# Croix-Martin (2023)

- **Producer:** Domaine Clos de l'Épinay
- **Colour:** red
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Pinot Noir, Grolleau
- **Region:** Loire, France
- **Style:** Natural
- **Alcohol:** 12.5%
- **Average price:** €25
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** No
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 12–14 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** raspberry, strawberry, cherry, plum, black pepper

## About this wine

Domaine Clos de l'Épinay is located along the ridge line of Vouvray in the Loire Valley. Led by winemakers Henri Bruneau and Antoine Labrosse, the estate focuses on natural vineyard health and biodiversity, planting over 400 trees and hedgerows around their plots. While Vouvray is world-renowned for white wines made from Chenin Blanc, the estate preserves a single dedicated one-hectare parcel of red vines. Bottled under the Vin de France designation, this micro-cuvée reflects a unique commitment to expressing heritage red varieties within a historic white wine zone.

## Interesting facts

- Vouvray AOC is legally white-only, so this estate red must be designated as Vin de France.
- Aged in concrete eggs to enable micro-oxygenation while preserving pure fruit clarity.
- Produced from a tiny one-hectare parcel within an 18-hectare white wine estate.

## Food pairing

The vibrant acidity and supple tannins of this lighter red pair effortlessly with tender white and light red meats, balancing rich butter sauces and complementing cured meats without overpowering delicate dish flavors.

## Wine making process

Harvesting is completed manually in small crates from 35-year-old vines grown on thick clay and sandstone over tuffeau limestone substrate. The wine undergoes spontaneous fermentation driven entirely by indigenous yeasts with zero added sulfites. Winemaking is conducted with a non-interventionist philosophy: it is unfined, unfiltered, and aged in concrete eggs. This aging vessel provides gentle micro-oxygenation without imparting wood aromas, keeping the pure fruit structure intact.