Vin de Savoie: Curtet Tonnerre de Grès 2018

Marie & Florian Curtet “Tonnerre de Grès” 2018. Savoie, France. 11% ABV, Purchased at Chamber Street Wines, $21.99/bottle.

Color is medium straw. The nose offers aromas of honeysuckle, apricot, and golden delicious apple, mixed with a hint of sea air, and a tiny reminiscence of burnt coal.

On the palate: a rich, briny mixture of pear and apple on the front palate with a spicy note along the top palate. An umami note rounds out the satisfying finish. The fruit and acidity sing across the top palate with verve. I paired this with baked flounder, cauliflower and mashed potato; seafood is an ideal match, while pork, chicken, cheese and vegetables will surely pair beautifully. I also found this quite satisfying to enjoy by itself, both well-chilled and at room temperature. Tonnerre de Grès is a white blend of Jacquère and Altesse grapes from vines that grow in sandy loam, averaging 30 years in age. The wine is fermented in concrete and aged for 9 months on the lees and lightly filtered before bottling, never seeing oak. And for those who are curious: “Tonner de Grès” translates to “Thunder of Sandstone.”

Maria and Florian Curtet are what we in the US would call a “mom & pop shop”. A small, independent producer, they are the farmers, winemakers, marketing and sales team. La Chautagne AOC within the Vin de Savoie AOC of France is in the foothills of the French Alps. With their winemaking facility in Motz (just east of the Rhône river and the town of Boursin), it is imperative to schedule a visit or tasting as they spend most of their time in the fields daily.

For more on the Curtets and their winemaking, click here: https://www.domainecurtet.fr/

à votre Santé!