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$24.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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Producer notes: "A luminous robe, pale and clear. Aromas of white flowers, notes of vanilla. Fruity, unctuous, a mineral character, honey, vanilla. A long finish. Serving suggestions: Fish in cream, shellfish, cheese of character. It is ideal as an aperitif. A novel partner for foie gras."
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$19.95
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France
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Loire
In stock,
1
available
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The Bailly family have been winemakers in Sancerre since 1700. This is a classic styled Sancerre from Bailly's vineyards in and around the village of Bué, one of the greatest villages in the appellation. 100% Sauvignon Blanc.
Not yet reviewed; 2010 vintage rated 93 points by John Gilman (View From the Cellar): "The 2010 Sancerre 'Terroirs' from Sylvain Bailly is classic Bué terres blanches Sancerre, with a depth and complex refinement that is very special indeed. The deep, complex and classy nose wafts from the glass in a seamless blend of gooseberry, lime zest, tart orange, suave, chalky minerality, white flowers, cut grass and just a touch of white pepper in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and tightly-knit, with a great core of fruit, laser-like focus and cut, impeccable balance and great grip on the very long and intensely flavored finish. This is as good as Bué Sancerre gets! 2012-2020."
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$19.95
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France
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Loire
In stock,
1
available
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Wine Spectator on the 1999 vintage: "Straightforward dessert wine, with sweet tangerine and lime candy notes... Good length on the finish."
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$9.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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List $14.00
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87 points David Schildknecht (Wine Advocate): "...bright, bracing lemon and lime and borderline grassiness are accompanied by cooling mint, attractively pungent caraway, and a palpable sense of extract and chalky minerality... this gets high marks for sheer tenacity and for its light bulb-like, wake-up personality. (Aug 2008)"
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$37.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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92 points David Schildknecht (Wine Advocate): "Strong oil and fusil notes combine with pungent lime and grapefruit zest, green herbs, and suggestions of iodine in the complex and penetrating nose of Boulay’s 2010 Sancerre Clos de Beaujeu, setting the tone for a brightly and juicily citric, herb- and mineral-saturated palate performance, over which a bittersweet floral perfume hangs alluringly. This finishes with tingling brightness, zesty piquancy, mouthwatering salinity and grip, albeit less long-lined and diversely mineral than the corresponding Mont Damnes. And like that wine, it became more expressive after it had been open for half an hour. Here is another candidate for at least a decade’s cellaring, though it could certainly be drunk without regret today. In a reversal of the procedure Boulay followed with this year’s Mont Damnes, the Clos de Beaujeu fermented in tank and was then raised in assorted (older 300-liter) barrels. (Jun 2012)"
Importer notes: "The Clos de Beaujeu is from a single vineyard (0.75 hectare) and is fermented in barrel and bottled without filtration. It expresses great richness in the mouth. Flavors include honeyed lime, and wildflower. There are also some smoky notes. It is still very young and only just beginning to reveal its potential."
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$17.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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The honey and white acacia blossom in this Vouvray’s perfume is a rare treat. The wine has youthful deliciousness and great aging potential.
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$23.95
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France
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Loire
In stock,
9
available
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Not yet reviewed; 2009 vintage rated 92 points by John Gilman (View From the Cellar): "The 2009 Clos Habert Demi-Sec from Domaine Chidaine is a beautiful example of the vintage, with the sunshine touch of this year evident on both the nose and palate. The beautifully expressive nose offers up a fine blend of sweet grapefruit, fresh pineapple, honeycomb, beautifully complex and delicate soil tones based on the tuffeau, lemon peel, beeswax and citrus blossoms. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and beautifully complex, with a great core of fruit, brisk acids and outstanding length and grip on the complex and still quite youthful finish. The vintage’s ripeness is apparent here in a touch of backend heat, that will probably dissipate with bottle age, but which jumps out a bit right now- particularly after tasting through the stellar lineup of 2010 Chidaine wines! This is lovely, but give it a few years to more fully integrate its ripeness. 2015-2040+."
Importer notes: "Clos Habert lies adjacent to the Clos du Breuil and the vines are planted in clay and a type of silex called perruches. Chidaine uses this fruit to make a tendre style of Montlouis with a lovely balance and minerality, usually around 20 g/l of residual sugar. Vine age ranges from 25 - 60 years old."
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$11.95
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France
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Loire
In stock,
1
available
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Importer notes: "50% Pinot Noir and 50% Grolleau from organically farmed estate fruit. Floral nose with hints of currants, along with the excellent acidity and the mineral core we've come to expect in Chidaine wines! 550 cases produced." This wine embodies everything you want in a rosé: fragrant, delicate, and highly drinkable - buy this one by the case for all your summertime get-togethers.
