Clos Rougeard: Vineyards
For many years the Foucault frères worked from anonymous premises on the Rue d’Église in Chacé, a village roughly to the south of Saumur. They were secreted behind an unassuming and very ordinary gate, tall and solid; there was no post-box bearing their name, no sign declaring their presence, and in fact there was not even a number for the property. They maintained this sense of anonymity for several decades. Nevertheless this property was, until recently at least, the heart of the Foucault domaine, where the fruit has been vinified, and where wines slumbered in barrels for many years (the domaine has since relocated of course; I provide more detail on that on the next page).
Around this are scattered their vineyards, of which there are 10 hectares all told. Of these, 9 hectares lie very close, and are dedicated to Cabernet Franc and the Saumur-Champigny appellation. The remaining hectare lies only slightly more distant, and is planted to Chenin Blanc. It makes sense to look at the Cabernet Franc vineyards first.
Starting with the ‘entry-level’ Saumur-Champigny and its vineyards, this cuvée is commonly referred to as Le Clos, although there is no such designation on the label (last time I checked), and it is something of a misnomer as there are at least a dozen parcels of vines contributing to this cuvée.
