Winemaker Notes
Les Romains is a cuvee typified by a combination of flint and limestone; its name refers to the remains of a Roman road crossing the plot.
This 100% Sauvignon white wine has a nose opening to delicate notes of white flowers, walnut oil and chalk, with just a hint of the sea, a pale yellow robe with glints of emerald green and a voluptuous palate mixing quince, white currants and grapefruit.
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
The 2021 Alphonse Mellot Sancerre Blanc Les Romains is attractively distinctive on the palate. This wine features aromas and flavors of generous chalky notes, parched stones, and mineral notes. Enjoy it with grilled abalone and medium spicy chiles. (Tasted: March 26, 2024, San Francisco, CA)
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Vinous
The 2021 Les Romains is Mellot's Sancerre off a vineyard on the flinty side of the fault that cuts the appellation in two. In conjunction with the cooler 2021 vintage, the result is a firm, forceful expression, yet there's flesh on its bones, providing some comforting padding to the backbone. Expect refined citrus, elderflower and boxwood flavors on the precise finish.
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.