Bellivière Coteaux du Loir "Le Rouge Gorge" 2020

100% Pineau d'Aunis. Rouge-Gorge ("red throat") is named in honor of the robins which inhabit the vineyards. The Pineau d'Aunis vines are scattered amongst many Bellivière parcels and range in age from 25 to 45 years old. The Nicolas family farms biodynamically and harvests by hand. The grapes are destemmed, crushed and fermented spontaneously with native yeasts in old barrels. The wines are aged in used barrel for 12 to 18 months, before blending and bottling without fining or filtering.

The Rouge-Gorge from Eric and Clément Nicolas is one of the most astonishingly pure and profound examples of this varietal that we have encountered.