La Folle Berthe "Amandiers" Vin de France Blanc, Loire Valley, France 2018

FROM UNDER THE BONNET WINES:

THE WINE: 60-year-old Chenin on tuffeau, with a great salinity very particular to this parcel.

THE PRODUCER: One of our triumvirate of growers in Saumur (Melaric, L'Austral, Folle Berthe), David Foubert works with beautiful parcels of Cab Franc and Chenin that once belonged to the region's retired biodynamic godfather: Philippe Gourdon. Formerly a Parisian journalist, David later moved to Saumur for a life change and to study winemaking. Under the eye of Aymeric Hillaire and Melanie Hunin at Domaine Melaric, David's first vintage in 2014 was made in their cellar. Now with a cellar of his own: a lovingly restored cave cut into the same Tuffeau that gives the areas wines their signature mineral line, David works slowly and delicately, maintaining the biodynamic agriculture in the vineyards, and a deft hand in the cellar. Grapes are pressed gently, and wines are raised in barrel for long periods, with yet more time in bottle before release.