2022 Phillipe Alliet - Chinon Coteau de Noire (750ml)

Domaine Philippe Alliet has set the standard for Cabernet Franc in Chinon since 1985. Claude and Philippe Alliet built a reputation in the 1990s for a more refined, precise style of winemaking, moving away from the heavier extraction and aggressive oak treatment common at the time. Philippe's son Pierre has worked alongside him since 2005, and together they now farm about nineteen hectares organically across gravel, limestone, and tuffeau soils that give the estate's wines their distinctive depth and structure.

Coteau de Noire is sourced from one of Chinon's most celebrated sites, a steep, south-facing slope of clay and tuffeau limestone that provides excellent drainage and full sun exposure. The wine is 100 percent Cabernet Franc from vines more than forty-five years old, hand harvested from low-yielding plots. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts, followed by a long, gentle maceration. The wine then matures for about eighteen months in French oak, mostly older casks, allowing the fruit and terroir to remain the focus rather than the wood.

The wine shows a deep ruby color with garnet edges, opening to aromas of black cherry, blackberry, and violet layered with cedar, pencil lead, and licorice. On the palate it is full-bodied and textured, with powdery tannins, bright acidity, and a long, mineral finish. It pairs beautifully with roasted red meats, game, or aged hard cheeses.