Le Verger 2019

Domaine Luneau-Papin is located southeast of Nantes and was founded by Pierre Luneau and Monique Papin. After the Luneau brothers separated in the 90ies in a dispute about the type of cultivation they wanted, Pierre Luneau and his wife Monique Papin merged their estates and founded the Domaine Luneau-Papin. Since 2005, the family business has been supported by son Jean-Marie and his wife Marie, who have meanwhile taken over the management of the estate. They started to cultivate the single parcels one by one and approached in careful steps more and more the organic cultivation, which is meanwhile certified by the Demeter association. The wines of the domaine are exclusively made of the Melon de Bourgogne, which came to the Loire with Burgundian monks in the 16th century.

The Verger comes from the village of La Chapelle-Heulin and is grown in a parcel called Les Bernardières on pure slate. Planted in 1998 with a vine density of 6500 vines per hectare, the vines here always produce a particularly salty wine. Careful sorting of the grapes takes place in the vineyard, after which they are pneumatically pressed, with the strength and duration of pressing varying depending on the vintage. Spontaneous fermentation with natural yeasts is followed by subsequent maturation on the lees in underground glass-tiled vats for six months without decanting until the final bottling in March of the following year.

Pale yellow with green reflections and silver rim.

The nose promises an immediate short holiday and transports you directly to the French Atlantic coast. The scent of a stiff sea breeze, of iodine and ground oyster shells rise from the goblet and leave no room for ornaments such as fruit aromas or other ornaments. Straightforward, purist and sparse, it is taciturn but strong in character.

The first impression on the palate is that you could drink yourself thirsty. Its feel is reminiscent of fine-grained sandpaper, the fine tannins cause mouth-watering astringency, which is additionally spurred on by dusty minerality. In addition, there is a radical acidity that kärchert the palate with the salt radiator. A profoundly saline experience with an ethereal freshness factor in the long finish. A Muscadet to convert all doubters. Like the lady with the apple on the label.