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Francis Blanchet, Cuvée Silice, Pouilly Fumé

Loire Valley, France 2015 (750mL)
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Francis Blanchet, Cuvée Silice, Pouilly Fumé

There’s a tremendous amount of Sauvignon Blanc in the world, and very little of it is profound. There are myriad superlatives that do apply—delicious; food-friendly; readily identifiable; versatile; consistent—but you’re not likely to find much of it in a serious collector’s cellar (even lovers of aromatic whites are likely to choose Riesling, or Viognier, first). This wine from Francis Blanchet is serious Sauvignon Blanc.
Think of wines from the greatest white wine terroirs in the world, be it Puligny-Montrachet, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Alsace…this wine belongs in that company. Hailing from Pouilly-Fumé, one of the twin pillars of Sauvignon excellence along with its Loire Valley neighbor, Sancerre, Blanchet’s 2015 “Cuvée Silice” may, in fact, be one of the most affordable ‘collectible’ wines we’ve ever offered.
As SommSelect members may recall from previous offers, “Silice” refers to silex, or silica, the crushed flint-stone that dominates the soils of Pouilly-Fumé. Mixed with clay and/or sandstone over a base of Kimmeridgian limestone, Silex is what gives the wines of the region their distinctively smoky, “gunflint” minerality (‘Fumé’ means ‘smoked,’ as apt a name for a wine village as has ever existed). Ever own a cap gun when you were a kid? If so, Cuvée Silice is likely to bring back memories: sourced from a one-hectare vineyard of pure silex in the village of Saint-Andelain (which, at around 880 feet, sits at the highest elevation in the Pouilly-Fumé AOC), this wine’s mineral footprint is really second to none. 

Then there’s its incredible, only-in-France pedigree: Francis Blanchet’s family has been growing Sauvignon Blanc in Pouilly-Fumé since the 17th century (they are said to still have the original deed for the purchase of the vineyards). The estate remains rather modest in size at about 23 acres, and the vineyard for Cuvée Silice was planted by Francis himself in 1987. The old-vine fruit is fermented using only ambient yeasts in stainless steel, after which it ages in tank for about seven months on its fine lees.

A creamy, leesy note was something I noticed straight away in the 2015 Cuvée Silice; it isn’t as opulent and textural as the wines of the late Didier Dagueneau (another silex fanatic), but it isn’t all lean, flinty minerality, either. Silver-green and glinting in the glass, it announces itself aromatically with a big blast of citrus pith, green peach, kiwi, passion fruit, white flowers and wet stones. It is crisp and gripping on the palate, with amazing “cut,” delineation, and a sneakily rich texture. It has a slight viscosity without being sweet; for some reason I think of liquid mercury skittering across a hard surface, dense and full of surface tension (ed note: do not drink liquid mercury). Texturally, it has more in common with a cru Chablis than it does with any Sauvignon Blanc from anywhere else in the world; and that, for me, is kind of the point.

While I can see this wine aging beautifully for 5 to 10 years, it is also a pleasure to drink in its youth. A good half hour spent in a decanter helps unwind its tightly bundled-up fruit and release the more floral elements of its perfume, as does a service temperature of about 50-55 degrees. There’s so much power here, and I’m not inclined to waste it on apéritifs: the first thing you’ll think of when you taste this wine is a young, tangy goat’s milk cheese, and indeed that’d be a great pairing right there. But I’m inclined to kick it up a notch with an Indian-style curry. This wine’s fireworks deserve fireworks in return. Enjoy!
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Country
France
Region
Loire Valley
Sub-Region
FrancePouilly-Fumé
Soil
Silex
Farming
Sustainable
Blend
Sauvignon Blanc
Alcohol
12.5
OAK
None
TEMP.
50
Glassware
All Purpose White or Bordeaux Stem
Drinking
Now-2020
Decanting
30-60 Minutes
Pairing
Chicken Curry

France

Bourgogne

Beaujolais

Enjoying the greatest wines of Beaujolais starts, as it usually does, with the lay of the land. In Beaujolais, 10 localities have been given their own AOC (Appellation of Controlled Origin) designation. They are: Saint Amour; Juliénas; Chénas; Moulin-à Vent; Fleurie; Chiroubles; Morgon; Régnié; Côte de Brouilly; and Brouilly.

Southwestern France

Bordeaux

Bordeaux surrounds two rivers, the Dordogne and Garonne, which intersect north of the city of Bordeaux to form the Gironde Estuary, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The region is at the 45th parallel (California’s Napa Valley is at the38th), with a mild, Atlantic-influenced climate enabling the maturation of late-ripening varieties.

Central France

Loire Valley

The Loire is France’s longest river (634 miles), originating in the southerly Cévennes Mountains, flowing north towards Paris, then curving westward and emptying into the Atlantic Ocean near Nantes. The Loire and its tributaries cover a huge swath of central France, with most of the wine appellations on an east-west stretch at47 degrees north (the same latitude as Burgundy).

Northeastern France

Alsace

Alsace, in Northeastern France, is one of the most geologically diverse wine regions in the world, with vineyards running from the foothills of theVosges Mountains down to the Rhine River Valley below.

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