Domaine Belargus : Quarts 2019

Characteristics and tasting notes for the Quarts 2019 Domaine Belargus

Tasting

Color

The color displays a straw yellow hue with lemony highlights, bright and crystalline.

Nose

The nose reveals great aromatic intensity with notes of stone fruit (mirabelle plum, apricot), citrus (lemon, grapefruit), and candied fruit. Mineral nuances of crystalline rock and graphite bring a noble and refined dimension. With aeration, floral touches and sweet spice notes gradually emerge.

Palate

The palate is crystalline and fresh, with a full, dense structure. Flavors of apricot and orchard fruit intertwine with notes of bitter citrus and graphite. Vibrant acidity structures the whole, while fine iodine notes add complexity. The long, intense finish lingers on mineral and bitter citrus impressions, offering remarkable persistence.

Food and wine pairing

This wine pairs ideally with roasted white meats, braised dishes, or fried fish. It also pairs perfectly with soft, washed-rind ripened cheeses. Grilled langoustine with olive oil and basil makes for a particularly harmonious pairing.

Service and storage

The Quarts 2019 is best served at around 13°C. Aerating for one hour in the bottle or thirty minutes in a decanter allows its aromatic complexity to fully express itself. This wine can be cellared until around 2060.

Other characteristics

This is a dry wine of great structure, vinified without the addition of commercial yeasts and aged on the lees for approximately twenty-six months.

An Anjou Chenin Blanc of exceptional intensity and minerality

The estate

Domaine Belargus was founded in 2018 by Ivan Massonnat, a former finance professional, who acquired the former Pithon-Paillé estate. Located in the Loire region, in Anjou Noir, the estate spans twenty-four hectares of Chenin Blanc across exceptional plots. Ivan Massonnat now runs the property with a team that includes winemaker Adrien Moreau and vineyard manager Amaury Chartier. The estate stands out for its parcel-by-parcel approach inspired by Burgundy and its commitment to biodynamics. From its very first year, Belargus established itself as one of the most remarkable producers in the Loire Valley.

The vineyard

The Quarts 2019 comes from a three-hectare plot located within the Quarts-de-Chaume Grand Cru appellation, in Anjou. This historic plot, which gave its name to the appellation, benefits from a due-south exposure on Precambrian schist soils. These ancient terroirs lend finesse and length to the wines. The vineyard is farmed under certified biodynamic agriculture, with yields deliberately limited to around twenty-five hectoliters per hectare. The harvest is entirely manual, carried out in several passes to select grapes at optimal ripeness.

The vintage

The 2019 vintage began with an exceptionally mild winter, with summer-like temperatures in February triggering early budbreak. Devastating frosts in April destroyed more than eighty percent of the buds on certain plots, drastically reducing yields to twelve hectoliters per hectare on the affected vines. Despite these challenges, the dry, hot summer allowed for exceptional grape concentration. The absence of disease and sunny conditions in September favored optimal ripening, producing fruit of remarkable quality despite the low harvest volumes.

Winemaking and aging

After a manual harvest, the grapes for the Quarts 2019 were pressed by gravity. Fermentation occurred spontaneously through native yeasts, without strict temperature control, allowing for complex aromatic development. The wine was then aged for approximately twenty-six months in two-hundred-and-twenty-eight-liter French oak barrels and six-hundred-liter demi-muids, with a majority of previously used wood. Aging on fine lees, without stirring, brought texture and depth. No filtration or fining was carried out before bottling.

Grape variety

100% Chenin Blanc