Clau de Nell | Loire | Grolleau IGP | 2020 | 750ml | bio

Description

Product description for Clau de Nell Grolleau IGP 2020 (bio)

Christoph Raffelt: On the palate, the 2018 Grolleau once again reveals itself as a completely unique Loire wine, somewhere between Cabernet and Pinot, somewhere between nobility and country life. The fruit combines wild strawberries and raspberries with plums and a few cherries; the wine appears lively and fresh, while the still-firm tannins pack a powerful punch. The Grolleau is always precise and structured, long and complex with a light peppery finish. The wine has aging potential for 15+ years. Along with Pineau d’Aunis, Grolleau is one of the most beautiful discoveries you can make in the Loire Valley.

Wine Information

Grolleau is an indigenous Loire grape variety that is usually used in residually sweet Rosé d’Anjou. The variety was hardly ever cultivated in its purest form before Claude and Nelly, the founders of Domaine Clau de Nell, took it upon themselves to do so and demonstrated that it could produce a wine of great character that was as rustic as it was elegant and worthy of ageing. The vines for this Grolleau are between 60 and 90 years old, but more have been planted in recent years. They grow in clayey-silty soil on sandstone, and in red flint on tuffeau.

Information on the Vinification

The yield is just 25 hl/ha. The grapes were harvested by hand in 12-kilo crates. They were destemmed and fermented over 30 days with only occasional pumping over. Thirty percent of the wine was then aged on the fine lees for twelve months – in Burgundy pièces aged five to seven years – and the remaining 70% was aged in large foudres. The cuvée then matured for a further six months in stainless steel.

Colour

Intense violet red

Nose

A potpourri of berries, such as blackberries, blackcurrants, sloe, and mulberries, flows from the glass, accompanied by countless herbal notes reminiscent of rosemary, wild sage, eucalyptus, elderberry wood, and also vegetable notes of beetroot and eggplant. A thoroughly honest wine with cool precision and invigorating freshness.

Palate

Juicy dark fruit pairs with fine spice, again with numerous herbal notes and a subtle salty trace, as well as a meaty finish. This is the perfect wine to pair with earthy vegetables and braised meats. You never tire of these wines; they’re pure, unadulterated biodynamics and a wonderful food companion. Serve chilled at 16°C from a carafe in a large glass.

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Keywords: Clau de Nell Grolleau IGP 2020 bio Loire France

Vinous

Score: 85

The 2020 Grolleau is a crisp, tangy wine, with ripe redcurrant and blueberry fruit flavors alongside wild, woody herbs and a hint of leather. Light in body, with a firm line of acidity that gives the wine linearity and purpose, the low level of tannin has a slightly rustic texture, contributing to this wine’s slightly wild character.
— Rebecca Gibb MW
Drinking window: 2023 – 2027
Review date: Jan 2024

Producer website: https://claudenell.fr/en/home/