2021 Chinon Rouge, Vieilles Vignes, Philippe Alliet, Loire

2021 Chinon Rouge, Vieilles Vignes, Philippe Alliet, Loire

Product: 20218042028
Prices start from £90.00 per case Buying options
2021 Chinon Rouge, Vieilles Vignes, Philippe Alliet, Loire

Buying options

Available by the case In Bond. Pricing excludes duty and VAT, which must be paid separately before delivery. Storage charges apply.
Case format
Availability
Price per case
6 x 75cl bottle
BBX marketplace BBX 1 case £90.00
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BBX marketplace BBX 1 case £95.00
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Description

As you might expect, this old vine (60 years+) cuvée is a big step up on the regular Chinon. There's another level of intensity to the dark fruit, but it's not all sweetness. There is a lovely savoury graphite note, some dry undergrowth and even some delicate violets. It's an appetising and complete nose that keeps drawing you back in. 

On the palate, the fruit shows a redder hue and is resolutely fresh with mouthwatering acidity and a creamy texture. What we love about this is that it's a light wine but not light-weight. The old vines lend concentration and real length to the finish. It's a remarkably sophisticated Cabernet Franc for an incredible price.

Berry Bros. & Rudd

wine at a glance

Delivery and quality guarantee

Critics reviews

Jancis Robinson MW15/20

From 70- and 90-year-old vineyards.

A bit whiffy and ghoulish. Needs air. The acidity is fresh but there is a humid dankness that seems to sit on the wine and weigh it down. A stubborn wine. Time? Decanting? Difficult to work out in a big walk-around tasting.

Drink 2024 - 2025

Tamlyn Currin, JancisRobinson.com (November 2023)

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About this WINE

Domaine Philippe Alliet

Domaine Philippe Alliet

Domaine Philippe Alliet is one to reference for making 100% Cabernet Franc wines. The domaine is situated in Cravant-les-Côteaux, home to arguably some of the best Cabernet Franc in the world. Founded in 1985, the domaine is now run by Philippe's son, Pierre, who is revolutionising the Cabernet Franc scene in the Loire, focusing on low yields and meticulous vineyard management.

The oak regime has gone down from 100% new 225-litre barrels to a mere 20% of new wood, 500-litre barrels paired with much longer ageing of up to 20 months. This has drastically changed the style of the range and allows the wines to be approachable young while having great potential to age.

The domaine produces one of the most exciting Chinon ranges in the Loire, spanning from the entry-level Chinon to the top-of-the-range Coteau de Noiré cuvée, located on steep coteaux and perceived as the best plot in Chinon. Pierre emphasises the importance of sustainable and environmentally friendly viticulture practices, so he organically farms the 19 hectares of the domaine.

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Chinon

Chinon

Chinon is an important  appellation for the Cabernet Franc grape, located within the Touraine wine region just to the west of Tours. At approximately 2,500 hectares, it represents a slightly larger zone than its neighbour Bourgueil. Part of the appellation, closest to its other voisin St Nicolas de Bourgueil, possesses light, sandy gravel soils to give an easy drinking style, while the remainder is blessed with a tuffeau subsoil from which the wines draw a finer structure and longevity. Neither style approaches the fullness of Bourgueil however.

 

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Cabernet Franc

Cabernet Franc

Cabernet Franc is widely planted in Bordeaux and is the most important black grape grown in the Loire. In the Médoc, it may constitute up to 15% of a typical vineyard – it is always blended with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot and is used to add bouquet and complexity to the wines. It is more widely used in St Émilion, where it adapts well to the cooler and moister clay soils.

Cabernet Franc thrives in the Loire, where the cooler growing conditions serve to accentuate the grape’s herbaceous, grassy, lead pencil aromas. The best wines come from the tuffeaux limestone slopes of Chinon and Bourgueil.

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When is a wine ready to drink?

We provide drinking windows for all our wines. Alongside the drinking windows there is a bottle icon and a maturity stage. Bear in mind that the best time to drink a wine does also depend on your taste.

Not ready

These wines are very young. Whilst they're likely to have lots of intense flavours, their acidity or tannins may make them feel austere. Although it isn't "wrong" to drink these wines now, you are likely to miss out on a lot of complexity by not waiting for them to mature.

Ready - youthful

These wines are likely to have plenty of fruit flavours still and, for red wines, the tannins may well be quite noticeable. For those who prefer younger, fruitier wines, or if serving alongside a robust meal, these will be very enjoyable. If you choose to hold onto these wines, the fruit flavours will evolve into more savoury complexity.

Ready - at best

These wines are likely to have a beautiful balance of fruit, spice and savoury flavours. The acidity and tannins will have softened somewhat, and the wines will show plenty of complexity. For many, this is seen as the ideal time to drink and enjoy these wines. If you choose to hold onto these wines, they will become more savoury but not necessarily more complex.

Ready - mature

These wines are likely to have plenty of complexity, but the fruit flavours will have been almost completely replaced by savoury and spice notes. These wines may have a beautiful texture at this stage of maturity. There is lots to enjoy when drinking wines at this stage. Most of these wines will hold in this window for a few years, though at the very end of this drinking window, wines start to lose complexity and decline.