2024 Pierre Gauthier - Bourgueil Jour de Soif (750ml)

Domaine du Bel Air has been in the Gauthier family's hands since 1880, when a great-grandfather working as a potter in the village of Benais began planting vines on the area's promising limestone and clay soil. Pierre Gauthier started working the vineyards at just fourteen, in 1979, eventually taking the estate from private, family-only production into commercial winemaking; his son Rodolphe joined him in 2005, and the two now farm the eighteen-hectare property together. Certified organic since 2000, the domaine is considered one of Bourgueil's quiet benchmarks, respected among fellow growers well before wider recognition caught up.

Jour de Soif, meaning day of thirst, is made from one hundred percent Cabernet Franc grown on twenty-year-old vines split between gravelly terrace soils and clay on a south-facing slope. The grapes are hand-harvested, destemmed, and sorted before a short maceration of about a week with regular pump-overs, carried out with native yeasts. The wine ages on its fine lees through the following spring, then is bottled without fining or filtration and with minimal sulfur, keeping it fresh and unmanipulated.

The 2024 shows a lighter, youthful color and an open bouquet of red fruit and flowers, with a juicy, supple palate of dark berry fruit, soft tannins, and a chalky mineral edge. It finishes clean and refreshing, built for easy, immediate drinking rather than the cellar. Serve it with a light chill alongside grilled sausages, a country pâté, or a simple plate of aged cheese.