|
|
2009 & 2010 Vintage Reviews:
Phenomenal Sancerre!!
My husband and I adore sancerre, especially after our trip to the Loire last year. This is easily one of our favorites. Refreshing and mineral. Soft lemon and citrus flavors.
-- Jay from New York, NY
My favorite so far
The best of the Loire! Keep it coming!
-- Janie from Chicago, IL
Good stuff!
There is a lot going on here, and it is all very refreshing. Plenty of fruit of apples and pears as advertised, but also accentuated by both lime and mineral. Very nice! I, too, am glad I bought a case, but drinking it over the next year is probably out of the question - I'll be lucky if it lasts the summer at my house!
-- Ron from Rolla, MO
|
|
Even the Bean Counters Have a Heart
Over the years, our interactions with The Bean Counters have become more and more contentious. While we fully understand the importance of keeping the lights on at HQ, in our view, morality always trumps profit. On that afternoon in early 2011, the day after our return flight from Paris, we recounted Janine Crochet's story of Sancerrois tragedy and discovered what we never imagined to be so. We learned that Bean Counters have hearts after all.
We had been enjoying a three-course lunch at Le Chat in Cosne-sur-Loire. Our hosts were Dany and Dominique Roger -- arguably Sancerre's greatest winemaking couple. Dominique picked the wines. The first bottle was a 2009 Sancerre made from the Roger's village of Bue-en-Sancerre. The name on the bottle was Dominique Crochet.
In the warm 2009 vintage, Crochet's Sancerre was rich and plump, full of ripe apple juiciness. Roger waited for our reaction. After our nods and smiles, the brilliant, self-effacing winegrower and former mayor of Bue, told us a story that ripped us in two.
The grape growing village of Bue-en-Sancerre is small and tightly knit. Childhood friendships are friendships for life. Unlike the Cote de Nuits, just two hours east, here in Bue, there seems to be no jealousy -- just good natured, neighborly concern for the well being of families that have lived together for generations. So when Dominique Crochet became ill, everyone in town knew. And when he passed away tragically, leaving his wife, Janine, and his two sons to take charge of this superb small domaine, everyone helped out in every way they could.
Dominique Roger explained. "I lost my father at 26, so I know how hard it is. My father did everything. He tended the vines, made the wine and sold it, doing the work of three. Dominique did the same. Now Janine has to figure out where to devote time and resources, knowing they can't do it all -- can't keep up with the farming, vinification and the sales." Roger looked up from his plate, looking us squarely in the eye in a way that he would never do for himself, but felt compelled to do for the wife of his close friend. "So, we've advised her to worry only about the farming and winemaking. Dominique's friends will take care of the sales."
After lunch, we stopped in chez Crochet. We met Janine, saw not only the tragedy, but the determination in her eyes. We met her big, strapping son, Teddy, who had returned home from enology school (a common theme among winegrowing families when a father's death comes unexpectedly). Roger took us to see the Crochet vines, perfectly situated east-facing parcels in the center-cut of this magical hamlet's hills. Roger spoke of his friend's work ethic in the vines, how Crochet put all he had into these 45 year old plants, raising his estate-bottled Sancerre to the top of the appellation.
Then, as we stood amidst that patchwork quilt of vines, looking off towards Amigny, Dominique posed the question he'd never pose on his own behalf. "Can WineAccess help?" We answered as you might imagine. Then we returned home for a date with the Bean Counters to explain why offers for Crochet Sancerre would do little to keep the lights on at HQ.
In the last 18 months, we've offered two vintages of Domaine Dominique et Janine Crochet Sancerre. Each time, the price appeared to be a misprint, more closely imitating that of a run-of-the-mill Reuilly or Menetou-Salon -- not a top pedigree Sancerre. Hundreds of cases disappeared in a flash, leading to almost 300 member ratings. Not surprisingly, buyers raved, with 75 rating the 2009 or 2010 releases a full 5 stars -- and the aggregate rating settling in at mouthwatering 4.00 stars out of five.
This is the last of our trifecta commitment to Janine -- and it's the best of all. If the 2009 was plump and juicy, where fatness trumped backbone, the 2010 was all about stony minerality, letting the ripe apple concentration take a back seat. But here, with this absolutely stunning 2011 from that warm precocious vintage, Teddy would make his dad proud.
Pale gold in color with gorgeous, piercing aromas of ripe apple and quince, laced with wet stone minerality. Rich and marvelously concentrated on the attack, full of Golden Delicious intensity with just a hint of honey. But despite richness that outpoints the 2009, the finish is fresh and riveting, taking an electrifying page out of the 2010's book.
When we returned to HQ a few days after our visit in Bue-en-Sancerre, we told the Bean Counters of the commitment we'd made to Janine Crochet to help her move her inventory quickly and replenish her family's coffers. We told them our agreement wasn't for one year, but for three. And we told them the WineAccess offer price wouldn't do much to cover the rent. And that's when we discovered what we'd never imagined. Even Bean Counters have hearts.
|
|
Tasting Notes
2011 Domaine Dominique et Janine Crochet Sancerre
"Pale gold in color. Piercing aromas of apple and quince, a subtle hint of honey, laced with wet stone minerality. Rich and lush on the attack, filled with Golden Delicious plumpness, yet still bracketed by scintillating calcaire minerality. Drink now for its youthful richness and crispness or age for a half dozen years when the bitter honey will take over."
-- WineAccess Travel Log
|
|
*Important Shipping Information
- This is a Pre-Arrival Offer: Weather permitting, wine will begin shipping upon arrival, in July, 2012.
|
|
Cart