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Matthias Planchon
Anyone who bears the Planchon name bears responsibility. The family has been cultivating vineyards in Sancerre since 1573, and an ancestor made wine history: Jules Émile Planchon discovered phylloxera in 1868 and saved European viticulture from extinction with his solution - grafting onto American rootstocks.
Matthias Planchon grew up among these vines. He learnt from Alphonse Mellot in Sancerre and Geantet-Pansiot in Burgundy before taking over the family vineyards in 2012. Seven years later, in 2019, he bottled his first vintage. His cellar is located in the centre of the Lieu dit „Le Paradis“ - a name that also adorns his top wine. What Matthias describes as „l'eau de roche“, stone water, characterises all of his wines: a mineral salinity that tells of flint and limestone.
More about Matthias Planchon
A legacy that obliges
On 15 July 1868, Jules Émile Planchon knelt in the vineyard near Saint-Martin-de-Crau and examined the roots of diseased vines. What he found was to change the world of wine forever: phylloxera. His solution - grafting European scions onto resistant American rootstocks - saved millions of hectares of vineyards from destruction.
Matthias carries this heritage with care. The 5.5 hectares on ten plots have belonged to the family for generations and he has been cultivating them biodynamically since 2018. He is in no hurry. He prefers to grow slowly and carefully rather than make compromises.
Minerality that you can taste
„Matthias calls the character of his wines “L'eau de roche" - stone water. The soils explain what he means: half flint in the Lieu dit Perruches, the other half Oxford limestone in the Le Paradis vineyard. The Sauvignon Blanc vines are fifty years old and have deep roots. One hectare of Pinot Noir in Les Herses produces red wines of Burgundian elegance.
The Sancerre blanc „Le Paradis“ comes from even older vines - 55 years old - and expresses this mineral precision particularly clearly: steely and cool, yet silky from long ageing on the lees.
Time as an ingredient
While other winemakers bottle after six months, Matthias takes twice as much time. His white wines mature for a full year on the fine lees in stainless steel and large wooden barrels, then another year in steel. The Sancerre blanc „Les Herses“ 2021 even spent eighteen months on the lees.
The red wines follow a similar rhythm: one year in ceramic tanks and small barriques, then a further year in steel. The result is convincing. The Sancerre rouge „Les Herses“ combines juicy cherry fruit with fine, polished tannins - and shows what Pinot Noir can achieve in the Loire.
A little Burgundy
Matthias sees Sancerre as a „little Burgundy“ - a region that is able to depict terroir differences just as precisely. This is why he vinifies each parcel separately and only bottles site-specific wines. With only 22,000 bottles a year, he is one of the smallest producers in the appellation.
He summarises his philosophy in one simple sentence: „Healthy vines for wines with character.“ Those who appreciate the mineral clarity of Claude Riffault finds a kindred spirit in Matthias Planchon.