Jean Max Roger, Pinot Noir, Sancerre "La Grange Dimière", Loire Valley, France 2019

When Jean-Max Roger took over the estate in the 1920s from his parents, he grew a small bit of precious pinot noir, while generally the focus was on sauvignon blanc. We tasted the pinot, flipped out, and bought. Super fresh plum skin, snappy red cherry and cassis, with crushed rock minerality and a lightly spiced texture. Terribly easy to drink and such a wonderful original expression of pinot noir!

The name "La Grange Dimiere" references one of the ancient tithe barns in the Roger’s home village of Bué. Jean-Max Roger’s ancestors used this barn for winemaking, and today it remains the oldest part of the winery. Today’s missive is a masterful blend of pinot noir from the villages of Bué, Sancerre, and Amigny, primarily grown on flint and limestone soils, locally called Caillottes & Terres Blanches (Kimmeridgian marls, similar to what is found in Chablis) with southern exposures. Farming is done following organic principles, and the wines are fermented using natural yeast.