2017 Olga Raffault 'Les Picasses' Chinon

Winemaker Notes: Olga Raffault passed away a few years ago, but the domaine has remained in the family and is now being run by her grand-daughter Sylvie and her husband Eric de la Vigerie. The estate owns remarkable pieces of land near the banks of the Vienne River, but one vineyard, “les Picasses,” stands out from all the rest: here you find 50-year-old vines on a fairly steep slope from the riverbank that is alluvial clay with a chalk limestone base. As exemplified by this bottling, the fruit is particularly expressive of cassis and dark cherries, with terrific mineral content and good structure. “Picasses” spends two to three years in oak to reduce the wine and soften the tannins and is usually released about four years after the vintage.