In Saumur, Clos Rougeard’s Nady and Charly Foucault not only created the archetype for monumental Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc, they also assured a line of succession by inspiring or mentoring several potential heirs apparent.

The jury is still out on which will be the appellation’s next true giant: Antoine Foucault’s Domaine du Collier, Romain Guiberteau or Thierry Germain’s Domaine de Roches Neuves.  But with his four-year hot streak, as of this writing, of consecutive outstanding vintages (2014-2017), Germain’s Roches Neuves is in pole position.

Incredibly, Germain’s 2017s are at least as magical as the profound 2014s that began the streak. That vintage garnered La Revue du Vin de France's highest 3-star rating for the wines "flawless quality," and also inspired Michel Bettane to rank the domaine alongside Rougeard, Huet and Clos Naudin among his only 5-star Loire estates. 

In 2017, Germain made great wine throughout his lineup of sixteen cuvées.  Yet, one wine stands out: his old-vine cuvée, Les Mémoires, which vies for the best red wine he's ever bottled. Unfortunately, it's also one of his smallest-production wines, with only a few hundred cases for the world. 

Back Story
Since his arrival in Saumur twenty-five-years ago, Germain’s relentless pursuit of finesse and purity of terroir expression has made him a superstar in France.

He has assembled a portfolio of terroirs that are breathtaking for their diversity and vine age. But among all the sites he works with, the Les Mémoires cuvée is his red wine most revered by insiders.

It's .8 hectare of 113-year-old Cabernet Franc vines—and rare combination of silex and limestone—are the secrets to why The Wine Advocate’s Stephan Reinhardt has called Les Mémories “one of the finest Cabernet Francs on planet wine.”

Germain captures the essence of grape and terroir through his magic touch and the simplicity and purity of his methods—biodynamic farming, indigenous yeast fermentations and strictly neutral oak aging.

A Home Run in 2017
The fourth in an unprecedented string of great Mémoires, the 2017 may be Germain's best work yet. It's got it all, from a beautifully expressive nose to the incredible concentration, depth, and tension of its palate. While its high-toned finesse and a delicate texture make it delicious now, the underlying raw material ensure that it will only get better with age.

Given it's scarcity, you'll have a tough time finding it on either side of the Atlantic, let alone at our low price.

You'll want to hurry.