2018 - Saumur Clos l'Echelier, Thierry Germain (Roches Neuves)

Germain's 2018 Saumur L'Échelier is clear and fresh but most of all intense and supple on the nose that represents the dry and warm vintage with enormously ripe and concentrated aromas of yellow-fleshed fruits, but still there is the flinty tuff limestone terroir present that gives this a particular character, even in an abnormal vintage. The palate is generous and wide but still elegant and fresh, with salt and grapefruit bitters as well as the refreshing dash of lemon juice in the intense and textural finish. A highlight of the 2018 vintage in the Anjou-Saumur-Touraine appellations. Tasted in June 2021.

The 2018 Saumur Blanc L’Échelier is dry, round, nutty and tropical. It was a very warm vintage, giving richness and ripe pineapple character. A racy acidity holds this wine together like tight reins. There's a contrast here between that tropicality and the zingy, crunchy acidity, which messes with your head.