Chateau de Chaintres has the terroir: classic tuffeau chalk, clay-limestone, and sandy soils right in the heart of the appellation. They have old vines (50+ years). They have a new winemaker devoted to biodynamics, who worked on many of our favorite Loire Valley wines as the right-hand man at Philippe Gilbert. Chaintres makes two cuvées, an old vine and a basic Saumur-Champigny. They're from similar terroirs, and they’re both made with a light touch and minimal sulfur (only at bottling to keep the wine stable for shipping). Sure enough, the wines have a lot in common. Both are fresh, have beautiful fruit and floral notes (like crushed roses), with earthy undertones. Both have integrated tannins that don’t get in the way of enjoyment of the wine. But the old vines dig really deep, giving us much more of the terroir. There’s a salty, savory edge to this wine, a hint of licorice complexity. And there’s more… of everything. More of the cassis. More of the crushed roses. More dark fruit and more earth. More nose, more density and more length.
What importer Rosenthal Wine Merchant has to say about this wine...
“Les Sables” is the estate’s primary cuvée of Cabernet Franc, with the oldest vines going to the “Vieilles Vignes” bottling below. Grapes are harvested by hand and entirely de-stemmed; fermentation takes place in stainless steel and occurs spontaneously; and extraction is obtained primarily via remontage during a 10-to-12-day maceration. As with the Chenin Blanc, sulfur dioxide is applied only at bottling and only minimally. This wine is remarkably fresh, with fully ripe, snappy red fruits and beautifully integrated tannins—a testament to this appellation’s capacity for producing elegant Cabernet Franc. This is the kind of wine that just feels good to consume.
Details
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Grape Variety
Cabernet Franc
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Vintage
2022
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Size
750ml
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Farming Practice
Organic
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Style
Earthy , Fruity , Minerally
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Sweetness
Dry
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Body
Medium Bodied
Loire Valley Wines
The Loire Valley is France’s greatest source of value for anyone looking for elegant, terroir-driven wines. Our collection celebrates the region’s great diversity, with the mineral-driven whites of Muscadet and Sancerre, the beautiful Chenin Blancs and Cabernet Francs from villages like Vouvray and Chinon, and natural wines from everywhere in the region. Sometimes wonderfully fresh and gulpable, sometimes serious and age-worthy, the prices are always very reasonable.
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