Clos Rougeard : Le Clos 2020

Tasting characteristics and recommendations for Le Clos 2020 from Clos Rougeard

Tasting

Appearance

The wine displays a pale ruby hue with garnet highlights.

Nose

The nose reveals delicate floral notes accompanied by subtle spicy nuances.

Palate

On the palate, this wine charms with its elegance and refined structure. The tannins are fine and silky, with no austerity. The crystalline purity of Cabernet Franc is fully expressed, carried by a linear frame and mineral nuances that reflect the diversity of the terroirs. The well-defined acidity provides freshness and balance through to a lingering finish.

Food and wine pairings

This wine pairs perfectly with white meats in a creamy sauce, roasted poultry—especially feathered game—as well as aged soft or semi-hard cheeses. Its mineral freshness and herbal character also match well with grilled preparations and dishes enhanced with aromatic herbs or gentle spices.

Serving and cellaring

Le Clos 2020 is best served at around 16°C to fully appreciate its aromas and tannic structure. This wine can improve in the cellar for around fifteen years, or even longer.

An outstanding Cabernet Franc from the Loire, a pure expression of the Saumur-Champigny terroir

The estate

Founded in 1664 in the village of Chacé, Clos Rougeard remains one of the most prestigious estates in the Loire Valley. Kept in the Foucault family for eight generations, the estate was acquired in June 2017 by brothers Martin and Olivier Bouygues. Since October 2022, Pierre Graffeuille has overseen the overall management of all Bouygues properties, while Cyril Chirouze has run the estate since 2023. Nady Foucault continues to offer her guidance. A pioneer of organic viticulture as early as the 1960s, Clos Rougeard has established itself as a global benchmark for Cabernet Franc, producing wines of exceptional finesse and remarkable aging potential. The estate covers 15 hectares across around twenty parcels.

The vineyard

Le Clos comes from a blend of fifteen distinct parcels spread across four villages: Chacé, Varrains, Dampierre-sur-Loire, totaling 4.5 hectares. These parcels extend over a linear distance of six kilometers within the Saumur-Champigny appellation. The vines, aged from 30 to over 90 years, are planted on soils of clay, limestone, and surface sands. The tuffeau subsoil—this porous limestone rock characteristic of the region—naturally regulates the vines’ water supply while promoting excellent root development. The deliberately low planting density and severe pruning, limiting each vine to a maximum of six bunches, result in very low yields, sometimes as low as 25 hectoliters per hectare in the oldest parcels.

The vintage

The 2020 vintage is considered excellent throughout the Loire Valley, for both dry white wines and reds. Climatic conditions made it possible to produce wines combining concentration, freshness, and balance. Despite generally warm temperatures during the growing season, acidity remained at sufficient levels to ensure vibrancy and aging potential.

Vinification and aging

After hand-harvesting, meticulous sorting, and complete destemming, Le Clos 2020 ferments with indigenous yeasts in open-top cement vats for five weeks. Maceration is carried out with daily punch-downs and regular pump-overs. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrels, where the wine then ages for 18 to 24 months. Only barrels that have already been used two to four times are employed, preserving the fruit expression without excessive oak influence. The wine then rests for at least two additional years in the estate’s tuffeau cellars before release—at least six years after harvest.

Grape variety

100% Cabernet Franc