500 ML 2022 Château Pierre Bise Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru

96 Points, Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Aug 2024). The concentration seen in the Coteaux du Layon harvest in this vintage is carried through to René Papin’s Quarts de Chaume, which begins with layers of richly dried and toasted orchard fruits on the nose. While immediately seductive the aromatic profile does seem to be hiding its light under a bushel for the moment, because the palate explodes with an immediately convincing array of with a rich, sinewy and tightly compacted concentration, intertwining ribbons of dried fruits with richer notes of caramel, praline, toasted peach and white pepper. Tense, dense and harmonious, with beautifully fresh acidity, this impressive wine is a true Quarts de Chaume in the liquoreux style. Magnificent. The residual sugar is 170 g/l and the alcohol on the label is 12%.

Château Pierre-Bise is a longtime Papin family estate in Beaulieu-sur-Layon, where Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc are shaped by a patchwork of schist and volcanic soils. Since 1959 they’ve expanded to more than 50 hectares and built a reputation for wines that are clean, mineral, and tightly tied to place. Their approach to farming leans on biodiversity, full grass cover, and low-intervention methods inspired by synergistic agriculture, which they adopted well before it became common in the region. The focus on soil expression shows in their dry and sweet Chenin bottlings from Savennières, Coteaux du Layon, and Anjou, as well as in a small set of characterful reds. Low yields and patient vineyard work give the wines their clarity and tension, and many cuvées such as Le Haut de la Garde and Clos de Coulaine are now benchmarks for the area.