Pivoine by Herve Villemade. Because you’re worth it

2008 Pivoine, Vin de Pays du Loir-et-Cher

Domaine du Moulin is an estate of 25 hectares (17 of which are planted) located in Cour-Cheverny. It has passed from father to son from the installation of Hervé’s grandfather in 1939, Hervé took over the estate in 1995, after studying viticulture and winemaking. In the late 90’s Hervé met Thierry Puzelat (who was then in his second year of organic viticulture) and tasted his wines as well as Marcel Lapierre’s Morgons and was struck by their purity. He decided to turn a couple of hectares organic just to check: no synthetic products, but ploughing and hand harvest instead, and also no-or very-little sulphur. The results proved to him that he should travel the non-interventionist path.

Pivoine (the name means peony) is a blend of 90% Cot and 10% Gamay. The vineyard is farmed organically, the vines being on mixture of sand and clay with flints. After fifteen day wild yeast fermentation, the wine is aged in 30hl oak barrels before bottling with filtration, fining and only 2mg of sulphur at bottling.

Natural wine at its most ebullient, Pivoine has a blue-purple colour is pricklier than Gore Vidal after a few drinks, exhibits aromas of peonies (I guess), kirsch and caraway and has a gutsy palate flaunting pepper, punchy tannin and stiletto acidity.