boutanche is a project in conjunction with Selection Massale. There are a few different wines, cheap in big bottles. A Sauvignon, and a Gamay from Frantz Saumon are also on the shelves now. Both on my hit lists.

Le Petit Chambord 2014 Cheverny AOC

Tinted red. Bright sour rocks. Fresh must. Lean juice. Ripe. Understated fruit. More Loire. Pronounce those last two words like they rhyme.

Pinot Noir, and Gamay from limestone soils. Vendages manuelles, is a fancy way of saying hand made. No robot assembly line. Sustainable. Indigenous yeasts. No filtration. Gravity does the heavy lifting.

Pinot Noir is destemmed, and fermented 10 days at 25c. The Gamay is whole cluster, 12 days at 20c. Love these details. Vinified separately, matured in tanks.
The estate website says there is "10% Côt, which completes the dominant Pinot Noir and Gamay" 
Assembled wine was elevated for six months to get everything singing. Bottled in January 2016. Fresh.

Cheverny and Cour-Cheverny are dominated by white wines, Sauvignon and Romorantin respectively, known for their fresh acidity, and shocking minerality. This rocky soiled red holds its own.