laying-down2020 Chinon, Clos de la Dioterie, Charles Joguet, Loire

Clos de la Dioterie is a northeast-facing vineyard on the left bank of the Vienne River that's on limestone clay. This is one of the last parcels to be harvested. The 2020 barrel sample offers a delightful texture - exuding a fine, chalky grain. It is almost creamy-rich in style, and yet this being Loire Cabernet Franc, it retains its elegance and shape. This is a ripe, black-fruited style with plentiful oak and long length. A fragrance of tea leaf, smoke and spice lingers long on the sinewy, focused finish, undoubtedly thanks to the limestone sub-soil.

A leading light in Chinon, the now-organic estate was founded in 1957 by Charles Joguet, a Chinon native sculptor and painter with an atelier in Montmartre. Joguet returned to found his domaine at a time when vines were part of a mixed farming approach – putting all your eggs in one basket was not the done thing. But the Burgundy wine lover was an artist, and artistic types tend to get away with taking an alternative approach, which soon became the norm.

The Genet family have owned the estate since 1997 and had partnered with Joguet for a decade before the takeover. With 30 hectares of vines, of which 28ha are Cabernet Franc and 2ha are Chenin, the estate makes a wide range of Chinons, but fine wine lovers will best know it for its cuvées Clos du Chêne Vert and Clos de la Dioterie.

Drink 2022 - 2030