2013 Francois Chidaine Tres P 750 ml

Spanish Vivacity, French Finesse

Connoisseurs of Loire Valley wines will recognize the name François Chidaine, deemed by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate to be “one of the world’s finest craftsmen in the medium of white wine, not to mention a continuing source of amazing value.” His Vouvray and Montlouis releases are the stuff of legend, fleshy yet vibrant. But his savviest fans also know that one of the smartest buys of his collection is the under-the-radar Chidaine “Tres P” cuvée, a seductive, wildly fun Spanish red crafted in the town his family vacations in. We love this wine, full stop. At $17 it’s a killer deal. Try finding this cult bottling elsewhere online and you’ll encounter two words: Sold Out.

After graduating from vinicultural school, François Chidaine worked alongside his vigneron father, Yves, picking up père Chidaine’s painstaking artisanal methods: hand-harvesting in the fields, gently pressing grapes, long fermentation. After his father retired, François took over the 10 family-owned acres in Montlouis and began pioneering organic and biodynamic practices in the farming. Expanding his property across the river into Vouvray, Chidaine was soon releasing absolutely exquisite Chenin Blancs that critics were calling the region’s greatest, with Vinous naming him “one of the best producers in the central Loire Valley.”

When not carrying out his strenuous regimen in the vineyards and cellar, he vacationed with his wife in her native country, Spain, acquiring a holiday house in Murcia. But François couldn’t quite get work off the brain. They got to talking with a local grower whose vineyards sat in the foothills of the Sierra Espuña mountains, 3,280 feet above sea level. When Chidaine went to tour the fields, he was captivated: 40-year-old Tempranillo and Monastrell (Mourvèdre) vines cultivated organically, deeply rooted in calcareous-limestone soil, the Bullas climate infusing grapes with awesome freshness and zing.

The fruit was simply too tempting, and a collaboration followed. It was a gamble—a refined Loire vigneron taking on the hardy grapes of Spain—and one that’s paid off brilliantly. Just as Chidaine balances opulence with crisp mineral verve in his Loire whites, in the 2013 Tres P he unlocks dense fruit power and suavity, with just enough tannic bite and acidity to make it the perfect pairing for grilled bone-in pork chops with rosemary-cumin dry rub.

Spanish vivacity brought to you by French finesse. At under-$20, that’s a bottle you don’t walk away from.