Laurent Saillard, ‘La Paire’, Gamay & Grolleau, Loire Valley, FR Winemaker Laurent Saillard worked as a chef in Brooklyn & NYC for many years before throwing it all away to become a dazzingly talented winemaker in the Loire Valley; that classic cheffy meticulousness is all over his wines. Obsessive observation & constant care are his highest priorities in the vineyard, where everything is done by hand & without the use of chemical sprays. This blend of everybody’s favourite cuties Gamay & Grolleau (two best friends, scrappy & mischievious, always up to no good but when they flash you a charming grin you’re putty in their hands so they get away with everything) makes you feel like you just walked into a tiny, mind-blowingly chic & off the beaten path Parisian wine bar— the kind of place that if it were in literally any other city would be the talk of the town but in Paris it’s just kinda like Whatevs. This is quintessential glou glou: notably fresh handful of Haribo gummi bears countered by a pleasant hit of post-rain April dirt. Lightly musky like when a hot person at the gym’s sweat smells weirdly good, tart raspberry from semi-carbonic maceration, mini Coffee Crisp on Hallowe’en night, jamaica agua fresca, cracked black pepper. Kick back with a glass after splurging on something really frivolous i.e. a wildly overpriced designer chess set even though you’ve never played chess in your life.

PRODUCTION & DRINKING

Laurent Saillard is a Frenchman turned NYC chef and restaurateur who returned to France to make the wines he loved. He settled in the tiny town of Pouillé, an hour east of Tours. There he was mentored by the great Noella Morantin who helped him make wine, refurbish an old winery and connect with the village’s fantastic growers. Connect he did. When he was offered half of Catherine and Didier Barouillet’s famed Clos Roche Blanche vineyard in 2014, he jumped at the chance. These powerful, old, organic vineyards on limestone tell an incredible story. The wines get better every year we taste them and they were pretty freaking great from year one. We have followed these wines for years and years and fought hard to get a small allocation at this year’s Dive Bouteille in Saumur this past February 2020 aka our last trip in the before times. Fermented whole cluster in open top old foudres with gentle pump overs. Aged in old, large foudres and bottles unfined and unfilted with minimal sulphur added at bottling.