La Tour Gallus - Muscadet Sèvre-Maine Sur Lie Fleur de Gabbro 2022

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the wine:

Fleur de Gabro 2022 combines the richness of the vintage with a vegetal note that can sometimes be detected this year. Feel free to open it ahead of time; letting it breathe will do it a world of good.

About the estate:

Damien Rineau is so low-key that he slipped under the radar of our tastings for years. Descended from a lineage of nine generations of winemakers—as evidenced by the endless family tree at the base of a vine hanging on the wall of his cellar—this native of the Nantes region has been crafting Muscadets of great classicism since the 1980s. His vineyard is located in Gorges, a unique spot where the extremely rare dark blue compact rock, gabbro, nurtures the white melon grape. The wines born here are not the most approachable upon opening; they need time to unfold. They start off discreetly and develop into a magnificent, bitter-edged structure. Damien cultivates this style, particularly in his Gorges, which has remarkable aging potential (over twenty years). In traditional underground vats, his 2016 was aged on lees for… 72 months! The estate has been sold to Thierry Denjean, owner of Domaine de Haute Perche in Anjou and Vin de l’A in the Swiss Valais, but Damien Rineau will remain in his position for a few more years.