2020 Vincent Gaudry ‘Mélodie de Vieilles Vignes’ Sancerre

WA94 From 60+ year-old vines on Kimmeridgian marl soils and fermented naturally with wild yeasts in wooden vats, the 2020 Mélodie Vieilles Vignes opens with a deep, ripe and complex, mineral and spicy rather than fruity bouquet whose ripe and warm fruit remains in the background and is wrapped in refreshing citrus, limestone and iodine notes. Full-bodied, fresh and focused on the palate, with concise mineral acidity and refreshing, highly stimulating polyphenols, this is an elegant, lively, complex and vivacious Sancerre that mirrors the warm vintage but also the old vines rooting deep in great, biodynamically cultivated soils. With a great, persistent finish, this is a classic Sancerre that I would love to have with shellfish such as lobster and crayfish
Estate Notes:This Sancerre Mélodie de vieilles vignes is a small gem. In this solar vintage, its broad imprint can be read all the more, with beautiful notes of yellow fruit and a lot of amplitude. It has a very nice freshness, with a salty touch on the finish which relaunches the wine and gives it all its vertical dimension. An unquestionable success, driven by an unstoppable elegance.
Mostly one parcel in the lieu-dit La Rabotine, a west exposed slope on Kimmeridgian clay (terres blanches) in Sury-en-Vaux where the vines are 50 to 90yo. Ploughed by horse, the topsoil is no more than 30-40cm before reaching the limestone bedrock which is hard to penetrate for the roots. Vinified and aged in tronconic oak vats until bottling in July, it’s quite a step up from Tournebride, more restrained aromatically and more complex, deeply textured with a very intense mineral backbone.

Domaine Vincent Gaudry, located in Sury-en-Vaux, has been organic and Biodynamic certified beginning in 1993. The 2019 “Melodie des Vieilles Vignes” is from 50-plus year-old vines on clay/limestone soils, and is fermented naturally with wild yeasts. This is an outstanding Sancerre showing elegant aromas of ripe pear, quince, citrus and lime-flower, really quite lovely. The palate is fresh and lively with dried pear, stone and herbal flavors, very elegant. The stone and subtle fruit flavors continue in the refreshing finish making this a superb food wine with anything from oysters to grilled fish and chicken in sauce.

Vincent Gaudry has been a pioneer and a trailblazer in the region for pursuing his own unique brand of winemaking, becoming the first in the region to be certified Biodynamic in 2004. His production reflects his deeply held beliefs about the power of the earth and the expression of each of the region’s unique terroirs. His domaine covers 9 hectares of vineyards divided among the three main soils: clay-limestone or marl (terres blanches), flint (silex) and stony, rubble-like limestone that come from weathered Kimmeridgian (caillottes). A small plot of 90 year-old vines planted on marl allows Gaudry to work via “massale selection.” His methods result in naturally modest yields, keeping the plants healthy, reducing his footprint in the vineyard and producing wines which are naturally imbued with density and volume on the palate and which preserve the stony minerality for which Sancerre is regarded worldwide.