I love red Loire
wines, be they made of Gamay, Pinot Noir or Cabernet Franc. They often combine
a pleasant fruitiness with soft earthy tones, representing a certain
light-heartedness, without being unserious. Of these three the Cabernet Franc
is the more full-bodied and a bit sterner.
Though Cabernet Franc
can be harsh and green, certainly if harvested too early (it’s a difficult
grape), Jean-Noëlle Millon’s La Source du Ruault 2007 offers softness
and ripeness. This unfiltered and un-fined Saumur Champigny has a fruity and
herbal scent, a fruity palate and ripe tannins. It contains some depot (as an unfiltered
and un-fined wine should), so you better leave the last sip in the bottle.
The website tells me Jean-Noëlle
shifted to biodynamic wine making in 2007 (some years after taking over the
business from Millon père) and has been certified since 2010. Grapes are
hand-picked, fermentation takes place in concrete vats with natural yeasts,
maturation in ‘barriques’.
Wine
La Source du Ruault
2007, Saumur Champigny (AOC), 12,5% alc. I was able to buy it at a discount (€
7,60 instead of € 10,80) as the distributor needed space for new vintages.
We paired the Cabernet
Franc with bavette, zucchini fritters, slow-cooked tomatoes from the oven and unmucked-about-with
rocket. Having enough tannins for the bavette, fruitiness for the tomatoes and lightness
to never overshadow the zucchini fritters, the La Source du Ruault proved to be
a good choice.
Bavette? Yes, one of the cheaper
and tastier steaks (popular nowadays in restaurants—crisis?). Maybe
not to be found in the supermarket, but on offer at any decent butcher’s. Cut into
small slices (0,5-1 cm) across the grain (otherwise the meat will fall apart),
heat a frying (or even better: grill) pan till it’s very hot, fry a minute or
so (no need to cook them through) on each side, sprinkle with sea salt and
black pepper (and if you like a few drops of lemon juice).
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