2020 Domaine de la Garrelière Le Rouge des Cornus

WINEMAKER: François & Pascaline Plouzeau
REGION: Loire Valley, FR
VARIETAL: Cabernet Franc
VITICULTURE: Certified Biodynamic

The Rouge des Cornus is a 100% Cabernet Franc wine that is made from grapes that are hand-harvested from the younger parcel of vines (approximately 2.3 hectares) that are around 20 years old. These vines thrive on Aeolian sand sitting on clay which is derived from flint.

The grapes are sorted on arrival at the winery and destemmed before undergoing natural fermentation for 15 to 20 days with some pumping over to extract more colour. The juice is then transferred to concrete vats for some 5 to 6 months to mature. The wine is bottled without filtration. It is a fresh, lively red wine.

François and Pascaline Plouzeau maintain an immaculate vineyard near the fascinating village of Richelieu which lies south of Tours quite close to the Chinon region. Here they implement strict biodynamic vineyard practices which are certified by Ecocert and Biodyvin. A feature of their lovely wines is the wonderful set of labels produced by local artists that reflect the naming of the wine. So the racy Cendrillon white, as the name suggests, has a Cinderella theme. Tasmanians will note a Samek-like whimsy in some of the paintings.