2022 Domaine Jean-Max Roger, Menetou-Salon “Morogues” Le Petit Clos, Loire Valley, France.
Vastly underrated and lesser known to a wide audience, Menetou-Salon makes some outstanding values and equally outstanding Sauvignon Blanc, without the buzz and or rising prices that is being seen in Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, and this Jean-Max Roger Morogues Let Petit Clos is some even more extra special. This bright straw/gold 2022 Mentor-Salon Blanc is beautifully aromatic, steely and dynamic on the medium bodied palate with bright intensity and layers of lemon/lime, gooseberry, quince, kiwi, tangy peach and crisp melon fruits, along with a ton of mineral complexity, wet stone, a touch of leafy herb and delicate white flowers. This wine is top notch, as I have found most of the latest releases from Domaine Jean-Max Roger, an impressive estate based in Bué, which has some incredible parcels, of Sauvignon Blanc, spread around Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé and here in Menetou-Salon. The Menetou-Salon AOC, which neighbors Sancerre, is an ancient winegrowing area with some documents from the years 1063, 1097 at 1100 have been found to reference wine production here. Vineyards here, set on prized Kimmeridgian soils, cover close to 800 acres and eleven small communes, including Menetou-Salon itself and is mostly planted to Sauvignon Blanc, the only white allowed in the AOC, along with some Pinot Noir, which is used for Rosé and Red Wine.
The freshly picked Sauvignon Blanc grapes, coming into the Jean-Max Roger cellar are whole cluster juiced, with an immediate gentle pneumatic pressing and a cold settlement for between 48 and 72 hours to drop out phenolics and solids before fermentation. The fermentation was done by all natural yeasts with temperature control in stainless steel to add to development of the complexity of aromas and promote freshness. The wine matures on the heavy lees of fermentation until the first racking which occurred between February and April, without malos, with the wine seeing a light finning and filtration, as well as cold stabilization to keep everything crisp and vibrant. The Jean-Max Roger estate, best known for their Sancerre, located as mentioned in the village of Bué was founded in the early 1970s, when Jean-Max Roger took over the 4 hectares of Sancerre vineyards left to him by his parents, which he operated with his wife, Nicole until now, with his sons Thibault and Etienne having truly defined the style here since taking control in 2005, and I have been thrilled with everything I’ve tasted in the last few vintages. I like the authentic nature of these Jean-Max Roger wines, and each time I have them I like them more and more, especially when they have some extended aging, these are whites that have long lives, concentration and lovely textural presence. If you’ve never tried a Menetou-Salon Blanc, this would be an exceptional choice to show off the region’s best attributes and I highly recommend any and all of these Jean-Max Roger wines.
($25 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive