Saint-Bris – Frankly Wines

The 2023 edition of the SuperValu French Wine Sale is upon us. As last year, some German wines are included, specifically those from producer Albert Glas. This post will cover five of the white wines which are among the 40 included in the sale which kicks off on Friday 1st September. They hail from the Loire Valley, Burgundy and the Pfalz.

Albert Glas Black Label Riesling 2022

Albert Glas Pfalz Black Label Riesling 2022 Bottle Shot

Weingut Albert Glas was founded in Essingen (in the Pzalf, around 30km north of Alsace) by Herr Albert Glass in 1958. It remains a small family winery run by Albert’s grandson Dominik. Dominik uses his grandfather’s traditional techniques wherever possible as they have proven effective for quality winemaking for several decades.

The Black Label indicates the firm’s top quality level. The grapes for this Riesling are hand picked from two westerly facing vineyards on loess and loam soils. An eight hour cold soak lets a few of the phenolics into the juice. Fermentation and maturation take place in a mix of stainless steel and barrels made from Pfalz oak.

Unistakeably Riesling on the nose, this radiates lime and floral notes. The palate is juicy and fruity, with citrus joined by yellow fruits. There’s plenty of texture, too. While this would be a versatile food wine, it’s damned delicious on its own.

ABV: 12.5 %
RS: 5.1 g/L
RRP: €12 down from €20
Source: sample
Stockists: SuperValu stores

La Perrière Coteaux du Giennois 2022

Coteaux du Giennois is a lesser-known AOC from the Central Loire Valley. Whites are made from Sauvignon Blanc and reds from Pinot Noir and Gamay, and like other below-the-radar appellations the wines often represent good value for money. The trip from Gien to Saget La Perrière’s HQ in Poilly-sur-Loire takes around 45 minutes by car but double that in a truck; 90 minutes would be too long for grapes to be easily transported without spoiling so they are pressed at a facility close to the vineyard and the must travels down in a tanker.

The wine is pale in the glass, with striking varietal aromatics: white flowers, grass and gooseberry. The palate adds grapefruit to the mix and a good dose of acidity – it’s tangy and fresh. This is an easy drinking wine that would keep for a few years if necessary. Serve with a goat’s cheese salad or nibbles at apero time.

- ABV: 13.5%
- RRP: €12 down from €16.89
- Source: sample
- Stockists: SuperValu stores

La Perrière “Mégalithe” Sancerre 2017

La Perrière Sancerre Megalithe 2017 Bottle Shot

So now we have a wine from the most prestigious appellation in the Loire Valley, and one which is the original spiritual home of Sauvignon Blanc: Sancerre. But this is not just any Sancerre, it’s the flagship white wine from La Perrière. They have three levels of Sancerre; firstly the classic – in white, rosé and red – made with grapes from all three Sancerre terroirs. Above that are specific parcels from specific soil types, Silex (flint) and Caillottes (pebbles).

Mégalithe is made from the best grapes available from south-east facing sites on silex soil. All harvesting is by hand and pesticides and herbicides are kept to a minimum. After pressing, 40% of the juice is fermented in new 300 litre Allier oak barrels and 60% in stainless steel. Vinification lasts eight to ten months, with regular lees stirring, after which the wines are bottled and stored in La Perrière’s limestone caves for around two more years.

The aim is to make a concentrated, gastronomic wine that can easily age a decade. At the Prowein wine fair earlier this year the team showed Mégalithe 2003 which was still fighting fit, despite being from a very warm year. Production amounts to only 3,000 to 4,000 bottles per year.

So how is this mega wine? Right now this 2017 is à point. It pours lemon in the glass with perhaps a little more depth of colour that is associated with Sauvignon. The nose has citrus but also a touch of leesy funk and stony notes. It’s a real pleasure on the nose but the palate is where the action is really act. This is a tangy, generous and complex wine. It’s worth the normal €33 but at the offer price of €25 it’s worth trading up if you don’t normally spend this much.

ABV: 13.0%
RRP: €25 down from €32.99
Source: sample
Stockists: SuperValu stores

André Goichot Saint-Bris 2022

André Goichot Saint Bris 2022 Bottle Shot

André Goichot entered the wine trade just after World War II. Something of an opportunist / entrepreneur, in a time when glass bottles were in very short supply, Monsieur Goichot collected empty wine bottles from wherever he could, then washed and refilled them. The firm has expanded and evolved over the decades, and in 2017 stopped buying wine in bulk and instead buying grapes and must. It has also bought its own vineyards, including 35 hectares in the Côte Chalonnaise in 2016.

