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Antoine Sunier, Régnié, Beaujolais, France 2020

  • $34.00

Ready to ship  -  5 left

GAMAY
EARTHY & COMPLEX
ORGANIC FARMING
CRITIC SCORE 90+, NATURAL WINE, and BOTTLE CLUB 2024
RÉGNIÉ and BEAUJOLAIS
FRANCE


  • Winemaker: Antoine Sunier
  • Varieties: Gamay
  • Farming: Organic
  • Terroir: From 350m elevation and 45+ year old vines located in Les Forchets, Le Potet and Montmerond, on rocky, granite soils.
  • Vinification: Gravity flow to tanks, Indigenous yeast fermentation at low temperatures, to preserve fresh fruit flavors and a delicate tannic structure. Whole cluster fermentation for 8-15 days, horizontal pressing, manual racking for elevage.
  • Aging: Aged 8 months on the lees in 90% neutral burgundy barrels and 20% concrete tanks. Bottled with no fining or filtration. Total sulfur = 15 mg/l, Free sulfur = 0 (undetectable)
  • Notes: From 45+ year old vines located in Les Forchets, Le Potet and Montmerond, this wine is quite full-bodied showing good tannin structure and dark fruit. Régnié is one of the Beaujolais crus most suitable for aging, and this wine is no exception. The beauty of well-structured Beaujolais wine is that it also drinks well in its youth. Now it shows dark, purple berry fruit and gritty tannins. Over time it will begin acting like Burgundy showing more earthy and truffle notes along with the fruit aromatics.
When starting out, Antoine Sunier's two biggest influences were his older brother, Julien Sunier, and natural wine legend Jean-Claude Lapalu, with whom Antoine did a stint following his studies in Beaune. Through some serious hunting, Antoine was able to find organically farmed vineyards in Régnié and Morgon, with an average vine age of at least 45 years. 
 
From our January 2024 Club notes:

Antoine Sunier, Régnié, Beaujolais, France 2020

It must have been difficult being the younger brother of a legend. Antoine Sunier is the younger brother of Julien Sunier, considered one of the pioneers of modern, natural winemaking in Beaujolais, and the winemaking bug didn’t bite Antoine until after he already had an established career in telecommunications. But after four years of seeing Julien’s happiness working for himself and creating beautiful wines, Antoine was inspired to learn the craft, first in Burgundy, and then with Jean Claude Lapalu in Beaujolais. With the guidance of his brother, Antoine purchased a small farm with old Gamay vines in Régnié, Beaujolais, and in 2014, debuted his own wines, 

This wine is a classic representation of Régnié, one of the more regal and age-worthy crus of Beaujolais. From just 2.7ha of 45+ year old organically-farmed vines, Antoine creates a silky, dark-fruited Gamay that swells with black and red plum, dried strawberry, and cinnamon bark. Antoine hand-harvests and sorts the grape bunches in the vineyards of Les Forchets, le Potet, and Montmerond. The bunches are transported to the winery where they are kept whole to begin a traditional carbonic fermentation in closed vats. After nearly two weeks, the grapes are pressed off into Burgundy barrels (only about 10-15% new) and cement tanks to finish fermentation and elevage for up to 8 months, then bottled unfined and unfiltered. 

The wines are fresh but generous, clean but rustic, and have already improved with a few years of age. Enjoy Antoine’s wine with a hearty cassoulet (beans and duck and sausage, oh my!) or roasted root veggies. — Cara Patricia