PASCAL & NICOLAS REVERDY

Nestled in a valley surrounded by chalk hills nearly mountain-like in steepness, the tiny hamlet of Maimbray is a humble looking village, forming right angles with neighboring Chavignol and Verdigny. Here Pascal and Nicolas Reverdy bootstrapped their operation from the ground up, year by year, having begun with almost no capital. When I met them in 1995, the brothers were already regarded in France as one of the finest producers of Sancerre Rouge. Nicolas' wife, Sophie, has joined Pascal and his wife, Nathalie, in the enterprise and works full-time in the vines with Pascal. Now Pascal’s two sons, Victorian and Benjamin, apprenticeships at Domaine Rousseau and Romanée-Conti respectively, are bringing their talents to the domaine. The soil here is almost pure Terres Blanches - fossilized Marne/Kimmeridigian limestone and clay. The yields are low, about 50 Hl/Ha, with excellent natural ripeness and concentration of Sauvignon/mineral character. The cuvée Angelots is from "Les Lots", a single lieu-dit just south and west of Maimbray in the direction of Chavignol. The vines are about 75 years old, on fossilized Kimmeridgian limestone. Vinification and aging are done in a large oak "cuve tronconique". The rouge, "à Nicolas", is a small selection of the best Pinot Noir vines, aged in demi-muids. The Reverdys harvest exclusively by hand, and do not filter any of their wines - white or red.

--Peter Weygandt