Winemaker Wednesday: Marc Vincent
Today we speak with Marc Vincent of Domaine de la Paleine, who produces biodynamic wines in Le Puy Notre Dame, a commune in Saumur.
Tell us about your property (how long it has been in your family, how long you have been making wine there, the size, any growing philosophy you might have):
The Domaine de la Paleine is located in Le Puy Notre Dame (Maine & Loire) and has been producing wine for more than a century. We have today 35 hectares in production. Our two main cepages are Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc. We are proud to be very much involved in the promotion of Saumur Puy Notre Dame which is an appellation born on October 2009. We are producing a fairly broad range of wines from Saumur Puy Notre Dame to Crémant de Loire, Côteaux de Saumur and Saumur Mousseux.
I, together with my wife, acquired this domaine in 2003 coming from a different activity. It has been a choice motivated by our passion for the Loire region and its wines. In terms of our own philosophy, we have decided to produce under a bio label. We have been cultivating our soils without any chemical product for the last 4 years and have started a full conversion last year.
What is your favorite vintage and cuvee from your own property and why?
My two favourite cuvees are :
Moderato Cantabile, which is a red Saumur 2005. It is a wine that we produce exclusively in good years. The grapes are coming from one of our best parcels. It is a full-bodied, concentrated red wine which is perfect with some game or beef !
Casta Diva 2008, which is a white Saumur 2008. We have decided to produce this wine in 2008 for the first time. This wine is a perfect expression of Chenin Blanc. We have decided on this cuvee to use top quality French oak barrels which have produced an outstanding result. This cuvee has allowed us to access certain top quality restaurants in Paris.
When you are not drinking your own wines, what are you drinking?
Outside of the Loire Valley wines my favourite wines are Saint Emilion, where we are lucky enough to also produce wine on a very small property of 3 hectares. The wines which we produce are Saint Emilion Grand Cru from Château de Pasquette and are a very good expression of the Merlot cepage.
Editor’s Note: Wines from Domaine de la Paleine are available to order at the following stores:
Wine House
Woodland Hills Wine Co.
If the above stores are unable to ship to your state, we suggest using wine-searcher.com to locate a store near you that carries the wine.