The soils of Sancerre are famous for their flint. This unusual mineral gives the region’s wines a note of smokiness and stones — a perfect foil for Sauvignon Blanc’s lush grapefruit notes. This unique balance has made Sancerre one of the world’s most popular wines.
Our Sancerre producer, the Domaine de la Garenne, makes three excellent cuvées: a fruit-forward Sancerre from a blend of soil types, an intense and refreshing Sancerre “Bouffants” from limestone-heavy soils, and today’s vibrant Sancerre “Infidèle” from soils full of classic flint.
If you like your Sauvignon Blancs zippy, dry, and mineral, it doesn’t get more exciting than this.
We opened this at warehouse tasting last year (back when we could do those), and the reactions were striking: “I really don’t like Sauvignon Blanc, but this is delicious;” “It’s like biting into a stone…in a good way;” and “Most exciting white I’ve had from Ansonia all year.”
In the nose 2019 Infidèle is delicate and lovely — a combination of dry grapefruit, straw, oyster shells, and a hint of gunflint smokiness. In the mouth it’s outstanding, packed full of flinty minerals, notes of chalk, grapefruit and lime rind, and smooth, tension-filled texture. It’s full of ripe fruit from a warm year, cut expertly by smoke and minerals.
We’ve been out of this for a while — Garenne only makes 200 cases a year — but it’s back and ready for action.
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Garenne Sancerre “Infidèle” 2019
bottle price: $34
FREE EAST COAST SHIPPING ON ANY 12 BOTTLES
