Not long ago, when we tasted (and excitedly offered) Pierre Ménard’s Anjou Blanc “Le Clos des Mailles,” we told subscribers to keep an eye out for him—that he was the Next Big Thing in Loire Valley wine. Today, I’ve got further confirmation in the form of Ménard’s elegant, aromatic, utterly mesmerizing Anjou Rouge, sourced partly from that same “Clos de Mailles” vineyard parcel.
It’s no small thing to dub someone a “rising star” in a place like the Loire Valley: the region is crawling with young, talented vignerons devoted to making great wine as naturally, and sustainably, as possible. So, I don’t coronate Ménard casually. It’s not just that he’s young, and farming biodynamically, and good at naming and labeling wines (“Orion Alpha” is named for a bright red star in the Orion constellation). It’s because this wine, only in its second vintage, offers the kind of panoramic view of Cabernet Franc we usually need much-more-expensive wines to provide. Whereas the biggest names in elite Loire Valley Franc (Clos Rougeard; Guiberteau) reside further east in the Saumur, Ménard shows as deft a touch with his Franc as he does with his sublime old-vine Chenins. For me, that means capturing not just the peppery, smoky bass notes that distinguish Cabernet Franc but also the glorious upper register of florals and fruit that bring great red Burgundy to mind. “Orion Alpha” is poised right on that knife’s edge between Burgundy’s Côte de Nuits and Bordeaux’s Right Bank, and if you, like me, leap at the opportunity to experience auspicious debuts, grab some of this. Once his name really gets out there—and it will, believe me—we might not have this opportunity again!
Ménard is a wunderkind whose family has long grown grapes in Anjou, in the Chenin Blanc-rich Côteaux du Layon. They had previously sold their grapes to local cooperatives, but after Pierre graduated from agronomy school in Angers, followed by an array of apprenticeships in Hungary, New Zealand, and Canada, he was given several prime family plots to work with. One of them was a stand of 100-year-old Chenin Blanc vines called “Le Quart de Noëls,” another was “Le Clos des Mailles,” which contains Chenin and Cab Franc both. “Orion Alpha” is sourced partly from Le Clos de Mailles, where the Franc vines average 70 years of age and are rooted in schistous soils. This component is said to provide the lift and aromatic complexity for the Orion Alpha cuvée, while a different site in “heavier” clay soils supplies color and darker, earthier tones.
Working biodynamically in his vineyards, which total just a few hectares at this point in his burgeoning career, Ménard hand-harvests and hand-de-stems his Cabernet Franc, gently macerating the juice on skins for about three weeks, during which time “punch downs” (re-introducing the “cap” of skins into the juice) are relatively infrequent. It was then aged in French oak barrels for about six months before bottling. Only about three barrels were produced, from which only about 400 bottles made it to the US.
In the glass, the 2018 Orion Alpha has that deep garnet-black Cabernet Franc hue, with hints of magenta and pink at the rim. The aromas are, as I suggested above, that perfect mingling of bass/treble notes I look for in the best Cabernet Franc wines: scents of blackcurrant, boysenberry, and violet are complemented by notes of green tobacco leaf, black pepper, and eucalyptus—but not too much! The magic of this wine is that melding of ripe, sweet purple fruit with those savory, spicy, “greener” notes. It is medium-bodied and full of tension, with a deep, schist-y minerality lending grip and savor to the mid-palate—overall, it has the texture and aromatics-first personality of great red Burgundy, albeit with a darker flavor profile. If enjoying a bottle now, decant it at least 30 minutes before serving at 60-65 degrees in Bordeaux stems, but do try to save at least one bottle for re-visiting around 2025: You’ll be able to say, “I knew him when” and the wine will be singing besides. Try it with the attached vegetarian cassoulet, which will play up its perfectly calibrated touch of rusticity. You’re going to love this wine. Cheers!