A third Sauvignon Blanc, but this time from Burgundy. Wait, Burgundy? Yes, in the north of the region, close to Chablis, the village of Saint-Bris has long been a Sauvignon stronghold. In a similar situation to the Coteaux du Giennois above, the grapes for this wine are pressed in Saint-Bris and the must is transported by tanker for vinification in Beaune. 2022 saw both frost and hail in Burgundy, battering yields. Demand remains high, so everything is selling out quickly.

Whereas the Giennois is very green, this Saint-Bris adds some softer fruits to the mid palate. There’s some texture, too, after eight to ten months spent ageing on fine lees. There’s a light bitterness too, adding a savoury edge and keeping the fruit in check. For me this really needs food at this stage, though it might have softened up after another six months in bottle.

ABV: 13.0%
RRP: €10 down from €18
Source: sample
Stockists: SuperValu stores

André Goichot Chablis 2021

André Goichot Chablis 2021 Bottle Shot

Chablis is such a distinctive style that it’s regularly showered with praise by those who aren’t even fans of “Chardonnay”. Most AOC Chablis is unoaked, with varying amounts of oak used for Premier and Grand Cru wines according to the tastes of the producer. This is the case here, with stainless steel used for fermentation and ageing. Bàtonnage was performed over seven months to add structure and texture.

The 2021 vintage was devastated by frost which hit in early April; up to 85% of production was lost, though the white grapes which did survive made some good wines. This bottle proves that wisdom. It has the usual Chablis characteristics of citrus and flintiness, but added to that is a restrained ripeness which can be lacking in the Yonne. Now, we’re still not talking about Meursault here, and the regulation bright acidity is present and correct, but riper orchard fruits add another layer. I’ve been lucky to taste Goichot Chablis many times over the years, and I think this is the best vintage I’ve tried.

ABV: 13.0 %
RRP: €16 down from €24.99
Source: sample
Stockists: SuperValu stores

Conclusion

There are no bad wines in this group, but there are clear winners: the Albert Glas Riesling at €12, the André Goichot Chablis at €16 and the Mégalithe at €25. I will be heading to my nearest SuperValu store to snag a few of each…and perhaps a few of the other Albert Glas wines which are also in the sale.

Well let me be the first to put my hand up and say that I don’t know Burgundy – though I’m trying! Given the sizeable tomes that are published seemingly every year, Burgundy is a complicated wine area that gets a lot of attention – it certainly takes up the most space in on my book shelves.

Though fairly simple in terms of grape varieties – as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir make up the vast proportion of plantings – Burgundy is a complex wine region in terms of appellations – there were 83 at the last count*. In an attempt to simplify the story for the average wine drinker, Burgundy is often broken down into the main sub-regions – see Phil My Glass’s Beginners’ Guide to Burgundy article.

Some commentators focus on the most celebrated Burgundy wines – those from the Côte d’Or – and pass over Chablis, the Côte Chalonnaise and the Maconnais. Of course the elephant in the room is Beaujolais and its Gamay reds, which are part of Burgundy according to some criteria, but are usually considered distinct from the rest.

Here are some wines from less-celebrated appellations within Burgundy – mostly generously donated by Nomad Wine Importers apart from the Saint-Bris which was kindly brought direct from the vineyard by Tony & Liz of DNS Wineclub.

Basse-Bourgogne (Yonne)

Most wine drinkers have, of course, heard of Chablis, but far less well known is the larger area within which Chablis is situated – the Basse-Bourgogne. There are some reds up here – Irancy is an AOC producing light, delicate Pinot Noir (try M&S’s Irancy as an example of the style) – but white grapes are the majority, and apart from a few rows of Sacy that means Chardonnay and Sauvignon!

In 1850 there were 40,000 hectares of vineyards compared with around 7,500 in 2015 – there’s lots more potential in the area!

Domaine Goisot Bourgogne Côtes d’Auxerre 2015 (13.0%, RRP €22 from: Blackrock Cellar and SIYPS)

Auxerre is the largest town in the Yonne, with Chablis very close. Grapes from the hills around Auxerre qualify for their own appellation, which still (helpfully) has Bourgogne at the beginning for easier recognition by more casual drinkers. As with Chablis, the wines are 100% Chardonnay.

