Pierre Ménard Pluton wine bottle

Pierre Menard Pluton 2023

Pierre Menard
$84.00

Grape: Chenin Blanc
Vintage: 2023
Type: White

Produced as an extremely small batch of only two barrels, this white wine represents Pierre Menard's flagship cuvée. The old chenin blanc vines grow organically inside the Clos de Mailles vineyard on a localized vein of blue schist and quartz rock. The hand-picked grapes are pressed softly and undergo a spontaneous fermentation driven by native vineyard wild yeasts. It undergoes a natural aging process, maturing for several months in used wooden barrels and a small stoneware jar.

It displays a bright golden color, opening with a refined nose of fresh quince, yellow apple, and white orchard flowers. On the palate, the full-bodied framework balances a serious, deep concentration with a sharp line of mountain acidity. Savory layers of citrus pith and crushed stone seamlessly wrap around a dense mouthfeel that quivers with tension. The stoneware integration keeps the mineral structure focused and clean across mid-palate. It concludes long and bone-dry.

Pierre Menard grew up in a winemaking family in Anjou. He went on to study winemaking in Angers and to work stints in Pauillac at Chateau Latour, in the Duoro, Canada, New Zealand and in Tokaj, Hungary.

When he returned home to Anjou, he began farming a few rows of his family’s old vine Chenin and Sauvignon Blanc. Traditionally his parents sold the grapes from all 13 hectares of their vines to a cooperative, but they agreed to let him keep some for his own project. In 2013, while still in his twenties, he bottled a miniscule number of bottles in a garage turned wine cellar. This inaugural vintage was received with great critical acclaim and a rising star of Anjou was born. Since then, Pierre has expanded his holdings to more than 1.5 hectares, all farmed biodynamically. He makes several bottlings of Chenin Blanc from these old vines, all dry.

Hand harvesting, gentle pneumatic pressing, fermentation, and aging in a combination of used barrels, sandstone amphora, and tank.