Domaine du Carrou Sancerre Blanc 2021

The amazing Dominique Roger manages Domaine du Carrou in Bué, one of the 14 communes in the Centre-Val de Loire that is located in the Sancerre appellation. Since the 17th century, 8 generations of the Roger family have produced wines in the Bué area of Sancerre, which is known for exceptional terroir and producing complex wines.

He like many winemakers from Burgundy and the Loire Valley in 2021 ran into a bit of a problem. Adverse weather in the spring means little Sancerre to go around for the 2021 vintage. In most cases, the wines will be excellent, there just won’t be much of it.

With yields down as much as 80% for some wineries, there are several approaches people are taking to ride out the storm. I’ve spoken to dozens of affected producers but when speaking to Dominique a couple of weeks ago, I heard this one for the first time.

He’s going to do absolutely nothing. While others are doubling prices or only selling direct, only servicing top restaurants, etc … Dominique will be selling his 2021s at the normal annual price adjustment and in the same percentage of allocation as he always has.

Drawn off the highest in elevation in Sancerre with the most calcareous soil,  it is a chiseled, tightly wound and incredibly complex Sauvignon Blanc, which I’d argue is one of the best in the world and certainly from one of the best and most consistent winemakers in the Loire Valley.