Monte Bianco, Rouge VdF 2022

A finely wrought Corsican red that displays its cherry fruit unrestrained, while framing it within a lean structure of acidity and tannin. The 14.5% vol. recedes into the background, and the wine stays cool and eminently drinkable.

The Taravo valley in the heart of Corsica, 150 metres above sea level, granitic sandy soils and a natural north to north-east exposure that lends the vines coolness. Jean-Charles Abbatucci took over the domaine in 1992 and converted it to biodynamic farming in 2000: horse ploughing instead of tractors, a flock of sheep for cover-crop grazing, preparations made from medicinal herbs and minerals, and work carried out according to the Maria Thun calendar.

A single-varietal Sciaccarellu, one of the indigenous varieties that Antoine Abbatucci saved from extinction in the 1960s within a collection of eighteen Corsican varieties. Because French AOC rules permit these varieties only to a limited extent, the wine is bottled as Vin de France. Hand-harvested into small crates, with meticulous selection in the cellar.

The entry is silky, contoured by a tight, fine-grained tannin. Its delicate astringency and savoury-green nature frame the fruit, while the fresh acid arc carries through to an ethereally cool finish with a lingering red-fruit glow. On the nose, morello cherry, black cherry, sweet cherry and Weichsel cherry with a stone note, alongside violet, blackcurrant leaf, juniper berry and allspice.

Crostini with smoked aubergine caviar and tomato compote, grilled sardines or grilled lamb chops with herbs.

The domaine farms biodynamically and has been Demeter-certified since 2005. Above the Monte Bianco plot, Bertrand Cervera, first violinist of the Orchestre Philharmonique de France, plays the violin; the vibrations are said to encourage the vines' growth and vitality.