Brendan Stater-West Saumur Rouge 2021

Stater-West farms 1.5 hectares in the Brézé lieu-dit of La Ripaille within the old walls of the ancient Ripaille castle. This is a single, west-facing parcel where the topsoil (about 1.5 meters deep) is sandy loam above Turonian limestone; a combination that “gives a lighter texture and touch to the tannins”. While the grower also bottles a more age-worthy red from one hectare of 60-year-old vines using the name of the lieu-dit, the basique Saumur Rouge is drawn from his younger vines and fashioned into this bright, juicy and fruit-forward beauty.

Regarding the winemaking, the grapes were 100% destemmed, with no extraction (no pump-overs etc.). The juice was fermented wild in concrete and raised in stainless steel tanks for six months. This is lovely stuff. With a little more wattage than last year’s wine, it’s so inviting and bursting with freshness and vibrancy. Fresh and pure blue fruits align beautifully with warm spices, earth and an invigorating mineral charge. The structure is spot on; seamless, supple tannins, crunchy energy and a reaching finish. Despite its youthful deliciousness, it has more depth than you might expect, and it drinks like a wine that should age quite well. But why wait?

This is lovely stuff. With a little more wattage than last year’s wine, it’s so inviting and bursting with freshness and vibrancy. Fresh and pure blue fruits align beautifully with warm spices, earth and an invigorating mineral charge. The structure is spot on; seamless, supple tannins, crunchy energy and a reaching finish. Despite its youthful deliciousness, it has more depth than you might expect, and it drinks like a wine that should age quite well. But why wait?