Francois Crochet

Loire ValleyFrance
François Crochet, winemaker from Sancerre, Loire Valley
François Crochet's vineyards in Sancerre, Loire Valley
Sauvignon blanc vines from François Crochet's vineyards in Sancerre
Kimmeridgian rocks in Sancerre
Mixture of limestone marl, chalk and flint from François Crochet's vineyards
François Crochet's vineyards in Sancerre, Loire Valley
François Crochet walking through his vineyards in Sancerre
François Crochet's vineyards in Sancerre
Rocks in Sancerre composed of Kimmeridgian, an ancient tiny sea creature that closely resembles today’s oyster
Kimmeridgian rocks in Sancerre from François Crochet's vineyards
François Crochet's vineyard rocks in Sancerre
Old wine bottles of François Crochet's Sancerre blanc
Sauvignon blanc vines from François Crochet's vineyards in Sancerre
François Crochet vineyards contain a mixture of limestone marl, chalk and flint.

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After enology studies and stints at many wineries (highlighted by Domaine Bruno Clair), François took over his father’s Sancerre winery in Bué. Approximately 11 hectares on 30 parcels display a range of aspects from flat to steep, and north to south. Most of the grapes are the lieux-dits Le Petit Chemarin, Le Grand Chemarin, Le Chêne Marchand and Les Exils. Organic certified and working with biodynamic methods, the terroirs range between Kimmeridgian limestone marls, silex, various other limestone formations, and iron-rich clay. He’s one of the first growers in the appellation to pick, and the whites are whole cluster pressed and fermented and aged in steel or old tronconic oak vats. François’ Sancerre Rosé made entirely from Pinot Noir undergoes a short maceration with the fermentation and aging in steel. While a master of white, his reds are also revered in his appellation and are fermented in stainless and aged in old tronconic oak vats. They’re unfined, lightly filtered, and contain added SO2.
Les Exils

Francois Crochet - 2022 Sancerre Blanc, ‘Les Exils’

Price: $57.00
Size: 750ml
Availability: 

Out of stock

Type of Wine: White
Grape(s): 100% Sauvignon Blanc
Style: High acid, Mineral

GROWER OVERVIEW

After enology studies and stints at many wineries (highlighted by Domaine Bruno Clair), François took over his father’s Sancerre winery in Bué. Approximately 11 hectares on 30 parcels display a range of aspects from flat to steep, and north to south. Most of the grapes are the lieux-dits Le Petit Chemarin, Le Grand Chemarin, Le Chêne Marchand and Les Exils. Organic certified and working with biodynamic methods, the terroirs range between Kimmeridgian limestone marls, silex, various other limestone formations, and iron-rich clay. He’s one of the first growers in the appellation to pick, and the whites are whole cluster pressed and fermented and aged in steel or old tronconic oak vats. François’ Sancerre Rosé made entirely from Pinot Noir undergoes a short maceration with the fermentation and aging in steel. While a master of white, his reds are also revered in his appellation and are fermented in stainless and aged in old tronconic oak vats. They’re unfined, lightly filtered, and contain added SO2.

VINEYARD DETAILS

Sancerre (blanc) “Les Exils” comes from a parcel in Ménétréol-sous-Sancerre on a steep slope facing east between 230-260 meters on silex (chert) bedrock and extremely rocky topsoil with little clay and organic material.

CELLAR NOTES

Whole-cluster pressed, cold settled overnight, followed by a natural fermentation in steel with aging up to 18 months (though usually less with Les Exils) in various containers (depending on the year and taste of the grapes) between steel, old oak tronconic (vertical) oak, concrete vats and egg-shaped vessels.

About The Wine

Inside the bottle: The direct mineral impression of this wine easily stands apart from Francois’ range. Given that this silex soil is his most unique soil, it also renders the most unique wine from this domaine. The nose is dominated with the smell of minerals, flint, stones and metal. Yes, there are other organic-type aromas, like high-toned citrus fruits, fresh grasses and forest floor, but this wine is dominated by its stoniness. The acidity is perhaps the most impressive in the range of wines and also most elegant. This is a real beauty of a wine.

Terroir: The anagram “Les Exils” comes from the stones that completely cover this vineyard, Silex. This flintstone, formed long before Fred and Barny existed, tens of millions of years ago. Silex is a brutally hard stone that has been used as a tool for cutting things for thousands of years because of its sharpness and hardness. In fact, when François plows this vineyard, the blades on his tractor end up in pretty bad shape. The anagram “Les Exils” was created because this is also a vineyard that is far away from every other vineyard in the Crochet stable. The vines and stones rest next to a forest, at the top of a south-facing hill on the south side of Sancerre, near the Loire River.