# Domaine Bertin-Delatte Les Mal-Aimés (2025)

- **Producer:** Domaine Bertin-Delatte
- **Colour:** white
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc
- **Region:** Loire, France
- **Style:** Natural
- **Alcohol:** 13.5%
- **Average price:** €14
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 10–12 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** lemon, grapefruit, apple, blossom, bell pepper, grass

## About this wine

Domaine Bertin-Delatte was established in 2008 by Nicolas Bertin and Geneviève Delatte in Rablay-sur-Layon, within France's Anjou region. Managing a small estate of around three hectares, the producers practice organic viticulture with low-intervention cellar practices. The cuvée name Les Mal-Aimés translates to The Unloved Ones, a lighthearted nod to unconventional grape varieties or winemaking approaches that step outside traditional local AOC regulations, such as pressing red grapes to make a dry white Vin de France.

## Interesting facts

- Les Mal-Aimés translates to 'The Unloved Ones', poking fun at non-traditional grapes or methods declassified from local AOC rules.
- The blend includes red Cabernet Franc that is directly pressed as whole clusters to produce a clear white juice.
- The wine is produced by a micro-estate of less than 3 hectares as part of the 'En joue Connection' natural winemaking collective.

## Food pairing

The vibrant acidity and subtle mineral salinity of this natural white wine pair perfectly with tangy goat cheese, fresh seafood, and green spring vegetables, cutting through richness while highlighting delicate herbs.

## Wine making process

Crafted from organically grown vines, the grapes are harvested manually. The blend features Sauvignon Blanc alongside red Cabernet Franc that undergoes direct pressing of whole clusters to yield pale juice without skin contact. Fermentation relies entirely on indigenous yeasts in temperature-controlled neutral vats. The wine matures on its lees for around six months in stainless steel to preserve clarity, freshness, and minerality before being bottled unfined and unfiltered with minimal added sulfites.