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Bâtard-Princess

Yannick Amirault

Bâtard-Princess Bottle
Appellation
Val de Loire
Variety
Chenin Blanc
Age of Vines
5
Farming
Certified organic
Soil
Clay and flint over tuffeau
Altitude
50 meters
Fermentation
Hand-harvested, double sorting, slow direct pressing, natural yeast fermentation in French oak barrels
Aging
10 months in French oak barrels

Press Review

Bâtard-Princesse is a deeply colored Chenin with a full body and rich flavors... this finished bottle offers dried fruit flavors and baked apple alongside lightly oaked toasted nut characters.

- Rebecca Gibb MW, 2021 Vintage

Overview

Before phylloxera, Chenin Blanc was planted alongside Cabernet Franc in the western Touraine, in what would become AOCs Chinon, Bourgueil, and St-Nicolas de Bourgueil. All three appellations were established in 1937, but only in Chinon was Chenin allowed to remain. As a result, any Chenin Blanc north of the Loire was replaced with Cabernet Franc. Wishing to revive a tradition extinct for nearly a century, Benoît Amirault began replanting Chenin Blanc in 2017. He chose a terroir suited to Chenin and adjacent to Le Grand Clos  – a shallow, flinty clay-limestone soil over tuffeau bedrock. Bâtard-Princess is a fitting name for such an illicit endeavor resulting in a remarkably aristocratic wine. Given the youth of these vines, this portends a bright future for the return of Chenin to Bourgueil. Just give the INAO about another century to figure this out.

Ratings & Reviews

92

2021 Bâtard-Princess

Source: VM

Loire, France
  • Location
    Loire, France
  • Appellation
    Val de Loire
  • Proprietor
    Yannick Amirault
  • Winemaker
    Yannick & Benoît Amirault
  • Size / Elevation
    20 hectares / 50 meters

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