Domaine de Closiers Saumur Champigny Les Closiers 2021, Loire Valley, France

One of the Loire’s most exciting new domaines, Domaine des Closiers in Saumur-Champigny was founded in 2018 by Anatole de la Brosse, a wine lover who began his career studying oenology before becoming a management consultant. Unlike most of the appellation which is largely flat, Closiers’s vineyards are in the village of Parnay, known for its sloping hillside vineyards. With the inaugural vintage in 2019, Monsieur de la Brosse and his team immediately converted their 15 hectares of vineyards to organic and biodynamic viticulture. Fermentations occur with indigenous yeasts and the maceration regime includes extended contact with the skins of around one month to give the wines depth and structure. Extractions are very gentle, with no punchdown and only a short pumpover every 1-2 days. After fermentation/maceration, the wine is aged in stainless tanks for an additional 8-10 months before bottling. Wines are aged in tunnels dug into the limestone hillside by previous generations of vignerons. No products are used except a minimal level of SO2 prior to bottling.