There used to be approximately 60 different varieties of Gamay across France, now  there are less than ten. Gamay de Chaudenay on of the rare ones that remains, planted mostly in this small corner of the Eastern Touraine. Chaudenay is a rare ‘teinturier’ grape (the name mean ‘to dye’), and  was often used to add colour to other wines. The variety fell our of favour but thankfully skilled growers like Julien Courtois are slowly bringing it back and the domaine has some of the very few hectares of this variety in France. This wine shows the fruity side of Chaudenay–with concentrated dark red fruit flavours, with hints of spice and leather, all backed up by balanced acidity and structure. Eléments ages to perfection– we highly encourage trying the back vintages. This is a Gamay to challenge those who think Gamay can’t be complex.

Julien Courtois is the eldest son of one of the leaders of biodynamic grape farming in the Loire. In a small 5 ha estate called Clos de la Bruyère in the Sologne, Julien and his wife Heidi Kuka craft energetic wines filled with life and express the purest flavours of often-overlooked grapes. These are wines made with the utmost passion– from the vine to the bottle each stage of production follows, without compromise, a singular vision of natural winemaking. The idea is to return to the practices of generations past, using historic native varieties and the lowest intervention methods possible.

Terroir: Silica in surface and clay with flint (silex) in depth.

Average age of vines: 60 years old

Vinification: Grapes harvested manually at full maturity and controlled yields. Natural fermentation in old oak barrels and ageing for 18 months in old barrels. Only one racking, no filtration, no fining.

Match it with: grilled pork, aged cheeses, vegetable cassoulet.

• Red
• Gamay
• France, Loire
• Julien Courtois
• Dry
• 13.00%
• Ready to Drink And Will Improve