Clos Rougeard Saumur Champigny Rouge Le Bourg 2018 750ml

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2018

Benujamin Lewin, MW of Decanter writes 95 Points | Great sense of fruit purity on the nose, showing a mélange of black fruits. This shows brilliance on the palate, it’s very flavourful, with almost savoury undertones lingering on a very long finish. A sensation of gunflint shows retronasally. This is a rare combination: the height of elegance combined with depth. Drinking Window: 2032-2052.

La Revue du Vin de France writes 94 Points | As for Le Bourg, it remains faithful to the generously toasted and hedonistic expression of its barrel ageing. A concentrated material, a sensation of sweetness and power accompany the salient tannic framework that the years will soften. 

Winemaker Description 

Clos Rougeard was created in 1664 on the land of Chacé, a village not far from Saumur. Eight generations have succeeded one another at the head of the estate, the most recent being the Foucault brothers. From the 1980s onwards, Charly and Nady adopted a singular philosophy to enhance the terroirs of Saumur and Saumur-Champigny: leave the wine in peace so it can expresses its own identity. No synthetic products are added to the vines, gentle vinifications are thought out like infusions and minimalist approach is claimed. In 2017, the Bouygues family bought the estate and has continued the work begun by their emblematic predecessors with a deep respect for the DNA of the winery and its identity. Today the estate has found its balance thanks to a passionate team who strives to preserve the excellence and uniqueness of the wines whose depth, finesse and precision are unparalleled.

Located in the heart of the village of Chacé, Le Bourg is composed of very old vines and lies on a predominantly limestone terroir on shallow clay loam, typical of the Saumur-Champigny appellation. This wine reveals riper, fleshier fruit and a dense, full-bodied texture. Le Bourg is from vines averaging 80 years old, planted on a thin layer of clay over a deep bed of tuffeau, also in Chacé. The combination of vine age and richer soil makes this the most powerfully structured wine in Clos Rougeard’s array.