André and Michel Quenard own twenty-two steep, rocky hectares in Chignin, farming them according to la lutte raisonnée. In addition to the Jacquère used in this bottling, father and son also grow Altesse, Mondeuse, Gamay, Pinot noir, and Bergeron, known elsewhere, and more famously, as Roussanne. Soils, if you can call them that, are mostly limestone scree — in French “éboulis,” hence the name of the cuvée. The grapes are manually harvested and ferment with ambient yeasts, and the wine ages in stainless steel for nine months before bottling.
The result is pale yellow with a faint green glint. The perfume is of pome fruits, mostly — russet apple, pear, quince — with a top note of bay leaf and thyme. The palate is silken; the acidity mostly presents as a tingly front-of-palate, but there is a back-palate grip that adds depth. Flavors continue the theme of the aroma profile: white orchard fruits, herbs, and, in the finish, salt. I want this wine with Alpine comfort food: Schnitzel, spaetzle, raclette.
2019 André et Michel Quenard Les Eboulis de la Savoyarde Chignin Savoie AOP
12% abv | $22; imported by Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant
