François Crochet, 2015 Update
François Crochet is a regular port of call for me. Old-timers may well remember his father Robert, but François joined his side in 1998 after working in Bordeaux, Burgundy and New Zealand, and he starting flying solo in 2000. Since then the domaine has gone from strength to strength. François (pictured), assisted by his completely charming wife Carine, now run one of the top domaines in Bué, and indeed are top tier in all Sancerre. They produce six cuvées in white, the number having climbed from four with the introduction of two new cuvées in the 2014 vintage, as well as a rosé, and they have long turned out three cuvées in red.
The two new white cuvées are from the lieux-dits Le Grand Chemarin and Le Petit Chemarin, and it seems only fitting that François should have some vines here as together with Le Chêne Marchand these are the ‘big three’ when it comes to the Bué vineyards. All sit at the southern end of the village, Le Chêne Marchand to the west of the road and the two Chemarins to the east, with Le Grand Chemarin closest and Le Petit Chemarin slightly more distant. All enjoy a south-facing aspect, in parts at least. Looking at the geological maps of the region they all share a similar terroir, with the desirable Kimmeridgian calcaire de Buzançais on the higher parts, with the Oxfordian calcaire lités and crayeux de Bourges as you move further down the slope. François himself goes a little further than this, distinguishing between the more friable calcaire of Le Grand Chemarin against the harder calcaire of Le Petit Chemarin.
The Wines
In terms of the wine, I had a very slight preference for the style of wine from the 2014 Le Petit Chemarin, with its more exuberant citrus fruits but slightly harder structure compared to the 2014 Le Grand Chemarin, but in terms of quality they were very close. Both were samples from cuve, by the way, as indeed were all the 2014s tasted here. After these two the 2014 Les Amoureuses, from vines planted in a heavy clay, with deeper limestone, showed just as well, albeit with a more musky note than I am used to. There was no denying the joy in the 2014 Exils though. As subscribers will already know I am a sucker for a good flint cuvée, I adore the rather effusive citrus notes combined with the very firm but pointed minerality they can possess. This was a stunning effort, as was the 2014 Chêne Marchand that followed it, proving why this is the commune’s most famous vineyard.
