Le Sot de L’Ange: Vineyards
Quentin Bourse has approximately 12 hectares of vines to work with, and as already mentioned in my introduction these vines are worked using both organic and biodynamic methods, fully certified, this having been the situation for many years. He tends a multitude of small parcels, and thus he has many different soils to work with, including some clay on limestone, and a number of parcels include large proportions of flint. His vines include a number of the Loire’s traditional varieties, including Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc, as well as Côt, Gamay, Grolleau and Chaulnay.
The latter two varieties are perhaps worthy of a little more detailed examination, than the first four, which will be more familiar. Grolleau is familiar to Loire Valley fans as well of course, but Quentin is at pains to point out that his vines are Grolleau de Cinq-Mars, a clone named not for a date, but for the commune of Cinq-Mars-la-Pile, which sits on the banks of the Loire close to Langeais. As for Chaulnay, I believe this is a local synonym for Gamay de Chaudenay, itself a mutation of Gamay de Bouze both of which are red-fleshed teinturier varieties which may (or may not) be related to the much more widely planted Gamay Noir.
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