Domaine Claude Riffault "La Noue" Sancerre Rosé, Loire Valley, France 2023

FROM EUROPEAN CELLARS:

THE WINE: La Noue is a 2.5 hectare plot of Pinot Noir on clay limestone and marl. Divided into seven plots and ranging in age from 10 to 60 years old it is the source for both the Noue Rosé and Rouge. The rosé is a combination of juice bled off the Sancerre Rouge after a 6-12 hour maceration combined with direct press Pinot Noir.

THE PRODUCER: Stéphane Riffault (Claude’s son and now the owner of the estate) is turning out Sancerre bottlings that are the envy of many producers twice his age. As David Schildknecht put it, “Make no mistake: this address in the hamlet of Maison Salle (Sury-en-Vaux) is now one of the five or six most exciting estates in the Sancerre appellation.” Given that Stephane’s holdings represent 4-tenths of 1 percent of the appellation, he is clearly doing something right.

Having studied and worked in Burgundy (and closely with Olivier Leflaive), it’s easy to see the Burgundian influence in Stéphane’s wines. The mastery of minerality standing shoulder–height with the wood is rarely duplicated in Sancerre. Regardless of his parcels’ exposition (many are south-facing), Riffault’s wines are always crisp and high-cut with a jeweled delineation that speaks to the precision and attention these wines get. These are not your daddy’s (or his daddy, Claude’s) Sancerres.