2019 Laurent Herlin Bourgueil ‘Tsoin Tsoin’

Region: Bourgueil < Loire Valley < France

Grapes: Cabernet Franc

Vineyard/Cellar Stats: Certified biodynamic farming (Demeter); 25 year old vines on sand, gravel and clay-limestone soils; 12-day carbonic maceration (entire bunches - unseeded) in tanks saturated with carbon dioxide; bottled unfined, with a slight filtration (vegan) and no-added sulfites (zero-zero); 11.5% ABV

Winemaker: Laurent Herlin

NEW VINTAGE ALERT!  Laurent Herlin was a computer engineer before buying 15 acres around Bourgueil and became an old-school farmer. For him, biodynamics is a way of life and his boss is Mother Nature, who tells him when to plant, harvest, and nourish his  grapes. She must’ve also told him to make a playful, glou glou Cabernet Franc. Because most Bourgueil Cab Franc is dense, tannic, and often green, but ‘Tsoin Tsoin’ is a light, fresh and vibrant carbonic version that is down to party.  It glows a bright magenta hue in the glass, and tastes like a strawberry/tart plum adult juice box, with crunchy leaves, winter spice and zippy acidity. A chill is mandatory here.