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| Today’s tasting Between 4-7 pm no reservations needed $15 |
| Romorantin is a white grape that was widely cultivated in Burgundy and the Loire in the 19th century, but today the surface area dedicated to this variety has shrunk to under 200 acres, and it is only to be found to the north of the town of Tours. It is easy to understand why our taste for romorantin has declined: it is not an easy grape with which to make wine, as in cool years it yields sharp, acidic wines that are as shrill as a cartoon steam whistle (I admit to liking this expression, but the tooth-enamel stripping character is not for everyone), and even in warm vintages a bit of residual sugar is welcome to help attenuate some of its acerbic character. The fashion for wines with a touch of residual sugar has declined, and so has the market for romorantin, but I am always rooting for the underdog, that which is old fashioned and a manifestation of the vestigial sensibilities of bygone days, and so I try to stock it when I can. I think that old vines are the key to unlocking the potential of this grape, and I really enjoy Thierry Puzelat and Francois Cazin’s old vine cuvées (Cazin’s cuvée “Renaissance” is worth seeking out in particular), but today we are pouring a young vine cuvée of romorantin that’s exceptional: Philippe Tessier’s “Phil’en Bulle” pét-nat (it also contains a dollop of another archaic variety, menu pineau). Tessier is a gifted natural winemaker, soft-spoken, thoughtful, and retiring—the 2017 vintage was not kind to him and we did not get any wine, but 2018 was a good vintage for both quality and quantity, and to assuage our unslaked thirst for Tessier, we took as much of his wine as we could get. Along with his romorantin pet-nat, we are also tasting his Cheverny blanc, as well as two reds from other fellow travelers in the Loire. |
| Philippe Tessier “Phil ‘en Bulle” Vin de France NV Philippe Tessier Cheverny 2018 Mathieu Coste “MC2” Coteaux du Giennois 2015 Domaine de la Chevalerie “Chevalerie” Bourgueil 2014 |