2022 Alphonse Mellot Sancerre Satellite, Loire Valley

Biodynamic. The domaine has held vines in Chavignol for over 50 years, yet the first bottling of Satellite was as recent as 2008—what took you so long, Alphonse?  Spread over five separate parcels—all on Kimmeridgian soils—the Mellot’s four hectares include two precious hectares on the revered terroirs of Le Cul de Beaujeu and Les Monts-Damnés. The old, low-cropping Sauvignon Blanc vines are between 40 and 77 years old. The wine fermented spontaneously, aged in large, mature oak barrels and was bottled without filtration.

The most Burgundy leaning of Mellot’s 2022, it harnesses both the deep texture and natural chalky electricity of the Chavignol slopes, offering dense orchard fruit, mandarin, orange oil and a lick of classy oak, all wrapped up in a frame of salinity and stony energy. The finish is intense and wonderfully refined, lingering with mouthwatering grip. By the way, the wine was named by Alphonse Mellot Sr as a tongue-in-cheek riposte to his friends in Chavignol, pointing to where he believes the village stands in the Sancerre pecking order! Mellot’s great friend Gérard Boulay was only mildly amused. It’s a striking Sancerre that really needs another two to three years to show its true colours.