Based in Saint-Bris-le-Vineux, Guilhem (son) and Jean-Hugues (father) Boisot are known as the “Popes of Saint-Bris” for their outstanding local wines. They are certified organic and biodynamic, believing that high quality wines are only possible with meticulous care in the vineyard.

This Bourgogne Côtes d’Auxerre is flinty, smoky and fresh – it would stand up against pretty much any AOC Chablis I have tasted.

Domaine Sorin DeFrance Saint-Bris Sauvignon 2014 (12.0%, bought at winery)

After promotion up from VDQS status in 2003, this is the only Sauvignon (Blanc and Gris) based AOC / AOP within Burgundy, based around the town of Saint-Bris-le-Vineaux.

Domaine Sorin DeFrance is the result of the marriage of Henry Sorin and Madeleine DeFrance, though the Sorin family have been making wine since 1577. Their Saint-Bris is 100% Sauvignon – I presume Sauvignon Blanc, though you never know. It is far more expressive than many French Sauvignons, showing notes of grass, nettles, elderflower, lychees and garden mint.

Domaine Goisot Bourgogne Aligoté 2014 (12.5%, RRP €20 from: Blackrock Cellar, Jus de Vine, Lilac Wines, Redmonds, Mortons and SIYPS)

Although a traditional grape of Burgundy, as it has long been considered second class to Chardonnay, Aligoté was relegated to inferior sites (just like Barbera in Piedmont and Sylvaner in Alsace), and became something of a bulk wine where yields were more important than quality. Acidity was so fierce in those wines that local crème de cassis was often added to tame it, and thus the kir cocktail was invented.

The search for something new (even if old) and authenticity has reawakened interest in Aligoté – especially when they are simply superb wines such as this one from Domaine Goisot. Although Bourgogne Aligoté can be made all over Burgundy, Goisot’s vines are in the Yonne. It has floral aromas and spicy pear flavours, all delivered with refreshing – but not austere – acidity.

Côte d’Or – Côte de Beaune

A simple rule of thumb is that many of the best red Burgundies come from the Côte de Nuits and the best whites are often found in the Côte de Beaune. Together they make up the Côte d’Or and have all but one of Burgundy’s Grand Cru AOCs. But to the west of the posh addresses of Beaune and on the top of the the main Côte d’Or escarpment is the appellation Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune.

Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune La Justice 2014 (12.5%, €21 at Redmonds, Donnybrook Fair and SIYPS)

The Billards (not Billiards!) are based in Rochepot close to Beaune and have 17 hectares spread over 12 different appellations, both red and white. This wine is from the lieu-dit (or named vineyard) La Justice and is both fermented and matured in oak barrels, though the latter is mainly older oak. It is very approachable and drinkable now but has the structure and texture to develop over the coming five to ten years.

Beaujolais Blanc

The Beaujolais wine area was legally attached to the Burgundy wine area though a civil case in 1930, reinforced by the decree in 1937 which created the Burgundy AOC. While arguments for an against continue, I’ll just concentrate on the wine – in particular the rare whites. Chardonnay is the principal white variety with small amounts of Aligoté, Melon (de Bourgogne, the Muscadet grape) and Pinot Gris also planted.

Domaine des Nugues Beaujolais-Villages Blanc 2015 (13.0%, RRP €18 at Blackrock Cellar, Jus de Vine, Martin’s Off licence and SIYPS)

In the northern marches of Beaujolais there has always been some overlap with the most southerly villages of the Maconnais, the most southerly region of Burgundy “proper”, but this is bona fide real-deal Beaujolais-Villages Blanc. Of course the -Villages part means that it is above standard Beaujolais but not made in one of the Cru communes.

Gérard Gelin took over the domaine from his father in 1976, and now runs it as a joint venture with his son Gilles. They have 36 ha in total of which over 20 is in Beaujolais-Villages.

This wine is 100% Chardonnay from young vines, with some lees ageing to add character and texture. It’s quite floral on the nose then mainly citrus on the palate.

* excluding Beaujolais!

Tag: Saint-Bris

Wine Review: Whites from the 2023 SuperValu French Wine Sale