Domaine Paul Prieur et Fils, Sancerre Rouge 2019

The Prieur’s try to intervene as little as possible in the vinification process. The wines are neither fined nor filtered.

The 5 hectares of Sancerre Rouge are grown in a local spot known as “Les Pichons” below the Monts Damnés hill. The soils are limestone-clay (limestone subsoil). They are deep enough to enable the vines to root well and draw out all the richness of the terroir. Half of the wine is aged in 228 barrels of which 7% is new, the other half is in large oak vats. The wine is then racked and blended. The mainly de-stemmed grapes go into open vats. After a few days’ cold, prefermentation maceration, fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts and the performance of cap punching (pigeage) and gentle pumping over operations.

The Prieurs come from a long line of wine growers. The newest member of the family to take charge of the winemaking is the youthful and enthusiastic Luc Prieur, who completed his studies at Lycée Viticole in Beaune. The Burgundian philosophy is felt in their wines, with a respect for individual vineyard plots, producing cuvées based on their terroirs.