2015 Domaine de l'Ecu Muscadet-Sevre et Maine "Classic" 750 ml

A Muscadet “Classic” in Les Caves Augé

We had just finished up a week tasting hundreds of wines per day at the 2015 Bordeaux En Primeur. Our buddy Michael Madrigale convinced us to stop at Bistrot du Sommelier in Paris’ 8th arrondissement for what should have been our last stop en route to Charles de Gaulle Airport.

At 97 Boulevard Haussmann, we were greeted by another longtime friend: Philippe Faure-Brac, the 1992 Best Sommelier in the World and the owner of Bistrot du Sommelier. After polishing off a gorgeous 2004 Sigalas Santorini paired with steamed cod dressed in a lemongrass sauce, we were beyond satisfied, but Wine Enthusiast’s #1 Sommelier in America had other plans. After the meal, Madrigale took us across the street to Les Caves Augé, his favorite wine shop in Paris. That’s when the real show began.

Opened in 1850, Caves Augé is one of the oldest wine shops in the city — Proust used to restock his cellar there. Stepping inside is like going back in time: It’s all dark wood, original moulding, and bottles stacked to the ceiling. But though the decor may be classic, owner Marc Sibard’s shop is in the vanguard when it comes to wine. Madrigale calls Caves Augé “the epicenter of the natural wine world.”

Though Sibard’s domaine is just across the street from Faure-Brac at Bistro du Sommelier, more than Boulevard Haussmann separates the two men. Where Philippe is refined and full of savoir faire, Marc is boisterous and unapologetic. When Sibard slaps you on the back, it feels like you’ve been kicked by a horse. Of course, he’s also a visionary. “Somms in NYC worship this guy,” Madrigale told us. “He’s got the dial on wines we can’t even get imported.”

As we gathered around a sturdy wooden table outside the shop, Sibard brought out glasses. One after another he rolled out bottles of tiny-production cult wines: Overnoy, Thierry Allemand, Ganevat, Clos Rougeard. We could see Madrigale losing his mind a little. But when Sibard poured the 2015 Domaine de l’Ecu Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine “Classic,” we ALL lost it.

Domaine de l’Ecu is an organic, biodynamic wonder whose bottles grace the wine lists of the best restaurants on the planet — Noma in Copenhagen, Le Bernardin in NYC, Astrance in Paris. Located in Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine, just south of Nantes in the western Loire, Domaine de l’Ecu is almost singlehandedly responsible for making the appellation what it is today.

Owner Fred Niger has continued founders Guy Bossard and Annie Thuaud’s deep commitment (read: obsession) with terroir, farming totally biodynamically and completely by hand. In the cellar, wines are gravity fed, with no use of pumps. Fermentation occurs with indigenous yeasts, eschewing all additives. Wines are then aged sur lie for 15-18 months, a rarity in Muscadet. The resulting wines are completely “true,” as Fred puts it — totally unique expressions of terroir, displaying an added complexity impossible to achieve otherwise. Many have argued that Domaine de l’Ecu should be its own appellation — so singular are the wines. After tasting the “Classic,” we didn’t disagree.

Drawn from silex soils on a bed of metamorphic rock, the 2015 Domaine de l’Ecu Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine “Classic” is pale yellow in the glass, with focused Granny Smith apple, lime pith, and sea-air aromas. Deep and concentrated especially due to the ripe 2015 vintage, with lemon, orange, white pepper, and chalky, stony flavors. Extremely pure. Impeccably balanced, and will improve for a decade or more.

When we reached the end of the bottle — a half hour after we were supposed to have left for the airport — we asked Sibard how much the “Classic” sold for. His response nearly knocked us off our stools; we expected double, maybe even triple the price.

We called Fred Niger as soon as we landed at JFK. Given the sky-high demand worldwide and the estate’s tiny production, getting an allocation wasn’t easy — most bottles that make it stateside are earmarked for Le Bernardin. But finally, after almost a year of phone calls and emails, we pried a few cases loose. At $17/bottle, we know they’ll be gone in minutes. Strongly recommended by the case.