Domaine de la Pierre Gravée : Inspirations 2023

Characteristics and Tasting Tips for the Inspirations 2023 Cuvée from Domaine de la Pierre Gravée

Tasting

Appearance

The colour is a straw yellow, probably with slight golden highlights, typical of a young Chenin aged in barrel.

Nose

The nose is rich and aromatic, revealing notes of citrus marmalade and cooked white fruit, together with a delicate spicy touch. This palette reflects the fine ripeness of the Chenin, enhanced by patient ageing.

Palate

On the palate, this wine offers remarkable depth and tension, well beyond what one might expect at this level of the range. The generous texture, carried by ripe fruit, is framed by a vibrant, precise freshness that brings great balance and pleasure to the tasting.

Food and Wine Pairings

This wine is an ideal match for white fish in a lemon butter sauce, a leek tart, or shellfish such as crab. It also pairs very well with poultry served in a light sauce.

Serving and Cellaring

We recommend serving the Inspirations 2023 at a temperature of around 10°C. This wine can be enjoyed now, but has ageing potential of up to around 2038.

A Dry Vouvray Defined by the Tension and Craftsmanship of Old-Vine Chenin

The Estate

Legally established in 2021, Domaine de la Pierre Gravée is an estate in the Vallée Coquette in Vouvray, in the Loire Valley. It is run by Philippe Guyonnet, a newcomer to winegrowing who trained notably in Burgundy, and who has assembled a vineyard of around 12 hectares planted exclusively with Chenin Blanc. The estate stands out for its old vines, organic farming, troglodytic cellars dug into the tuffeau and long ageing in barrels, giving its wines a distinctive identity within the appellation.

The Vineyard

Coming from the estate's vineyard, set on a windswept, south-facing plateau in the Vallée Coquette at Vouvray, this wine is produced from plots with brown clay and flint soils, resting on a Loire tuffeau subsoil. The Chenin Blanc vines have an average age of around 50 years. The vineyard is farmed according to organic principles, without chemical weedkillers, using an agroforestry approach, pruning that respects the flow of sap and controlled yields.

The Vintage

The information available does not allow us to detail precisely the weather conditions during the 2023 growing cycle in Vouvray. However, the wine's analytical profile, with high acidity and aromatic maturity marked by notes of cooked fruit, suggests a balance between preserved freshness and fine ripeness of the grapes at harvest.

Vinification and Ageing

The grapes for the Inspirations 2023 are hand-harvested in small crates, then pressed slowly. Fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts, without malolactic fermentation, in order to preserve the natural acidity of the Chenin. The ageing follows the estate's philosophy, favouring amphorae or Burgundy barrels, with no oenological additives, in the estate's troglodytic cellars.

Grape Variety

This wine is made from 100% Chenin Blanc.