Pineau d’Aunis is a medieval grape variety, with documentary evidence of it dating back perhaps to the 9th century. The name Aunis could refer to the forgotten medieval province of Aunis, located on the north Atlantic coast of France, or a Loire priory bearing the same name. I once mentioned these hypotheses to a vigneron whose family has long cultivated it, and he was unconvinced by either of them. Medieval vigneron cultivated Pineau d’Aunis and made, supposedly, the favored wine of King Henry III but things fall apart, the center cannot hold, and by the end of the 19th century, it fell on hard times (phylloxera, supplanted by less crotchety and more productive varieties). In the late 50s, there were over 4,000 acres of Pineau d’Aunis, but by the turn of the century, that number dwindled to just a few hundred. Vigneron are making modest plantations of it today, yet it continues to remain a marginal variety.
In any event, what is uncontroversial is that it is a long-established variety that was once widely grown in the Loire and even as far east as Burgundy. I mention its medieval origins only to give you a clue about how Pineau d’Aunis tastes: it is a pre-modern variety, with a flavor profile that can be a bit wild and untamed. Loire red varieties such as Cabernet Franc exhibit a flavor profile is within the Venn diagram of bourgeois acceptability, e.g., dusty raspberry pastille, petrichor. No one can keep their mitts off of a punnet of in-season raspberries, but for Pineau d’Aunis, the fruit profile is more along the spectrum of rhubarb and cranberry, and there are folks who cannot abide by these flavors.
No, Pineau d’Aunis is not for everyone, but with regards to its detractors: fuck ‘em. For those of us from Planet Aunis, it is our lifeblood, our spice, our kykeon. To me, the flavors of Pineau d’Aunis reflect an archaic sensibility, one that is savage and sometimes uncivilized in contrast to more modern, polite, and civilized Cabernet Franc (which is itself quite an old variety, but you get my point). I suspect that it was a divergence of sensibility that caused the INAO, the French trade organization that regulates grape varieties, to ban varietally labeled Pineau d’Aunis for nearly all Loire appellations in 2016. If you choose to make varietal Pineau d’Aunis today you are typically compelled to declassify your wine simply as Vin de France and strip away any regional designation from the label.
In a warm vintage such as 2018, Pineau d’Aunis can taste like a draught prepared by a medieval apothecarist from materials pulled from a weathered, leather pouch, full of spice trade aromas and bitter, camphoraceous herbs. It was a bottle of warm-vintage 2005 Pineau d’Aunis from the brilliant Eric Nicolas (Bellivière) that made me swear that if I listened carefully, I could hear crumhorns and sackbutts bleating somewhere off in the distance when I put it to my lips. I would not fault you for expecting Friar Tuck to appear in the forest of your mind at any moment. In cooler vintages, a sip of Pineau d’Aunis is a crunchy stalk of raw rhubarb, a chaw of the aforementioned bitter herbs, perfumed by fresh cracked white pepper. No, Pineau d’Aunis is not for everyone, but a wine that is for everyone is for no one.
Sylvain Martinez “RosaBul” Pineau d’Aunis pét-nat Vin de France 2019
Natural sparkling rose, dry, crisp, rhubarb-y. [product_table filters=”false” search_box=”false” totals=false” totals=”false” columns=”image,price,add-to-cart” include=”11274″]
Dinocheau Pineau d’Aunis Vin de France 2018
Only 12 percent ABV, medium-bodied, full of the aforementioned bitter herbs. [product_table filters=”false” search_box=”false” totals=false” totals=”false” columns=”image,price,add-to-cart” include=”5203″]
Jean-Pierre Robinot “Le Regard” Vin de France 2017
Younger vines Pineau d’Aunis, aged in neutral vat, only 10 percent ABV, no added sulfites. [product_table filters=”false” search_box=”false” totals=false” totals=”false” columns=”image,price,add-to-cart” include=”6110″]
Jean-Pierre Robinot “Les Années Folles” Vin de France 2018
Natural sparkling rosé, mostly Pineau d’Aunis, 11% ABV. [product_table filters=”false” search_box=”false” totals=false” totals=”false” columns=”image,price,add-to-cart” include=”3947″]
Courtault-Tardieux Pineau d’Aunis Rosé Vin de France 2019
Blend of young (10 years) and older (nearly 60 years) Pineau d’Aunis, fermented and aged in neutral vat. Dry, fresh, white peppery. [product_table filters=”false” search_box=”false” totals=false” totals=”false” columns=”image,price,add-to-cart” include=”11997″]
Courtault-Tardieux “Le Temps des Aunis” Vin de France 2018
Vines planted in 2008, fermented and aged in neutral vat, certified organic. [product_table filters=”false” search_box=”false” totals=false” totals=”false” columns=”image,price,add-to-cart” include=”7366″]
Domaine de la Roche Bleue “La Belle d’Aunis” Coteaux du Loir 2018
5-80 year old vines, semi-carbonic maceration, aged in older barrels. Spicy, juicy, sanguineous. [product_table filters=”false” search_box=”false” totals=false” totals=”false” columns=”image,price,add-to-cart” include=”6302″]
Tessier Pineau d’Aunis “Chemin Noir” Vin de France 2019
A new adventure from Philippe Tessier, from vines he planted in 2011. Fermented in stainless, aged in old barrel. [product_table filters=”false” search_box=”false” totals=false” totals=”false” columns=”image,price,add-to-cart” include=”11801″]