Roger Lassarat Saint Veran Cuvee Prestige Blanc 1998

Roger Lassarat comes from a long line of vignerons - in 1969, he founded his own domaine with seven acres of vineyards in Pouilly- Fuisse and Saint-Veran, France. Son Pierre-Henri joined his father in 2010 and the domaine has grown to 40 acres, which are farmed in a sustainable manner. Synthetic fertilizers are eschewed in favor of using organic materials (manure or compost) -thus creating and maintaining microbial life. Tilling is also employed, which helps to aerate the soils and forces the roots to develop deep root systems.

 Vineyards are planted on chalky hillsides and some of the vines are 100 years old. Following harvest, the grapes are gently pressed and fermented in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks with full malolactic fermentation. The wines are then aged sur lie in barrel with minimal bâttonage and bottled unfiltered, by gravity. These wines for me are textural but lively-not in the overly oakey styles one can find in appellations like Pouilly Fuiise-rounder with medium med + body with precision.