Domaine Vacheron - Sancerre Belle Dame 2007

"The estate produces about two-thirds white wine and one-third red wine from some 45 hectares, making it one of the region's largest estates. The Vacheron quartet also offers high-quality wines made from Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir grapes grown using organic and biodynamic farming methods."

“The first Sancerre estate certified for biodynamic farming, since 2006. Jean-Dominique Vacheron, who focuses primarily on viticulture, works alongside his cousin Jean-Laurent, an oenologist who cut his teeth at leading Burgundy estates. While their red Sancerres often draw attention, the highly ripe whites are no less impressive. They reveal a mineral character, with beautiful body in the powerful “Les Romains” cuvée, sourced from one of Sancerre’s finest and sunniest terroirs—an expression of flint-rich clay soils. Vinification takes place in wooden tanks, which softens the sometimes austere character that Sauvignon Blancs from flint soils can exhibit. The extraction and aging of the reds give them a certain rigidity in their youth, somewhat in the spirit of the wines from Domaine Trapet in Burgundy. In any case, they should be cellared for at least two to four years. The estate is closing in on its second star.”