Domaine Henri Bourgeois, Quincy, Sancere, 2008

“Spring has come again. The earth is like a child who knows poems.”
Rainer Maria Rilke – Sonnets to Orpheus

An acclaimed producer whose wines exhibit the complexity of the terroir of Chavignol, being chalky with a touch of gunflint, initially steely, then ripening in the mouth with a broad array of flavours and wonderful length. This belt-tightening faux-Sancerre has undeniable typicity. Viticulture is biodynamic, grapes are harvested by hand and after pressing and maceration the wine is left in old wooden barrels for eighteen months batonnage. Racking is done after the full moon. The wine fills the mouth with layer after layer of creamy fruit, a touch of breadiness from the lees and the terroir notes of truffle and warm stone. Such a method of vinification requires top-quality grapes for a successful marriage of wood and wine.