Sebastien du Petit Thouars was on fine form at the Salon des Vins de Loire this week. I dropped by to taste a couple of his Cabernet Francs.
Reserve 2011
Very ripe fruit on the nose with blackberries and blueberries. Nice and easy on the palate, tannins quite velvety and integrated. A lovely freshness on the finish.
Amiral 2011
Rich deep intense colour. Chunky spicy full nose dominated by black fruits, cherries, coffee and chocolate. Rich and ripe on the palate – a big wine with firm tannins, would be excellent with a lovely rare bit of beef.
As for the 2013 vintage for Petit Thouars: I talked with Michel Pinard (the winemaker) a couple of weeks before harvest and he was in low spirits as sugar levels were low and he thought he would definitely have to chaptalise. However, he and Sebastien decided to sit it out and wait a little longer and their decision paid off. The Chenin came in at around 11.5 and the Cabernet Franc at around 12.6 potential. Just goes to show that it’s not over until the grapes are in and the wine is made.
For information, Chateau du Petit Thouars is located in a small area that used to belong to the Touraine appellation that has recently been reclassified. From 2014, the wines will be sold under the Chinon appellation. Changes to the cahier de charges excluded 100% Cabernet Franc wines from the Touraine AC and so producers based in this small area appealed and were adopted by Chinon. This actually makes a lot of sense as the geographic location, terroir and climate and all much closer to that of Chinon anyway.
