Domaine du Bel Air, 2018 Clos Nouveau, Bourgueil, Loire Valley, France | Cab Franc Chronicles скачать в хорошем качестве

Domaine du Bel Air, 2018 Clos Nouveau, Bourgueil, Loire Valley, France | Cab Franc Chronicles

Cab Franc Chronicles - Your source for all things Cabernet Franc! -------------------- Analysis and commentary of the Domaine du Bel Air, 2018 Clos Nouveau, Bourgueil, Loire Valley, France In 1979, at the age of 14, Pierre Gauthier, 4th generation of Domaine du Bel Air, began working alongside his father André tending the family's grape vines in the commune of Benais in Bourgueil. Over the last 40 years, Pierre has quietly and humbly built the domaine into what is now one of the most respected and celebrated estates in the appellation. Pierre and Rodolphe make 5 Cabernet Francs, two of which are blends across multiple parcels, Jour du Soif and Les Vingts Lieux-Dits; and 3 cuvée parcellaires, which includes Les Marsaules, as well as Grand-Mont and Clos Nouveau, two lieux-dits that are widely regarded as some of the top vineyards in Benais, if not, the entire Bourgueil appellation. Located in the heart of the Benais village about 6km north of the Loire, Clos Nouveau is widely regarded as being one of the most historic and prized vineyards in the Bourgueil appellation. The history of viticulture at Clos Nouveau can be traced back to the 13th century, when it was part of the vineyards belonging to the Château de Benais. The clos was built around 1600 by the du Bellay family, descendants of poet Joachim du Bellay, and is entirely enclosed by limestone walls that are 3m, that's nearly 10 feet, tall. The entire clos is around 1.3ha, with 1.15ha planted to vine. In keeping with the tradition of the vineyard and to enhance biodiversity of the site, 15are planted with a variety of fruit trees that are espellier trained up the walls around the perimeter of the clos. The vineyard sits on a plateau with a full, south-facing exposure at about 60m above sea level. The bedrock is the Middle Turonian white tuffeau chalk. The topsoil is shallow, with only 30cm of a siliceous, sandy-clay before hitting the tuffeau. The unique position of this clos set back from the moderating influences of the Loire, as well as being entirely surrounded by walls, affords the Cabernet Franc vines a long, warm growing season. Pierre shared with me that when he was a boy, he walked by the clos and its 3m tall walls everyday on his way to school. When he began his journey as a vigneron, all of the older vignerons told him that the greatest Cabernet Franc wine came from the vines enclosed by those walls. Pierre dreamed that one day he would be the caretaker of this special vineyard. In 2005, his dream became a reality when Domaine du Bel Air was able to purchase Clos Nouveau making them sole owners of the vineyard, and only the third owner since 1798. Following their purchase, Pierre and his son did some restoration of the vineyard over a few vintages. Some of the original vines remain, but some replantings have taken place as well. The average age of the vines is around 40 years. As part of this restoration, they installed century-old, large, schist stakes at the end of each row - a nod to the past and the significance of the 'Angevin' wine culture of the region. The first vintage of Domaine du Bel Air's Clos Nouveau was 2007, and Pierre said that the terroir started to show through by 2008. The yield from this vineyard is pretty consistent at about 35hl/ha. The fruit is hand-harvested, hand-sorted and destemmed. The whole berries undergo a cold soak in advance of alcoholic fermentation, which takes place in stainless steel with indigenous yeast, with the fermentation temperature not exceeding 30C. The total time on skins is 20 days, with light pumping over during the first 15 days, followed by pigeage once daily during the last 5. The finished cuvée is 95% free run wine, 5% press wine. Elevage is for 24 months in 500L oak barrels, 70% of which is new, which is followed by 6 months in stainless steel prior to bottling. The total production hovers around 5000 bottles per year. 0:00 Intro/Overview 1:16 Benais commune overview 3:49 Clos Nouveau - history 4:34 Clos Nouveau - vineyard 5:39 Pierre Gauthier and Clos Nouveau 6:57 Winemaking 8:04 Tasting notes -------------------- Website in progress with a full write up and tons more content. Originally posted to Instagram November 27, 2023. -------------------- Key wine facts below: Producer: Domaine du Bel Air (Pierre Gauthier) Appellation: Bourgueil Commune: Benais Lieu-Dit: Clos Nouveau Soil: 20-30cm siliceous sandy-clay over the Middle Turonian white tuffeau chalk Alcohol: 13.5% --------------------- FOLLOW ME: Instagram:   / cabfrancchronicles   #cabfranc #cabernetfranc #cabfrancchronicles #cabfrancdujour #domainedubelair #bourgueil #closnouveau