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$21.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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Not yet reviewed; 2010 vintage rated 93+ points by John Gilman (View From the Cellar): "The 2010 Vouvray Sec 'les Argiles' from Domaine François Chidaine has a touch more residual sugar than the Montlouis Clos de Breuil Sec in 2010 (five grams per liter versus three), and this gives the wine a bit more early accessibility out of the blocks. The deep, complex and very compelling nose soars from the glass in a complex mélange of pear, sweet quince, a touch of honeycomb, orange zest, beautifully complex chalky soil tones, dried flowers and just a whisper of lanolin in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, pure and full-bodied, with beautiful nascent complexity, a rock solid core, bright, seamless acidity and outstanding length and grip. The les Argiles bottling is made from a variety of different vineyards, including the well-known Le Haut Lieu, and like the Domaine Huët version, it shares a certain 'feathery' elegance in its youth that is very, very attractive. This wine will allow a year or two of superb drinking, and then probably shut down seriously for five or six years, before it emerges from its adolescent hibernation and starts to really deliver on all of its considerable promise. 2012-2040."
Chidaine's estate grown Vouvray produced from parcels throughout the great vineyards of the Clos Baudoin property, Les Argiles is normally vinified dry. Notes of honey, citrus, pear and apple are present in the nose with just a hint of caramel. Full-bodied in the mouth, but fresh with lively acidity, this is world class chenin at an unbeatable price. 1% residual sugar.
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$14.95
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France
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Loire
In stock,
7
available
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100% Cabernet Franc from 50-year-old vines. Vinified in stainless steel tanks. Ripe and generous. A great match with game and grilled meats. Alcohol 13%.
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$16.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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The family of Patrick Coulbois has cultivated vines in the region since the 17th century. Coulbois owns a total of 8.7 hectares (21.5 acres) of vineyards and practices lutte raisonée; he aerates the soil, uses natural composts and no insecticides. Plantings closest to the house date to 1955, and this fruit goes into the Les Cocques cuvée. This wine exhibits aromas including green apple, grapefruit, blood oranges, white flowers and minerals. Bone dry, medium-bodied and crisp, it is a wonderful partner for seafood, cold salads and goat cheese.
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$63.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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List $80.00
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91-92 points David Schildknecht (Wine Advocate): "Fresh lime and lemon -- along with the bite of their pips -- render Dagueneau’s 2010 Blanc Fume de Pouilly (just before bottling) refreshing and invigorating. Cut, bell-like clarity, and shimmering interchange of citrus, herb, salt, and stone lead to a ringing persistence that reels you in for the next sip, an appeal that I don’t expect will fade for at least the next half dozen years. (Jun 2012)"
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$16.95
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France
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Loire
In stock,
4
available
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Daulny's normal cuvée is far from normal: after all, grapes from some of the appellation's most revered vineyards make their way into this cuvée, including old vine plantings at Les Monts Damnés, Les Bois Butteux and La Perriere. His yield is about 50 hl/ha (3.4 tons an acre -- normal for Sancerre) and the wine is fermented and aged in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. The wine sees no malolactic fermentation and thus retains freshness and vibrancy beneath plenty of forward, ripe fruit.
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$14.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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Deep ruby red color. An earthy, spicy and fruity Loire Valley Cabernet Franc. Black pepper, mincemeat, blueberries, black currants, bay leaf and thyme, violets. A bold wine with good acidity. A very good match with smoked pork tenderloin.
WHWC Staff notes: "This intriguing little number recently appeared on our shelf, and since I had not tried it before I bought a bottle to have with a dinner of risotto with parmesan, sausage, chicken, peas, carrots, both green and red bell pepper, onion and basil. Talk about a match made in heaven! This wine from the French Loire region of Chinon is 100% Cabernet Franc, and I was thrilled to find it accurate to a "T." The fruit profile is a quick hit of bright tart red cherry followed by a deeper, darker, blue and black fruit core. Underneath the fruit... bell pepper, forest minerality, eucalyptus, flowers and zesty peppercorn all mingle with the traditional Chinon herbaceousness and vegetation. Tannins and acidity are balanced but there was no discernable oak on the nose or palate. Overall, a wine of great complexity and infinite food pairing possibilities for a reasonable price... you can't go wrong!." -Casey Carmichael
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$13.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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Importer notes: "Produced from grapes coming from several vineyards of the estate, this is a splendidly balanced Chenin from an excellent year. The nose is classic Vouvray with notes of honey, straw, washed river stones and apples. This shows extra nerve and clean minerals while still opening up to honeyed aromatics and a full mid-palate."
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$12.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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List $15.00
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Not yet reviewed; 2010 vintage rated 90 points by John Gilman (View From the Cellar): "The 2010 Muscadet regular bottling from Marc Ollivier’s Domaine de la Pépière is a lovely, zesty example of the vintage. The nose offers up a bright and briny nose of green apple, a touch of grapefruit, beautifully complex minerality, lime peel, a touch of straw and a maritime topnote that is more rippling bay than pounding surf. On the palate the wine is medium-full, snappy and well-balanced, with a fine core of fruit, lovely focus and a long, crisp and minerally finish. Just a lovely bottle of wine. 2012-2020."
