2020 Francois Chidaine Montlouis Sec ' Les Bournais', Loire, France Alsace 7* Brix on September 22

7* Brix on September 22 – 2021 was an impressively cool growing season in Monterey County

As with all Forlorn Hope wines

The soil of the estate is brown forest clay with volcanic minerals and limestone tuff

This shows the grape at its most playful and perfumed

2014 Jolie Laide Wines Rossi Ranch Grenache - Syrah

2020 Francois Chidaine Montlouis Sec ' Les Bournais', Loire, France Alsace 7* Brix on September 22On a limestone plateau overlooking the Loire river sit Les Bournais, a vineyard Chidaine refers to as "a magical place". It had been abandoned for some time, but Chidaine was convinced that it was one of the very best sites in Montlouis, and planted vines here in 1999. Unlike most of Montlouis, which is on clay and silex, or flint, Bournais lies on clay and limestone, and the name Bournais refers to the particular type of limestone found here.