Sancerre (wine region)

The growing areas on the Loire

Sancerre is an AOC -certified wine-growing region in the Cher department in France . It is located around the town of the same name, Sancerre , entirely on the left bank of the Upper Loire opposite Pouilly-Fumé . In the area of ​​14 municipalities, cultivation is approved according to AOC regulations. Mainly white wine is grown, namely the Sauvignon Blanc grape , which gives the wines great purity and elegance. About twenty percent of the area is planted with Pinot noir , from which light red wines called "Sancerre rouge" and, above all, classy rosés are made. Grape varieties other than the two mentioned may not be traded as AOC-classified. Furthermore, the maximum yields are set at 60 hl / ha for Sauvignon Blanc and 55 hl / ha for Pinot noir. Wines that do not meet one of these criteria are downgraded as Vin de Pays .

A Sancerre, born in 2008

White wines from the Sancerre have been labeled as AOC since 1936, red wines since 1959. Over the years, the AOC-certified growing area has grown steadily. In the meantime (most recently on March 18, 1998) it has quadrupled; in 2006 the size was 2,600 hectares. The town of Sancerre is perched on a chalk ledge that runs from the chalk cliffs of Dover through the Champagne and Chablis . A series of small valleys cut into the chalk, each with its own soil, microclimate and terroir . In the east, flint stones determine the character, which makes the wines mineral and long-lasting. Between the city and the northwestern Verdigny , the so-called Les Caillottes , the soil consists of marl and gravel, whose wines are particularly fruity and well balanced. In the southwest of the growing area, far away from the Loire in the direction of Menetou-Salon , on the chalky so-called Terres Blanches , heavy and long-lived wines are produced. Most, but not all, of the Sauvignon Blancs are made without aging in wood.

Web links

• Map of the 14 wine-growing communities (PDF; 67 kB)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Jonathan Ray: Top 10 Loire wines. In: The Telegraph online , Jan. 28, 2009.
2. ↑ Alexis Bespaloff: Alexis Bespaloff Complete Guide to Wine pg 90-94 1994, ISBN 9780451181695 .
3. ^ Peter Saunders: Wine Label Language, Firefly Books, p. 104, ISBN 978-1552977200 .
4. ↑ Tomas Clancy: “A searing wine for 2007”. In: The Sunday Business Post , Ireland. January 28, 2007.
5. ↑ Tom Stevenson: Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia, Dorling Kindersley, 4th ed. 2005, pp. 211 f., ISBN 9781405326568 .