2019 Domaine Dominique et Janine Crochet Sancerre 750 ml

Arguably the highest volume and most coveted Sancerre placement in NYC is with the Union Square restaurant group, including by-the-glass features at Union Square Cafe, Manhatta, and the iconic Gramercy Tavern. This year, young Teddy Crochet’s new release from the stunning 2019 vintage—a Sauvignon Blanc that combines chiseled apple-pear richness buttressed by a mouth-watering acid backbone—bested all comers. One thousand cases, the entire U.S. allocation, was ticketed for Danny Meyer’s hotspots, until the music stopped in Times Square and every restaurant in NYC was shuttered.

The importer was stuck, and in what has been more and more the case over the last six weeks, their first call was to Wine Access.

If you’re a Sancerre aficionado, this is a rare opportunity to lay down a case of one of the most gorgeous Loire Valley whites from this stunning vintage. 200 cases. In fairness to others, please limit purchases to one case per member. 

Some would have consumers believe that all Sancerre is created equally. Particularly importers who don’t happen to procure wines from the very top estates in the villages of Chavignol, Bué, Amigny, and Verdigny. The truth is that these four villages are simply cut from a different cloth than neighboring hamlets, with limestone-packed substrates, the secret to all great white wines of Burgundy and the Loire.

If you meet Teddy Crochet once, you’ll never forget his face—or his biceps. Young Crochet was a celebrated rugby star before returning to his family’s estate in Bué as an eager apprentice to his dad, Paul. Sadly, Paul died suddenly about a decade ago. Like the brilliant Dominique Roger, the Crochets’ neighbor who suffered a similar loss thirty years ago, Teddy did what is expected of young winegrowers faced with a similar tragedy. He hung up his rugby cleats, donned oversized blue overalls, and went to work. It wouldn’t be long before Teddy would inject youthful energy into the vines and the cellar, and start turning out brilliant whites that stand tall with the wines of his illustrious neighbors.

2019 was astounding in Sancerre, featuring warm summer days and cool nights. The whites from the very top estates of these four villages were both extraordinarily rich and fabulously chiseled, making for Sauvignon Blanc of exquisite purity, buttressed by a mouth-watering acid backbone. 

Prior to release this past winter, there was a taste-off in NYC for arguably the most sought after Sancerre by-the-glass placement in the city: a feature at the top of the wine lists at Danny Meyer’s Union Square Cafe, Manhatta, Untitled, and the iconic Gramercy Tavern. Importers are said to shower Meyer’s sommeliers with sample bottles, hoping to land an annual order for upwards of 1,000 cases. And as no surprise to the Sancerre cognoscenti, young Teddy Crochet rocked the tasting panel, compelling Meyer’s group to commit to the entire US allocation of the small Bué estate’s 2019 Sancerre Blanc.

By the end of February, wines at Union Square, Gramercy, and Manhatta were being reappointed as their allocation arrived on the loading dock of a cool warehouse outside the city. But then, as fear spread from Times Square to Albany, a decision was made to protect. A state of emergency was declared. Within a week, every restaurant in New York was shuttered, leaving the Crochet importer holding the bag. So they made a call.

What would have been $18 by-the-glass at each of Meyer’s addresses or just $25 per bottle today.