Grapes: 45% Chardonnay; 40% Chenin; 15% Sauvignon Blanc
Region: Coteaux du Layon, Loire, France
Vintage: 2023
Viticulture: Organic + Biodynamic
Soils: Schist
Vinification: Grapes are hand-harvested and sorted in the vineyard. All are kept whole-cluster except for part of the Chenin that gets direct-pressed. Everything goes into an epoxy tank, including the direct-pressed juice, to ferment and macerate for one month (malolactic occurring) without pump-overs or punch-downs. The wine is then pressed for free-run juice and just the start of the pressed-off juice. Lightly filtered (only the last 10 percent of the tank to remove lees sediment).
Trempette, French for “dip,” references the technique of macerating whole clusters together with direct-pressed juice. The unique method is also given a nod on the label, drawn by Joél and Christine’s son Jérémy.
Fining or Filtering: Lightly
Sulfur: Wine is aged 6 months in epoxy tanks, with a small amount of sulfur added at bottling.
Notes from the Importer: Christine and Joel Menard have been making wine in the heart of the Coteaux du Layon AOC for more than thirty years. They produce an outstanding array of wines from Cabernet Franc, Grolleau, Gamay and Chenin Blanc. They practice biodynamic methods in their 13-hectares of vines. Christine and Joel run their domain to very exacting standards and as a result they produce stunning, natural wines—without employing artificial yeasts. The wines from Sablonnettes are not chaptalized or filtered, these wines are vibrantly alive.
