2015 Laurent Lebled Vin de France ‘Ça C’est Bon!’

Region: Touraine < Loire Valley < France
Grapes: Gamay
Vineyard/Cellar Stats: Organic farming; rocky soils; 35-75 year-old vines; carbonic fermentation in cement tanks for 30 days (much longer than a typical carbonic maceration); grapes pressed using an old-school screw press before finishing fermentation in fiber tanks; zero added SO2; 11.5% ABV
Winemaker: Laurent Lebled

Laurent and his wife Sonya make tiny amounts of two natty, zero-additive cuvees that are all the rage in fashionable wine bars and bottle shops in Paris. We have always loved his juicy, gulpable wines and the fine winemaking behind it but have never been able to get out hot little hands on any – until now, we scored a small allotment! Laurent, a former woodworker, got his start in 2008 when he found himself forced to shut down his 30+ year-old wood merchant business. The recession had hit hard, and without any other prospects in wood, he turned to something else he loved: wine. Fortunately, two childhood friends, Sébastien Bobinet and Patrick Corbineau (two of France’s most respected natural winemakers) helped him set his course.  And he’s a bit of a rebel: he works within the Touraine appellation rules but sell his wines as “vins de France” by choice – too much bullshit with the AOC bureaucracy.   He lets his macerations go a full 30 days (a typical carbonic maceration lasts 12 to 15 days), giving the wines a rusticity often lacking in many of the light, fruity carbonic gulpers made in the same style. The result is an incredibly juicy, smashable Gamay, but with depth and elegance. We’re crushing on this wine!