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Domaine des Closiers Saumur Champigny Les Trezellieres 2019 750ml
Domaine des Closiers is one of the most exciting estates to emerge from the Loire.
Expert Review
John Gilman 96 Points | This is my first taste of Domaine des Closiers top bottling, les Trezellières, which is made from a parcel of old vines and given fully two years aging in barrel, with somewhere between ten and twenty percent of the casks new. The 2019 les Trezellières is beautifully deep and ...Show More >
Expert Review
John Gilman 96 Points | This is my first taste of Domaine des Closiers top bottling, les Trezellières, which is made from a parcel of old vines and given fully two years aging in barrel, with somewhere between ten and twenty percent of the casks new. The 2019 les Trezellières is beautifully deep and refined aromatically, delivering scents of black cherries, cassis, Cuban cigar wrapper, a very complex base of soil, a touch of Cheval Blanc-like menthol, a gentle dollop of tree bark, cedar and a topnote of cigar smoke. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, elegant and rock solid at the core, with great focus and complex, superb soil undertow, fine-grained tannins and a very long, pure and classy finish.
The small percentage of new oak gives this wine more refinement than the les Coudraies bottling, but because it is no more than twenty percent new oak, the wood influence is far more subtle out of the blocks than in Clos Rougeard’s Le Bourg bottling, which is the closest comparison I can think of for this brilliant young Saumur Champigny. Give this beautiful wine plenty of time in the cellar to properly resolve its tannins and completely blossom! (2019).
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Wine Information:
Country: France
Region: Loire
Sub-Region:
Appellation: Saumur-Champigny
Variety: Cabernet Franc
Type: Reds
Size: 750ml
Choose when time is of the essence
Domaine des Closiers is one of the most exciting estates to emerge from the Loire in recent years. This historic estate in Saumur-Champigny was purchased in 2018 by Anatole de la Brosse, a wine-loving and successful Management Consultant, who actually started his career studying enology. In typical Management Consultant form, he initiated his project by harnessing the talent and know-how of two of the greats of Loire Valley Cabernet Franc whom he hired as consultants. The first, Michel Chevré, of Clos L’Ecotard cut his teeth for many years working side-by-side with Thierry Germain helping him to develop his Biodynamic regime. The second needs no introduction. It is no other than Nady Foucault, who along with his late brother Charly, ran the legendary Clos Rougeard estate until it was sold in 2017.
The estate is located in Parnay, one of the principle villages in the heart of Saumur Champigny. Unlike most of the appellation which is largely flat, Parnay is distinguished by its hillside vineyards which give the wines their distinctiveness and power. When de la Brosse purchased the winery, it already had 15 HA of mature plantings with an average age of 35 years. And with their inaugural vintage in 2019, they immediately converted their vineyards to Organic and Biodynamic viticulture.
As with most top Domaines in France, harvest is done meticulously by hand and fermentations occur with indigenous yeasts. Also, the maceration regime includes extended contact with the skins of around 1 month to give the wines depth and structure. Depending on the cuvée, they are either aged in tank, or in mostly used wood.
The top red from Closiers is from an old-vine parcel called “Les Trezellières” and sees 24 months in wood before bottling.Trezellieres is a tiny production cuvee farmed and vinified with extreme attention to detail. Very high impact from the limestone in this parcel gives muscular wines that will reward with aging.
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