2018 Daniel Chotard Sancerre 750 ml

Daniel Chotard’s 2018 is serious, and seriously great Sancerre that’s a delicious reminder of what catapulted Sancerre to international fame decades ago: bright citrus flavors, incredibly refreshing minerality, and a verve and freshness that’s impossible to replicate.  

Sancerre is the spiritual home of Sauvignon Blanc, and Daniel Chotard’s elegant, expressive 2018 is vibrant, aromatic, and giving with layers of citrus fruit that mingle with stony, river rock minerality and white pepper.  A crisp, delicious white, this Sancerre can find a place at the table beyond the classic local goat cheese; it will stand up to mussels in white wine, roasted corn, or seared langoustines with fresh herbs and olive oil.

The family estate was founded in the first year of the French Revolution, and Chotard’s vineyards lie on a privileged perch on the far eastern edge of the Loire. Here, soils vary complicatedly from chalk limestone to clay and flint, whose terroir yields incredible wines of pronounced minerality, freshness, and a distinct, incredibly mouthwatering citrus character.

In the modern era, Daniel Chotard has been quietly making Sancerre with a old-school sense of place, which since 2011 he has handed to his son, Simon. La Revue du Vin de France has called the next generation the “great revelation of Sancerre on the last four vintages.” 

The 2018, which the duo crafted together, displays bottles a richness and a sense of dimension that speaks to the rigor and care of the Chotards’ farming and their attention to detail in the cellar. High-density vine plantings, hand-harvesting, and hand-sorting, and extended time on lees are the sorts of practices that Sancerre pioneered but are rare to find today, making Chotard a delicious value from an internationally renowned appellation.