BUYINGGUIDE
150 | WINE ENTHUSIAST | OCTOBER 2019how well Sancerre can age. Wait until at least 2020.
Fruit of the Vines, Inc. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $8092
Fleuriet Frères 2017 Renaissance La Côte de
l’Epée (Sancerre). This mature wine is ripe
with white fruits and acidity. Its initial freshness
has softened with some aging to give a nutty char-
acter that balances the fruitiness. Drink now. Vinif-
rance. Editors’ Choice. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $3592
Gitton Père et Fils 2017 Les Herses Silex
(Sancerre). Fermented and aged in wood,
this wine has a different character from most
Sancerre. It has toastiness but the main effect of the
wood has been to fill the wine and soften the acid-
ity while keeping a fresh edge. Drink this ripe, full-
bodied wine now. Sacred Thirst Selections. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $3092
Henri Bourgeois 2017 La Chapelle des Augus-
tins (Sancerre). A vineyard once owned by
monks (who chose their sites well) has produced
a beautifully ripe wine. Its green fruitiness is still
young, offering richness and density as well as a
concentrated texture. The wine needs to age further,
so drink from 2021. Slocum & Sons, Inc. Editors’
Choice. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $3592
Joseph Mellot 2016 La Grande Châtelaine
(Sancerre). Fermented and aged in wood for
10 months, this ripe, spicy wine delivers an impres-
sive blending of mineral fruit and a rich texture. The
intensity and concentration give both great fruiti-
ness and great structure. Drink the wine now. Fruit
of the Vines, Inc. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $3991
Alain Girard et Fils 2017 Domaine des Brosses
Confidence (Sancerre). Oak aging has soft-
ened this ripe wine and given it richness. Acidity
and a mineral texture are coming together with ripe
white fruits to offer a concentrated wine with a
tangy aftertaste. Drink from 2020. Demontoux Fine
Wines. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $3891
Aurore Dezat 2017 Les Chasseignes (Sancerre).
With a third of the wine aged in barrel, this
is a broad, spicy Sauvignon Blanc. The acidity has
been muted by the wine’s extra richness. Melon and
creamed-apple flavors balance the spiciness and
final structure. Drink now. Premier Wine Co. —R.V.
abv: 13.5% Price: $2791
Clement et Florian Berthier 2017 Terre de
Marne (Sancerre). This wine is all about fruit.
Its bright texture and acidity are part of the crisp
lemon, green-plum and apple flavors that overflow
from the glass. To support this, the wine has a min-
eral edge that will allow it to age longer. Drink from- Weygandt-Metzler. —R.V.
abv: 12.5% Price: $30
91
Domaine Anthony & David Girard 2018 Les
Monts Damnés (Sancerre). A light touch of
spice from partial wood fermentation has added to
the richness of this wine. That is balanced against
the steely edge of acidity and minerality. This wine
is almost ready but will be better from early 2020.
Weygandt-Metzler. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $2391
Domaine Gueneau 2018 Les Griottes
(Sancerre). This wine is named for an old
morello cherry orchard that stood where the vine-
yard is now. The 25-year-old vines produced a ripe,
generously textured and perfumed wine. It is young,
needing some months for the fruit to settle in. Drink
from early 2020. JP Bourgeois. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $3391
Domaine Tinel-Blondelet 2018 Frétoy
(Sancerre). From a single parcel of vines
owned by this Pouilly-based producer, this wine is
taut, tight and still young. Great acidity, layers of
minerality and steeliness combine with green-fruit
and apple flavors in a wine that needs more time.
Drink from 2020. Maverick Selections. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $2391
Fleuriet Frères 2017 Renaissance Les Marnes
(Sancerre). This ripe, full wine is well bal-
anced between crisp gooseberry and citrus flavors,
with a mineral character that gives texture. Its juicy
acidity is delicious, properly mature and the wine is
ready to drink. Vinifrance. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $3591
Gitton Père et Fils 2018 Les Montachins
(Sancerre). Tight, flinty and steely, this is
full of crisp green fruits and herbal flavors shot
through with minerality. The texture and acid-
ity give an immediate freshness that will soften
as the wine ages. Drink from 2020. Wine Source
International. —R.V.
abv: 12.5% Price: $30POUILLY-FUMÉ
94
Château de Tracy 2016 101 Rangs (Pouilly-
Fumé). This small-production wine was
selected from a parcel of old vines. The natural rich-
ness is tempered by acidity and the freshest white-
fruit flavors. It has concentration in its perfumed
character and bright fruitiness. Drink this wine
from 2020. Winebow. Cellar Selection. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $7093
Gitton Père et Fils 2017 Nébula (Pouilly-
Fumé). This rich, powerful wine in its
equally powerful bottle is ripe and full of yellow
fruits. Fermented and aged in wood, the wine con-
veys a slight hint of spicy flavor, but has benefited in
its great ripeness and density. Drink the wine from- HP Selections. Cellar Selection. —R.V.
abv: 14% Price: $45
92
Domaine Masson-Blondelet 2017 Clos du
Château Paladi (Pouilly-Fumé). Old vinesare the heart of this wine from a single parcel of less
than two acres. They give a structured wine, very
mineral and concentrated, bringing out great acidity
as well as green fruits. The wine is only just ready
and will be better from 2020. Grape Expectations
(CA). Editors’ Choice. —R.V.
abv: 12.5% Price: $3092
Domaine Tinel-Blondelet 2018 Génétin
(Pouilly-Fumé). This young wine shows
structure and a strong steely character that is mask-
ing the fruit. All will improve as the wine matures,
with ripe herbal and citrus flavors shining through
the texture. Drink from 2021. DHI Selections. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $2191
Domaine Masson-Blondelet 2018 Les Ange-
lots (Pouilly-Fumé). This strongly textured
wine comes from a vineyard with chalk soil. With
taut, crisp acidity and bright citrus highlights, the
wine is steely and needs a few months to calm down.
Drink from 2020. Grape Expectations (CA). —R.V.
abv: 12.5% Price: $2591
Domaine Masson-Blondelet 2018 Les Pierres
de Pierre (Pouilly-Fumé). This crisp, steely-
textured wine is still young. Its taut texture is bal-
anced with green apples and ripe pears. The acid-
ity is still bright, forward and needs time to soften.
Drink from 2020. Grape Expectations (CA). —R.V.
abv: 13.5% Price: $2691
Saget la Perrière 2018 L’Origine (Blanc Fumé
de Pouilly). For full review see page 134.
abv: 13% Price: $2590
Château Favray 2018 Pouilly-Fumé. Aging
on its lees has given this wine from a
39-acre family estate extra richness. A strong tex-
ture and lemon-zest flavors contrast with ripe
green-plum fruits. Drink the wine from 2020. Fruit
of the Vines, Inc. —R.V.
abv: 13.5% Price: $2790
Domaine de Bel Air 2018 Les Pierres Blanches
(Pouilly-Fumé). From a vineyard named
after the chalk-white stones, this wine has plenty
of minerality. It also has a ripe, full character that
gives richness and a texture that is moving towards
softness. Likely to age well, the wine will be better
from late 2020. wUst Fine Wine Imports. —R.V.
abv: 13% Price: $2490
Domaine Masson-Blondelet 2018 Villa Pau-
lus (Pouilly-Fumé). Named after the Roman
who built a villa where Pouilly now is, this is a ripe,
smoothly textured and ageworthy wine. Ripe apples
and apricots are cut with lemon acidity, balancing
the wine and giving it a full, rich aftertaste. Drink
from 2020. Grape Expectations (CA). —R.V.
abv: 13.5% Price: $25