Bottler: Matthias Planchon, Route de Bourges, 18300 Sancerre / France
In the glass
Colour
Intense straw yellow.
Nose
Fine, precise nose with white flowers, citrusy yellow and green notes, wet stone, salt, as well as iodine and herbal hints.
Palate
Bright, citrus and white berry expression with polished acidity, fine structure, subtle oak influence and impressive depth.
Character
Purist and unadulterated with great purity, density and complexity, combined with elegance and an appealing lightness of touch.
Pairing
Ideal with seafood, grilled fish or goat’s cheese.
Notes
Biodynamically grown (Biodyvin certified), spontaneously fermented, aged for two years on the fine lees in amphorae and casks, bottled unfiltrated.
Tasting note
Colour & appearance
Intense straw yellow, dense and luminous in the glass.
Nose
Fine, precise, taut and cool – hard to believe that 2022 was a warm year. White flowers, yellow and green citrus fruits, accompanied by stone, salt and iodine-laced, herbal nuances. A wine of great purity and noble restraint.
Palate
Bright citrus fruit and white berries meet polished acidity, a fine texture and remarkable depth. Dense and multi-layered, yet elegant and effortless – one is tempted to speak of a Burgundian tone.
Finish
Long, saline and precise, with lingering minerality – what Matthias Planchon calls “l’eau de roche”, rock water.
Terroir & origin
The Chambrates vineyard site lies on a cooler plateau above Le Paradis, on Oxford limestone of maritime origin – 150 million years old. The iron-rich clay topsoil, up to 90 cm deep, retains water; cailottes and fossilised shale slabs permeate the rocky ground. Warm days and cool nights – an interplay that preserves the wine’s taut freshness.
Grape variety & vinification
Sauvignon Blanc, hand-harvested, slowly pneumatically pressed, spontaneously fermented – 40% in stainless steel, 60% in amphorae and 600-litre casks. Two years’ ageing on the fine lees, a further year’s rest in stainless steel, bottled unfiltrated. Time is an ingredient here.
Food recommendations
A wine for sole in beurre blanc, grilled scallops or asparagus with hollandaise sauce. Also a precise choice with light poultry in lemon jus or a fine seafood platter.
Special features
Matthias Planchon comes from a family that made wine history: Jules Émile Planchon identified phylloxera in 1868. Matthias farms the family vineyards biodynamically (AB/EU organic certified) and, with around 22,000 bottles, ranks among the smallest producers in Sancerre. Chambrates is his quiet proof that the Loire can express terroir just as precisely as Burgundy.
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