Marc Deschamps Pouilly-Fume Les Porcheronnes 2012

For several generations this domaine was the property of the Figeat family, most recently under the supervision of Paul Figeat, the long-time mayor of Pouilly Sur Loire. I made my first visit to the little hamlet of Les Loges, hard on the banks of the Loire, in early 1982, and immediately began working with Paul Figeat, our first vintage being the rather spare and lean 1980. Marc Deschamps worked in collaboration with Monsieur Figeat at that time and continued to do so for over a decade, tending the vineyards and crafting the wine. Upon Paul Figeat's untimely death in 1991 in an auto accident, Marc Deschamps purchased the domaine from the estate. Since that time he has modernized the equipment and continued to add to the well-placed vineyard holdings. More importantly, our long-term relationship and mutual regard for the nuances of the terroir of Pouilly Fumé resulted in the delineation of numerous small cuvées based on the specific lieu-dits that are being exploited.

The domaine consists of approximately 8.5 hectares of vineyards, all of which are located in the legendary sector of Les Loges just north of the village of Pouilly-sur-Loire and known as "the hamlet of the vignerons." Harvest is manual; the fermentation takes place in a mix of stainless steel and cement cuves. Only natural yeasts are used. The wines are left on the lees a considerable time. The malolactic fermentation rarely occurs. The wines are generally racked for the first time in January following the harvest. A light fining and filtration takes place prior to bottling which occurs in June for all wines except the "Les Champs de Cri" and the "Cuvé Vinéalis," both of which are bottled later (normally between July and September). These wines are classic examples of the appellation: rich, powerful, marked by an undercurrent of minerality and, above all, expressing the precision, elegance and exceptional length that makes the wines of the hamlet of Les Loges the envy of all the producers of Pouilly Fumé.