Winemaker Notes
Génération XIX, an expression of the 19th generation of the family name is a magnificently balanced cuvee that Alphonse Mellot owes to the almost hundred-year-old vines flourishing in the heart of the estate.
This 100% Sauvignon white has a pleasingly complex nose mixing honey, lemon and dried fruits, and a shimmering pale gold robe, and is full, fresh and rich on the palate with a saline finish.
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
Tasted just before it was about to head to the bottling line, the 2018 Sancerre Generation XIX is a very convincing, top-drawer Sancerre. It caresses the palate yet remains floaty-light. The glacial purity of fruit is reminiscent of lemon meringue and pear. A hugely relaxed, tranquil style with fine length. There's a tiny hint of alcohol on the finish, but it doesn't detract from what is otherwise a hugely successful wine. While a mere pup, it's already gorgeous and will drink beautifully upon release and for a decade.
Barrel Sample: (94-95) Best After 2022
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2018 Sancerre Génération Dix-Neuf (XIX) opens with a very clear, pure and, given the warm and dry vintage, beautifully fresh and mineral-scented bouquet with flinty and yeasty notes intermingled with white fruit aromas. Generously fruity but also salty, pure and tensioned on the palate, this is a full-bodied and elegant but thrilling 2018 Sancerre with a spectacularly long and iodine-laced finish. 13% stated alcohol. Natural cork. Tasted in January 2022. Best after 2022.
Capable of a vast array of styles, Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp, refreshing variety that equally reflects both terroir and varietal character. Though it can vary depending on where it is grown, a couple of commonalities always exist—namely, zesty acidity and intense aromatics. This variety is of French provenance. Somm Secret—Along with Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc is a proud parent of Cabernet Sauvignon. That green bell pepper aroma that all three varieties share is no coincidence—it comes from a high concentration of pyrazines (herbaceous aromatic compounds) inherent to each member of the family.
Marked by its charming hilltop village in the easternmost territory of the Loire, Sancerre is famous for its racy, vivacious, citrus-dominant Sauvignon blanc. Its enormous popularity in 1970s French bistros led to its success as the go-to restaurant white around the globe in the 1980s.
While the region claims a continental climate, noted for short, hot summers and long, cold winters, variations in topography—rolling hills and steep slopes from about 600 to 1,300 feet in elevation—with great soil variations, contribute the variations in character in Sancerre Sauvignon blancs.
In the western part of the appellation, clay and limestone soils with Kimmeridgean marne, especially in Chavignol, produce powerful wines. Moving closer to the actual town of Sancerre, soils are gravel and limestone, producing especially delicate wines. Flint (silex) soils close to the village produce particularly perfumed and age-worthy wines.
About ten percent of the wines claiming the Sancerre appellation name are fresh and light red wines made from Pinot noir and to a lesser extent, rosés. While not typically exported in large amounts, they are well-made and attract a loyal French following.