Ok folks, we’re going pretty far off the grid with today’s discovery. It’s an exciting journey, so buckle up and enjoy the ride! We’re heading deep into the heart of France’s Loire Valley, to a region full of rolling hills that slope towards the Loire river, dotted with medieval châteaux and cathedrals, and planted to a range of fruits, vegetables, and grains. This is where you’ll find Xavier and Isabelle Frissant, tending micro plots and making old-school, terroir driven wines. Most are snapped up and consumed in cafés around France, but a small amount make it stateside, including a surprising–and surprisingly profound–library release of a cuvée they no longer produce: “Renaissance.” This Malbec driven blend is deeply complex, savory, and aromatic–akin to a country cousin of some Classed Growth Bordeaux, albeit one from the 18th century! Like I said, it’s a rustic, wild ride that’s well worth the shockingly low price tag.
Vineyards and winemaking go back well over a thousand years in the central Loire Valley, and for eight generations the Frissant family has been a part of that tradition. Their small but meticulously well maintained estate is in the tiny hamlet of Mosnes, a stone’s throw from the Loire River and just a couple miles upstream from the main town of Amboise, for which their appellation is named. In fact, the Touraine-Amboise AOC was a part of the larger Coteaux-du-Touraine appellation until it was recognized as its own AOC in 1954. The soils here have more silex (flintstone) then what you tend to find downstream in Touraine, and that is one of the reasons for the distinction.
Isabelle and Xavier Frissant are intimately familiar with this terroir, having been at the helm here for several decades. Xavier is the eighth generation of winemakers, so he also quite literally grew up in these vines. As is the case in most of the Loire Valley, their white wines are made from either Chenin Blanc or Sauvignon Blanc, but for red they have long focused on Malbec, known locally as Côt. Though it maintains that same deep, purple-black color and rustic tannic quality that you find further south in Cahors (and in the teensy tiny amount still growing in Bordeaux) there is brightness along with a more savory edge to the variety in this part of France. Today their red wines are almost entirely made up of Malbec, though they do have a bit of Gamay and Cabernet Franc too. However, for a few brief years they produced a cuvée called “Renaissance,” which contained about 50% of Cabernets Franc and Sauvignon, adding additional structure as well as more red fruit to the Malbec. Today’s savory and profound 2011 is one of those rare bottles of this no longer produced cuvée.
The Frissants are dedicated to farming and making their wines in the most natural way possible, but they are not badge-carrying “natural wine” producers. They farm using organic principles, and may one day get certified, but it’s not a top priority. For the “Renaissance” they fermented all the grapes with native yeasts in mostly older oak barrels of various sizes, before racking and aging for 12 months prior to bottling. The wine then aged for many additional years in the cellar before a local importer (and friend) brought them to us here in California. Because of the age and the old-school, unfiltered wine making I would decant this wine gently off of any sediment for about 15-20 minutes before serving at cellar temperature in Bordeaux stems. The initial aromas are Malbec forward–black plums, blueberry jam, violets, and cocoa powder–but then you begin to fill the influence of aged Cabernet–cherry liqueur, cigar box, leather, mint, and dried sage–which all culminate in a soft, long, and mineral laden finish. This wine is at peak drinking right now, and will stay there for the next couple of years. Serve with your favorite braised meat or just a simple plate of aged cheese and paté and prepare to be wowed by how much complexity you get for your hard earned money!
