Chateau Yvonne, Le Beaumeray Saumur-Champigny 2020

100% Cabernet Franc

Loire Valley, France

Planted from selection massale from Le Bourg of Clos Rougeard. Le Beaumeray vines may be young, but there are planted on some of the finest terroir in La Côte, and already produce stunning Cabernet Franc with a rare sense of grace. Native yeast fermentation in 38hl foudres for four weeks, then moved for a few months into oak barrels (20% new), then is aged in bottle for another year before release. Some of the vines for this cuvée may be somewhat young, but this site is of special provenance, and planted on some of the best terroir in La Côte. This is Cabernet Franc with a special sense of grace.

The Yvonne estate itself is a special one, for those who don’t know it well: a history dating from the 16th century, when the château was built by the monks at the Abbaye de Fontevraud; winemaking beginning there in the early 1800s. In 1997, Yvonne and Jean-François Lamunière decided to recreate the abandoned vineyard with the help of Françoise Foucault. In 2007, Matthieu Vallée took over and decided to keep the name Chateau Yvonne in hommage to the incredible work done by the previous owners. Today the domaine is one of the best producers in Saumur, composed of 3 hectares of Chenin Blanc and 8 hectares of Cabernet Franc, spread out over 28 small plots in three villages.  The vineyards have been farmed organically (Ecocert certified) since 1997 and biodynamically since 2012.  Yvonne’s production remains extremely low, averaging only 2000 cs annually. The dominant soils here are limestone and tuffeau stone but outcroppings of gravel and sandy clay give completely different expressions of Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc.