Ely Cohn

9.3

2023 Le Mont Sec is so full of golden Chenin character despite its pearly glint.

Close your eyes and its thick pierced red apple skin, browning cores and buckwheat honey with a strong floral character.

My favorite dynamic of sweet suggestions, dry deliverable. — 8 days ago

Tor Kenward

9.2

So good with 20 plus years of bottle age. — 13 days ago

romo

9.3

Consistent notes. Maybe a bit darker but still lithe and copper-y. — a month ago

Vanessa

9.2

“Nothing added, nothing removed” is a phrase some use to describe the philosophy of low-intervention (or “natural”) winemaking. 🌱

The winemaker is like a vessel, carrying Mother Nature’s gifts from the land (and vintage) to your glass, where each sip can transport you to a particular place and time.

Nicolas Joly is an illustrious vigneron revered for his deep commitment to biodynamics and minimal intervention winemaking. 👏 He leads his family’s estate – Famille Joly – located in the prestigious appellation of Savennières in the Anjou-Saumur region of Loire Valley and specializes in top quality, cerebral, age-worthy dry whites made from the Chenin Blanc grape.

This takes patience, strength, and resilience for which the seahorse is a spiritual symbol (among other things). 🌊 It’s no wonder the Famille Joly features this beautiful, gentle creature on its bottle and labels.

This wine comes from ‘Les Vieux Clos’ where vines are harvested at 25 hL/ha which is HALF of the appellation’s allowance of 50 hL/ha.  👀

As a result of favorable growing conditions and these low yields, the grapes were allowed to become ripe, which explains the high alcohol at 14% ABV and round but balanced fruit expression.

This wine underwent a wild fermentation, followed by a natural malolactic conversion (MLC), and then it aged 12 months in large neutral oak with no fining or filtering before bottling.

The color is pale gold. On the nose and palate are harmonious notes of yellow apple, quince, papaya, dried orange peel, citrus blossom, chamomile, ginger, saffron, cinnamon, cream, white pepper, lanolin, wet slate …

It has power and elegance, nuance and vibrancy, with a persistent finish.  We think it pairs nicely with the baked herb & lemon salmon, asparagus and couscous.

Cheers to winemakers who share a piece of their land and heritage with the world one glass at a time! 🥂🥂🥂
— a month ago

with Deked1

Matt Perlman

9.5

Prodigious stuff—acid is absolutely ripping and the color is the only hint that this is a 15 year old wine. Long, long life ahead — 5 days ago

Brandon Boesch

9.3

Great wine with seafood dinner. Beeswax, lemons, honey, saline, maybe some other citrus. Really lovely. — 20 days ago

Paul Masson

9.3

One of the best in the game. But may cause heartburn — a month ago

romo

9.3

Honey, lemon. Less acid than I remember. Still perfect with sushi. 🍣 — 5 days ago

Ron R

9.4

Superb with Foie gras. No rush to consume this at all. — 12 days ago

with Anne-marie

Adam Gäfvert

9.1

Full bodied and botrytised dry-ish Grand cru chenin. Very aromatic and fruity. Some nice texture and a touch of funk. — a month ago