Maunoury ‘Alphée’ Blanc 2019

Location: France, Loire, Saumur Puy-Notre-Dame

Winemaker: Jonathan Maunoury

Grapes: Chardonnay

Soil: Predominantly clay-limestone soil on rock and green chalk alterite (middle Turonian period). Parcelles located halfway up slope (64-69 meter in altitude) on the south-east and south-west slopes of the mounds of Puy Notre Dame.

Winemaking: Hand harvest. Native yeast. Slow manual press of whole clusters. Juices transferred by gravity into 400l barrels. Aged on lees for 19 months. Bottled in July of 2021.

From the Importer Steven Graf: Puy-Notre-Dame is a little hill of chalk 20 kilometers south of the city of Saumur, sort of on the border of between the more limestone bedrock of the greater Saumur region, and the more superficial soils of Anjou noir. In 2015, after studying with such illustrious vignerons as Marc Angeli, Vouette and Sorbée, Pierre Gonon, Chandon de Briailles, and -naturally- Melaric, Jonathan settled in this little goldilocks zone of tuffeau vineyards. (Tuffeau is this sort of wet and crumbly bedrock that makes up all the caves of Saumur including the ones you walked through at La Dive! It's alluvial like schist, but not so much, and it produces a lot of power, but not as much as pure limestone).

Anyway, as a result of this interesting terroir and it being one of the driest places in France, the wine here is known for its muscularity and aromatic complexity. Also because it tastes very good. That's no more so the case than with this very cool lineup we've got from Jonathan spanning 4 vintages and many different exposures. Something for everyone here: completely biodynamic, without additives, and as clean as can be.