Clos Roussely ‘L’Echo’ Sauvignon Blanc

Clos Roussely is a beautiful and historic winery dug into the side of a small hill in the Touraine-Chenonceaux appellation. Originally constructed as a storage facility for a nearby castle, it was converted into a winery in 1917 by Anatole Roussely. Anatole’s great-grandson Vincent now runs the operation. The vineyards are planted literally on top of Clos Roussely in the center of the village of Agné. Vincent prefers to use a more natural approach in his farming and winemaking. The vines are farmed organically without any chemicals and the soil is tilled by horse. Once harvested by hand the wine is left to ferment in the Clos without additional yeasts and fining upon bottling. You could call this a “natural” wine, but it shows familiar flavors of green apples, lemon pith, and chalky minerality.