2018 | Domaine Belargus | Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru Quarts (Half Bottle)

Amber-orange colored, the nose is deep, intense and concentrated, very complex and elegant, with spicy and balsamic apricot notes, nougat and porcini aromas as well as flinty-mineral notes and associations of crispy ham hock.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: "Les Quarts is the original plot that gave its name to the Quarts-de-Chaume appellation," reminds Ivan Massonnat, spiritus rector of Domaine Belargus. The Quarts-de-Chaume terroir—a sunny, south-facing hillside on schists, exposed to the morning mists of the Layon River and ventilated by constant winds—results in "a botrytis of rare concentration," says Massonnat, as the 2018 Quarts-de-Chaume Grand Cru Liquoreux Les Quarts demonstrates impressively. Amber-orange colored, the nose is deep, intense and concentrated, very complex and elegant, with spicy and balsamic apricot notes, nougat and porcini aromas as well as flinty-mineral notes and associations of crispy ham hock. Round, smooth and sweet but with great finesse and elegance, this is a rich yet almost weightless and perfectly balanced liquoreux from the central Les Quarts plot of the QDC appellation that develops a vertical, highly stimulating and filigreed structure that leads to a long, crisp and frisky piquancy and salty finesse that makes this grand cru wine extremely digestible, even at this very early stage. Belargus's 2018 Les Quarts pairs richness and sweetness with crystalline finesse and elegance in an unrivaled way. A fabulous, irresistible grand cru! 11% alcohol. Tasted in June 2021.

Producer Information

Domaine Belargus was created in 2018 after Jo Pithon sold his estate to Ivan Massonnat. Though born in the Savoie, Ivan is a passionate wine enthusiast with family roots in Chinon. He has long believed in Chenin Blanc’s potential for diverse terroir expression equal to Pinot Noir in Burgundy. Now totaling 24 hectares, Ivan has assembled a collection of parcels and monopoles in the Anjou Noir – the geologically complex and ancient volcanic vineyard lands that stretch from Savennières in the northwest to Bonnezeaux in the southeast. The reputation of this region was established by religious orders, which planted these vineyards in the 11th century, and the royal courts across Europe that served these wines until phylloxera devasted the region in the late 19th century. The famous hillside of Chaume was replanted in the early 20th century and was awarded the only 1er (Chaume 1er cru) and Grand Cru (Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru) in the Loire Valley. By the 1970s however, industrial farming and shortcuts in the cellar seemed to have irrevocably tarnished the reputation of Quarts de Chaume, Chaume, and Chenin from the Anjou. But starting in the 1980s a new generation of vignerons began to gradually chart a new and promising future for the region, among whom was Jo Pithon who rediscovered and rejuvenated the dramatic and lost terroir of Coteau des Treilles – the “Côte Rotie” of the Layon Valley. With Ivan Massonnat stepping in to carry on Jo’s efforts, the future of wines in the Anjou looks more promising than ever.

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