Chenin, Loire Valley, France 

A tactile and complex, amphora-aged Loire chenin GEM that’s hiding in pain sight! Open your eyes! Originally from Brittany, Jean Christophe Garnier worked as a sommelier before moving into winemaking, and acclimating himself to the region by working for Loire royalty, Marc Angeli. FUN FACT! As a “thank you”, Mark offered JC a wine press and also helped him find a vineyard for sale to get him on his way! Here, on the south side of the Layon River, JC tends to small plots of Loire specialties like chenin, cabernet franc, grolleau, gamay, & pineau d’aunis, ranging from 30-60 years in age. From organically farmed, low-yielding estate parcels of old vines (30–50 years) in Anjou, the chenin for ‘Amphore’ is usually macerated on skins, but JC found the vintage did not favour extraction (very wet and rainy), and so the grapes were whole-cluster pressed long n’ slow to extract the juice gently, and bring a subtle amount of oxidation that adds to the intricacy this bottling offers. The fermentation and aging is then carried out in clay amphora for one year to let the chenin touch the heartbeat of the valley, and come to us absolutely pounding with life. Bletted quince, chamomile poultice, young ginger, whole apricot, citrus zest and perfectly puckering acidity, architectural honeycomb richness, sandy minerality, salt & warm, savoury spice. Pour alongside reading Anne Carson, admiring a rose bush or discussing the excellent of Kate Bush’s career.