The Château du Petit Thouars started life in the early 1500s as a “low-key hunting lodge”—if your idea of low-key involves limestone towers and 150 hectares of prime Loire Valley real estate. George du Petit Thouars bought it in 1636 while serving as diplomat to Cardinal Richelieu, and his descendants have been there ever since, surviving the French Revolution (one actually fled to fight in the American Revolution), two World Wars, and countless harvests.

Wine records go back centuries, but the modern chapter began in the late 1970s when Sébastien's father planted 15 hectares of Cabernet Franc on the clay-limestone slopes behind the castle—and in fact paid a fine for doing so illegally. These aren't the sandy soils that dominate eastern Chinon—this is the good stuff, the same clay-limestone that makes Saumur-Champigny special, giving the wines serious structure and aging potential.

Sébastien and his wife D'Arcy took over in 2013, leaving Paris to raise their kids in a 500-year-old castle and make world-class Cabernet Franc. Their ace in the hole is Michel Pinard, a Chinon native who learned everything from Charles Joguet himself. Michel brings what the French call “savoir-vivre”: that social know-how and institutional knowledge that can't be taught in any wine school.

“L'Épée” (The Sword) comes from their oldest vines in Les Plantes and Le Clos, fermented with native yeasts and aged in a mix of steel and well-used oak. The 2019 vintage was textbook Loire Valley—warm days, cool nights, perfect ripeness without excess. At almost 6 years old, it's hitting the kind of sweet spot that leaves wine pros speechless.

WHY YOU'LL LOVE IT

• The Joguet Connection: Chinon legend Charles Joguet's former right-hand man, Michel Pinard, makes this Chinon from a rediscovered terroir originally planted illegally in the 1970s. The market hasn’t caught on, or else this wine would be priced at double.
  

• Clay-Limestone Magic: While most Chinon comes from sandy soils that make pretty, early-drinking wines, Petit Thouars sits on the same clay-limestone that defines Saumur-Champigny, offering a glimpse of the Burgundy-like delicacy and profundity that made Clos Rougeard a cult.
  

• Aged Chinon is where it’s at: At five years old, this has evolved beyond simple fruit into something special—violets, dark berries, and that distinctive Loire minerality, all wrapped in silky tannins that have softened beautifully. Tasting a perfectly-aged Chinon like this is a great way to begin your love affair with this appellation.

HOW TO SERVE IT

• Serve at 58-60°F—cool enough to preserve the aromatics but warm enough to release those complex flavors.
  

• Drink now through 2034. In our experience this wine will continue to evolve and improve.
  

• Perfect with a slice of roast porchetta and a panzanella salad. Also brilliant with fresh chicken liver mousse on a warm baguette. Heaven.