# Saumur Blanc Les Perrières (2023)

- **Producer:** Arnaud Lambert
- **Colour:** white
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Chenin Blanc
- **Region:** Loire, France
- **Style:** Classic
- **Alcohol:** 13.0%
- **Average price:** €22
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 12–14 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** apple, peach, blossom, lemon, smoke, hazelnut

## About this wine

Arnaud Lambert is celebrated as a leading light and rising star of the Saumur region in the Loire Valley. Having inherited the original Domaine de Saint-Just from his father Yves, Arnaud expanded and rebranded the estate in 2017. He follows a Burgundian parcel-by-parcel philosophy, seeking to isolate and highlight the nuances of individual terroirs. Rather than seeking blockbusting density, Arnaud prioritizes grace, focus, and a direct line of energy from the limestone bedrock to the glass. The Les Perrières cuvée comes from a single 2-hectare vineyard on the Saint-Cyr-en-Bourg hill, featuring 60-year-old vines planted in 1965.

## Interesting facts

- The vines for Les Perrières were planted in 1965, making them over 60 years old and providing deep structural complexity.
- The estate has been certified organic by Ecocert and biodynamic by Biodyvin and Demeter since 2018.
- The vineyard sits on a unique Turonian Superior bedrock of porous tuffeau limestone, which gives the wine its distinct saline finish.

## Food pairing

The high-tension acidity and mineral core of this Chenin Blanc cut beautifully through rich textures like almond butter, cream, and the natural oils of seafood. Its medium-to-medium-plus body, enhanced by old-vine concentration, allows it to stand up to delicate meats like veal sweetbreads and roasted poultry, while its saline finish acts as a perfect foil for the lactic tang of aged goat cheese.

## Wine making process

The winemaking process for Les Perrières focuses on preserving purity and terroir expression. The grapes are 100% manually harvested and whole-cluster pressed immediately upon arrival at the winery. Spontaneous fermentation occurs using natural yeasts, lasting between four and five weeks. Malolactic conversion is spontaneous and partial, depending on the vintage's natural balance. The wine is matured for 11 to 12 months in a split of 50% foudres (large oak casks) and 50% in neutral, used oak barrels (three to five years old) to minimize wood influence. It is bottled unfined with a gentle filtration and low sulfur additions.