Menard Rouge, Sablonnettes
Staff Pick
Organic

Menard Rouge, Sablonnettes - 2021

750 mL
Item # 40502

Grapes are hand harvested and layered by variety in whole bunches. First the gamay goes into the bottom of the tank, then one week later the grolleau, then one more week and the Cabernet Franc is added. The wine is unfiltered and has a small addition of sulfur at bottling.

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Color
Red
Vintage
Country
Region
Producer
Grape Variety
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Item Notes

  • Limited Production: Only 2 bottle(s) per customer

Production Methods

Natural

Wine made from organically or biodynamically grown grapes with minimal intervention avoiding the use of chemicals, additives and technology.


Staff Pick Notes

Every wine lover has a region that commands a large portion of their heart: the hefty Napa Cabernet drinker to the celebratory Champagne popper to the laid-back Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc sipper. Personally, I'm splitting that time between Beaujolais and, in the case of this wine, the Loire. There is so much beauty, innovation, and creativity brewing that there's always an adventure to be had. Les Sablonnettes embodies that theme in the heart of the Coteaux du Layon AOC, using grapes such as Cabernet Franc, Chenin Blanc, Gamay, and Grolleau fantastically. This red blend stacks grapes in whole bunches in-tank; one week for Gamay, the next for Grolleau, then Cabernet Franc. This vibrant wine is full of high-toned, taut blackberry, cherry pits, cooling menthol, and an underlying peppery finish that give it life.

- JOS

About the Producer

Loire Valley, France Christine and Joel Menard have been making wine in the heart of the Coteaux du Layon AOC for more than twenty 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...

Read more about Sablonnettes

More About This Wine

Loire

There’s a lot to remember when it comes to the Loire. Novices, take note: Cabernet Franc is a great alternative to Cabernet Sauvignon, Muscadet is unparalleled as a companion to shellfish, and Cour Cheverny is the best white wine appellation you’ve never heard of. As diverse as Loire wines are, one day soon you'll know your Melon de Bourgogne from your Romorantin.

Cabernet Franc

Relegated to moderate obscurity in modern times, Cabernet Franc is in fact the proud parent of the attention-hogging Cabernet Sauvignon (after an illicit affair with Sauvignon Blanc a hundred-odd years ago). Cabernet Franc has remained close to its roots in France, enjoying small pockets of popularity primarily in the Loire Valley (specifically in Chinon), where it is often bottled as a varietal wine, and in Bordeaux where it is still used in moderate percentages in the typical blends. In fact,...

Read more about Cabernet Franc

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