Domaine de L'R - Le Canal des Grands Pièces, Chinon, Loire, France, (2023)

TASTING NOTES

Raspberry, cherry and plums, with a characteristic undercurrent of green herbaceousness and graphite just starting to show. Earth and wet leaves, round and slightly chalky tannins and crunchy acidity. 

Fermented and aged in cement and bottled without sulphites from vines that are 45-65 years old.

Domaine de l’R was founded by Frédéric Sigonneau in 2007. He worked for a few years at the famed Domaine Baudry, his neighbour in Cravant near Chinon. He then worked at Fabrice Gasnier and in Spain. This under the radar producer will not stay so for long.

Domaine de l’R’s vineyard is managed as naturally as possible by working the soil and protecting the vines from disease with sulphur and copper. The harvest is carried out manually and only gravity is used for movements in the cellar (and therefore racking is minimal). Fermentation takes place in raw cement vats and the addition of sulphites takes place only when necessary prior to bottling.