Saumur blanc AOC 2023 1500ml Magnum

A dry Chenin Blanc of cool clarity that unvarnishedly reflects the limestone of its hill: crushed chalk, citrus zest and a saline edge. At 12.5% vol., it remains lean and taut.

Brézé, near Saumur, is a single limestone ridge that rises clearly above the surrounding land. Beneath the thin topsoil lies tuffeau, the porous, chalky limestone from the Turonian period: it stores water like a sponge and releases it slowly to the vines during dry summers. More than half of Domaine Guiberteau's roughly nineteen hectares sits on this hill, with vines ranging from four to eighty years old. In the 19th century, Brézé was famous, then nearly forgotten; in 1954, Robert Guiberteau bought the first plots here.

Romain Guiberteau abandoned his law studies, renegotiated the leased family vines plot by plot, and bottled his first own vintage in 1996; he learned his craft from Nady Foucault. The grapes are fully destemmed, fermentation proceeds spontaneously with native yeasts, and aging follows in foudres and used barriques. For the whites, malolactic fermentation is often blocked so the acidity retains its contour. Since 2000, Guiberteau has farmed the vineyards organically and keeps cellar interventions to a minimum.

Dry and linear, with vibrant acidity and a saline, chalky trace that feels almost razor-sharp in its youth and lingers long on the finish.

Domaine Guiberteau now ranks among the most sought-after estates on the Loire and among those who brought the Brézé hill back from obscurity. This vintage is bottled in 1500 ml magnums.