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$15.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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List $18.00
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Marc Ollivier produces a very-old-vine cuvée of Muscadet from a single-plot vineyard in schist, the Clos des Briords. These are among the oldest vines in his estate (they were planted in 1930) and they enjoy a particularly good exposition. Also, when most of his estate’s vines are planted on poor, shallow soil with hard granite very close to the surface, the Clos des Briords has a much deeper top soil of clay and silica over a brittle granite subsoil: this ensures excellent drainage in wet years, and better moisture retention in dry summers. Ripening is slower, and the longer hang-time before harvest allows for optimal maturity to be reached. The aging of the wine, on its lees in stainless steel vats, lasts until bottling, about eight months later. Because of the soil and greater concentration achieved with old vines, the Clos des Briords is a more powerful wine that most Muscadets. It is very mineral and quite austere in its youth, rather than fruity and light. Over a few months, or even years, if one can wait for it, it develops much complexity in aromatics and structure.
Not yet reviewed; 2010 vintage rated 93 points by John Gilman (View From the Cellar): "The 2010 Clos des Briords from Domaine de la Pépière is stunning on the both the nose and palate and shows every likelihood of aging gracefully for twenty or twenty-five years. The deep, pure and primary nose offers up scents of yellow fruit, very refined minerality, lemongrass, ocean breezes, very gentle and suave leesy tones and a topnote of dried flowers. On the palate the wine is deep, fullish and tightly-knit, with a rock solid core of fruit, bright, ripe acids, superb focus and a very long, nascently complex and perfectly balanced finish. This is a beautiful bottle of Muscadet that I would be inclined to tuck away in the cellar for a couple of years and really let it blossom. 2014-2035."
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$19.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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18/20 points Gault & Millau: "Scents of candied lemon, bitter orange marmalade and flint mark this beautiful terroir. On the palate fresh, intense, driven by bitterness and point to success in this vintage. Bravo."
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$13.95
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France
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Loire
In stock,
5
available
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From 100% Cabernet Franc. Very deep appearance with concentrated black fruits on the nose. The palate is very pure, with a focused, juicy acidity running throughout. There is some concentration of flavor, but the overall impression is of deftness and freshness. With its lively, primary fruit this is delicious now, but could be expected to age over the next decade as it loses its red fruit character and takes on a more wild and gamey profile.
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$19.95
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France
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Loire
In stock,
8
available
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From Chenin Blanc. The wine contains 80g/l residual sugar and a modest 11.5% alcohol. Rich on the nose with obvious ripeness. There are notes of quince and baked apple. Good structure on the palate with the residual sugar barely noticeable, being balanced out by the crisp apple-like acidity. Although approachable now, this would benefit from a couple of years in bottle.
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$18.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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Importer notes: "100% Chenin Blanc. The terroir of Montlouis offers great advantages for producing fine, well-balanced, complex Chenin Blanc wine. Using only indigenous yeast, the wine is fermented in tank to accentuate freshness and then aged in 300L French oak barrels for around 12 months. This Montlouis expresses lovely notes of white fruits and white flowers that create a great sensation on the palate. The wine is dry but has a particular richness. Only truly great Loire wines are under FX Barc's selection and signature. Alcohol 13%."
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$10.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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*SPECIAL: Take 10% Off Listed Price!
(We’ll reduce item’s price when processing your order.)
Pierre Henri is the fourth generation from the Gadais family to produce the very best Muscadet-Sèvre-et-Maine wines. Its vast 40 hectares of highly fragmented holdings are focused on the commune of Saint-Fiacre. This Muscadet has spent two winters on the lees and was bottled in December 2011. The vineyards are La Vieille Cure planted in 1957 and Les Menardieres planted in 1929, Saint-Fiacre's finest vineyards. Perfectly dry, balanced and natural Melon de Bourgogne. Goes wonderfully well with poultry and salads, as well as with Thai and Chinese cuisine.
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$14.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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Grandes Caves Saint-Roch lies at the foot of Rochecorbon, offering a soil made of clay and flint which bring helps to create a perfectly balanced wine. This demi-sec Vouvray has light floral characteristics with a slight sweetness. The aromas of honey and apple perfume the glass. This Vouvray has body and finesse that is sure to please.
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$23.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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Nicolas Grosbois made wine all over the world -- Oregon, Chile, Australia, New Zealand as well as closer to home in Minervois, before returning to the family domaine and taking over in 2006. In 2007, he stopped using herbicides and by 2008 was completely organic. Despite the amount of time spent in the brave New World, Nicolas is very committed to making wine in what he calls the ‘classic’ way. This means steering away from lots of extraction, preferring a much slower, gentler maceration between skins and juice, and no new oak. The results are stupendous. Dense, inky plum and blackberry fruit in a slinky, silky body. This wine has real stuffing and yet is utterly pliable.
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$14.95
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France
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Loire
In stock, 12+ available
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Nicolas Grobois is one of the up and coming stars in Chinon. The Grosbois family produces 4 cuvées, vinified by geographic parcel. The Gabare cuvée comes from a south-facing lower terrace of the Vienne river near Panzoult and a has a sandy, pebbly, clay soil. Aged for 9 months, it the lightest and most feminine of his cuvées. It has supple, attractive primary red fruit with a stony undertone. 100% Cabernet Franc. Age of vines: 35 years old.
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