RIP Stephane Cossais

Death of Stephane Cossais

The Montlouis sur Loire wine grower passed away after a heart attack. He was 42.

In 2007 Stephane was part of the first wave of the two hundred “natural” wine growers in the first Omnivore book. He was also at la Dive each year during the OFF.

Here is a tribute written by Sylvie Ogereau.

SC is a small one. But he’s strong. Three hectares run organically – that’s a lot of work. Especially when you know that his former life was not at all physical. With a bachelor’s degree in his pocket he was used to be involved in marketing classical music: “I lived in a state of perpetual frustration; my total passion was wine”. Things didn’t go well for him when he tried to switch vocations; initially he didn’t meet the right people to mentor him until a period of training at Foucault’s estate in Saumur-Champigny gave him the drive and confidence to go for it ..."Too fast, I shot my first vintage”. The second was saved. The third frozen. The fourth was damaged by hail. The last one gave 17 hectolitres per hectare..."The worst is done. The best is yet to come”. We think of these words since the first sip.

Maison Marchandelle

Stephane leaves the moelleux “to the ones who do it best!” Only one goal: Chenin sec!
He makes three in the north of the appellation where the soil is mainly clay and silex. “It’s less sandy, so the wines are more powerful and less supple than from the south of the appellation”. Maison Marchandelle is a fantastic introduction: “It is a wine that is easy to understand”. Le Volagre stretches with length under the sun on the tableland. Clos Renard smells of the great terroir “there is more clay, the roots are deeper and the wine is more structured”.

Four hundred litres. In Stephane mind it’s the ideal barrel size. He’s worked with oak since the beginning. But not for toasting! The barrel stabilizes the wine; it’s a natural filter and allows the grower to work with low quantities of sulphur.

Stéphane’s love affair with Chenin originated with tasting the wines of Foucault.
“Pour moi, le cépage qui caractérise le mieux la Vallée de la Loire est le chenin. Les viticulteurs qui en possèdent recherchent souvent la production de vins moelleux. Après diverses dégustations de chenin sec, et en particulier un Saumur « Brézé » 1996 des frères Foucault, je suis convaincu que ce cépage peut produire de grands vins blancs secs, capables de rivaliser en richesse et en complexité avec les grands Bourgognes. Mon souhait est de produire un grand vin blanc qui soit une reference”.

The wines are deep, sumptuous and rich. I once mistook the Volagre 2005 for a premier cru Meursault - it conveyed waves of honey, toasted walnuts and melon with delicious lemony acidity and was quite profound.