TOP

Domaine Jo Pithon Savennières 2020

Loire fans, do not adjust your sets.

It is still 2023. Domaine Belargus still exists. Pithon-Paillé is no more. Jo Pithon is still enjoying a well-earned retirement, at least I suspect he is during the moments when he is not putting in the hours as consultant to Ivan Massonnat at the aforementioned Domaine Belargus.

All of which begs the question; what is this wine, a 2020 Savennières from Domaine Jo Pithon, which I picked up when in the Loire Valley very (very!) recently? If you find you are scratching your head, with no answers forthcoming, rest assured you are not alone. Prompted by their discovery of this wine (available in a number of other vintages, if you were wondering), I have been on the receiving end of more than a handful of emails over the past ten (or more) years from Winedoctor readers asking me if Jo had come out of retirement.

The answer, sadly, is no.

Indeed, you only need to taste this particular cuvée of Savennières to know it does not come from the hand of Jo Pithon, who fashioned wines in a much bolder and occasionally borderline oxidative frame than this libation, which trades on its sense of definition, tension and drive. And there is also a clue on the label as to its source, it having been bottled at Château de Chamboureau. To understand more, we must dive a little more deeply into the origins of another estate so far unmentioned, Domaine FL.

Domaine Jo Pithon Savennières 2020

Domaine FL was created in 2008 when the friction between Jo Pithon and his financial backer Philippe Fournier, who he had accepted investment from in 2005 in order to service his considerable debts, finally came to a head. Unable to work together the domaine was ripped in two, and Jo limped away with little more then a few (admittedly valuable) slivers of vineyard, including vines on the Coteau des Treilles, in the Quarts de Chaume appellation and in the lieu-dit of La Croix Picot in Savennières. These were the beginnings of Pithon-Paillé.

Philippe Fournier kept everything else, namely the winemaking facilities, the majority of the vineyards including the recently acquired Château de Chamboureau and – importantly in view of the wine being discussed – the Jo Pithon brand. He brought all these together under the Domaine FL umbrella, and set about building some swanky new cellars on the slope above Rochefort-sur-Loire. And while the vast majority of wines are bottled and sold under the Domaine FL label, every now and again one pops up attributed to Domaine Jo Pithon, not infrequently (in my experience) in Loire Valley supermarkets This no doubt allows Philippe’s son Julien Fournier, who now runs the domaine, to modify the price point of this wine to suit the market without affecting the brand position of Domaine FL (I suspect it is the entry-level Domaine FL Savennières in the bottle, although I confess I have not sought to confirm this).

In the glass the 2020 Savennières from Domaine Jo Pithon exhibits a limpid lemon yellow hue which seems to speak of freshness and verve, and that is exactly the style presented on the nose, which shimmers with beautifully tense aromas of dried peach, crushed gravel and freesia, and just a touch of blanched almond. This appeal continues with style on the palate, which presents a fine phenolic grip, supporting plenty of juicy intensity and citrus bitterness, with a sandy mineral drive and, reflecting the warmth of the vintage, modest acidity. It does not feel too long in the finish, but it maintains an attractively bright and bitter stance. This is a good entry-level example of the Savennières appellation, perhaps even one rung up the ladder higher than that, and I am sure it could show up many a domaine-level cuvée from the appellation. For drinking now and over the next ten years. The alcohol declared on the label is 13%. 91/100 (30/10/23)

Read more in:

Find Domaine Jo Pithon Savennières 2020 on Wine Searcher:

Find all Domaine Jo Pithon wines on Wine Searcher: