Winemaker Notes
Thierry's Cabernet Francs from Saumur Champigny are models of purity, finesse, and drinkability. This blend of parcels from the communes of Chacé and Varrains is only made in the best vintages, and sees the longest aging of Germain’s reds—up to 24 months in a mix of older barrels and foudres. Thierry is a pioneer of biodynamics in the Loire Valley, with great experience and wisdom acquired under the tutelage of Clos Rougeard's Charly Foucault. With incredibly pristine, vivid fruit along with a deep, rich structure and silky-fine tannins, Germain's reds are grand examples of the heights biodynamic wines can achieve.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2021 Saumur Champigny La Marginale, derived from vines planted on deep clay soils (the lieu-dit is named Fosse de Chaintres), reveals a floral, lively bouquet of peonies, violet, iris, dark wild berries and cassis. Medium-bodied, layered and seamless, with a juicy core of fruit, it’s lean and fresh with a lively, tense finish enhanced by powdery tannins. Very charming.
Cabernet Franc, a proud parent of Cabernet Sauvignon, is the subtler and more delicate of the Cabernets. Today Cabernet Franc produces outstanding single varietal wines across the wine-producing world. Somm Secret—One of California's best-kept secrets is the Happy Canyon appellation of Santa Barbara. Here Cabernet Franc shines as a single varietal wine or in blends, expressing sumptuous fruit, savory aromas and polished tannins.
Marked by great châteaux built with the same tuffeau limestone that is also responsible for the excavation of so many of the famed Loire caves, Saumur is famous for its Chenin blanc based sparkling wines. Inside the Saumur region, Saumur-Champigny creates some of the Loire’s greatest Cabernet Francs.