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2023 Sancerre
Hippolyte ReverdyDoes it get more classic than this? Like Chablis and Muscadet, Sancerre is a quintessential white wine appellation of France, beloved for its famous Kimmeridgian limestone and crisp blancs that sing at apéro hour. This AOC also happens to be home to half a dozen vignerons named Reverdy. Domaine Hippolyte Reverdy, a family farm that has been making wine for many generations—since the 1600s—is our favorite, producing Sancerres with trademark notes of fresh spring flowers and a zesty, mineral finish.
Since Kermit began to work with Hippolyte, the first Reverdy in this family to bottle, in the 1980s, the wines have been consistently excellent. The current generation, Julie Guiard—Hippolyte’s granddaughter—is as much a humble farmer as any of her ancestors, foregoing vacation and travel to make sure everything is in exactly the right place in her vines and cellar. Join me in opening a bottle of this charming Sancerre that represents what we love most about tradition in French winemaking.
—Tom Wolf
Wine Type: | white |
Vintage: | 2023 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Sauvignon Blanc |
Appellation: | Sancerre |
Country: | France |
Region: | Loire |
Producer: | Domaine Hippolyte Reverdy |
Winemaker: | Michel Reverdy |
Soil: | Limestone |
Farming: | Lutte Raisonnée |
Alcohol: | 13% |
More from this Producer or Region
2021 Vin de France Blanche
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This skin-contact wine is redolent of blood orange and hyssop—a perfect apéritif for olives and anchovies.
2018 Sancerre “Cuvée Ortus”
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The rarest of the Reverdy cuvées, Ortus was really an invention at the urging of Kermit, who has a fondness for Sauvignon with full malolactic fermentation, aged in wood, bottled unfiltered, generally treated like a white Burgundy.
2023 Sancerre HALF BOTTLE
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Reverdy’s trademark is a generous flavor of blossoming flowers channeled over the palate, culminating in a finely etched mineral finish.
2020 Chinon “La Croix Boissée”
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2023 Sancerre Rosé
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There’s something extra delightful about Reverdy’s rosé, bursting with juicy grapefruit and pomelo, as though a paloma decided to slip on a wine disguise.
2023 Cheverny
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2022 Jasnières
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2018 Chinon Blanc “Clos de la Plante Martin”
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2022 Muscadet Côtes de Grand Lieu sur lie “La Nöe”
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At first, it is streamlined, saline, and full of lemon. Then the granite terroir kicks in...
2022 Chinon “Beaux Monts”
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Sourced from the village of Beaumont, located within the Chinon AOC, it is utterly delicious, with a perfect balance of fruit and earth.
About The Producer
Domaine Hippolyte Reverdy
About The Region
Loire
The defining feature of the Loire Valley, not surprisingly, is the Loire River. As the longest river in France, spanning more than 600 miles, this river connects seemingly disparate wine regions. Why else would Sancerre, with its Kimmeridgian limestone terroir be connected to Muscadet, an appellation that is 250 miles away?
Secondary in relevance to the historical, climatic, environmental, and cultural importance of the river are the wines and châteaux of the Jardin de la France. The kings and nobility of France built many hundreds of châteaux in the Loire but wine preceded the arrival of the noblesse and has since out-lived them as well.
Diversity abounds in the Loire. The aforementioned Kimmderidgian limestone of Sancerre is also found in Chablis. Chinon, Bourgueil, and Saumur boast the presence of tuffeau, a type of limestone unique to the Loire that has a yellowish tinge and a chalky texture. Savennières has schist, while Muscadet has volcanic, granite, and serpentinite based soils. In addition to geologic diversity, many, grape varieties are grown there too: Cabernet Franc, Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, and Melon de Bourgogne are most prevalent, but (to name a few) Pinot Gris, Grolleau, Pinot Noir, Pineau d’Aunis, and Folle Blanche are also planted. These myriad of viticultural influences leads to the high quality production of every type of wine: red, white, rosé, sparkling, and dessert.
Like the Rhône and Provence, some of Kermit’s first imports came from the Loire, most notably the wines of Charles Joguet and Château d’Epiré—two producers who are featured in Kermit’s book Adventures on the Wine Route and with whom we still work today.
More from Loire or France
2023 Bourgueil Rosé
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2020 Saumur Champigny “La Marginale”
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2019 Vouvray “Bois Guyon”
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2022 Saumur Champigny “La Foulée”
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2020 Saumur Blanc “L’Insolite”
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2019 Sancerre Rouge “Champs d’Alligny”
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2022 Saumur Champigny “Cuvée Domaine”
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2022 Jasnières
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2020 Sancerre Champs d’Alligny
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2020 Saumur Champigny “Outre Terre”
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2022 Savennières “Cuvée Spéciale”
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Vouvray Brut “La Dilettante”
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2023 Bourgueil Rosé
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2020 Saumur Champigny “La Marginale”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2019 Vouvray “Bois Guyon”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2022 Saumur Champigny “La Foulée”
Domaine des Roches Neuves France | Loire
2020 Saumur Blanc “L’Insolite”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2019 Sancerre Rouge “Champs d’Alligny”
Daniel Chotard France | Loire
2022 Saumur Champigny “Cuvée Domaine”
Domaine des Roches Neuves France | Loire
2022 Jasnières
Pascal Janvier France | Loire
2020 Sancerre Champs d’Alligny
Daniel Chotard France | Loire
2020 Saumur Champigny “Outre Terre”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2022 Savennières “Cuvée Spéciale”
Château d'Epiré France | Loire
Vouvray Brut “La Dilettante”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
Where the newsletter started
Where the newsletter started
Every three or four months I would send my clients a cheaply made list of my inventory, but it began to dawn on me that business did not pick up afterwards. It occurred to me that my clientele might not know what Château Grillet is, either. One month in 1974 I had an especially esoteric collection of wines arriving, so I decided to put a short explanation about each wine into my price list, to try and let my clients know what to expect when they uncorked a bottle. The day after I mailed that brochure, people showed up at the shop, and that is how these little propaganda pieces for fine wine were born.—Kermit Lynch