2022 Louis Millet Sancerre Rouge 750 ml

To some, “red Sancerre” is an oxymoron. To us, it’s a tip-off for elegant and vastly undervalued Pinot Noir. Especially with bottles as complex and textured as Louis Millet’s 2022. 

The region might be famed for its Sauvignon Blanc, but this wine shows that the tiny amounts of Pinot it produces can channel the same vibrancy and energy. In fact, the Wall Street Journal has referred to Sancerre Rouge as “the connoisseur’s wine,” calling it “sensational drinking.” Wine Enthusiast said it can deliver “the same depth and complexity” as Burgundian Pinot Noir. 

A sip of the Louis Millet proves both of their points. This is a bright and fragrant wine, with wild-berry aromas that give way to notes of rose, bramble, kola nut, and spice. A current of zippy acidity carries notes of red fruit and cassis, with excellent texture and length, making the wine incredibly versatile at the dinner table. It’s a worthy addition to any Pinot-lover’s cellar. 

Sancerre Rouge is rare: Only one-fifth of Sancerre is red, and just a sliver of that makes it out of France. However, it hasn’t always been that way. Before phylloxera hit, Sancerre grape growers cultivated mainly red varieties. But as sleek, grassy Sauvignon Blanc stole the limelight in recent decades, the red wine of the region became a niche obsession.

That’s now poised to change. While Sancerre shares much of the same limestone soils as Burgundy, the cooler northern climate has historically favored white grapes over red. But with climate change, Pinot Noir in Sancerre is filling out with ripe muscularity. The Millet family’s home of Bué boasts some of the region’s best vineyards, and they’ve been making wines here for five generations, with a focus on purity and typicity. 

This Sancerre Rouge shows both in spades. It’s a standout representation from a hidden-gem Pinot Noir region that might not stay hidden for much longer.