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2021 Cassis Blanc
Clos Sainte MagdeleineJonathan Sack, vigneron at Clos Sainte Magdeleine, is currently serving his second term as president of the Cassis AOC. Since his election, he has made sustainability a priority, spearheading a move toward organic farming that has resulted in nine of the appellation’s ten domaines being certified organic today.
Its vineyards clinging to coastal bluffs in the heart of the Parc National des Calanques, Cassis holds the unique distinction of being France’s sole appellation situated within a national park. Jonathan’s gently aromatic 2021 blanc illustrates the area’s natural beauty in pristine detail: terraced limestone slopes cascading down toward azure waters; delicate scents of wild herbs and yellow flowers unlocked by the Provençal sun; a salty marine breeze refreshing a balmy fall afternoon on the Mediterranean.
—Anthony Lynch
Wine Type: | white |
Vintage: | 2021 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | 40% Marsanne, 30% Ugni blanc, 25% Clairette, 5% Bourboulenc |
Appellation: | Cassis |
Country: | France |
Region: | Provence |
Producer: | Clos Sainte Magdeleine |
Winemaker: | Jonathan Sack |
Vineyard: | Planted in 1972-2009 (40 years average), 9 ha |
Soil: | Clay, Limestone |
Aging: | Aged in stainless steel tanks and two 500-L demi-muids on fine lees until spring or early summer bottling |
Farming: | Organic (certified) |
Alcohol: | 13% |
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About The Producer
Clos Sainte Magdeleine
About The Region
Provence
Perhaps there is no region more closely aligned with the history to Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant than Provence. Provence is where Richard Olney, an American ex-pat and friend of Alice Waters, lived, and introduced Kermit to the great producers of Provence, most importantly Domaine Tempier of Bandol. Kermit also spends upwards of half his year at his home in a small town just outside of Bandol.
Vitis vinifera first arrived in France via Provence, landing in the modern day port city of Marseille in the 6th century BC. The influence of terroir on Provençal wines goes well beyond soil types. The herbs from the pervasive scrubland, often referred to as garrigue, as well as the mistral—a cold, drying wind from the northwest that helps keep the vines free of disease—play a significant role in the final quality of the grapes. Two more elements—the seemingly ever-present sun and cooling saline breezes from the Mediterranean—lend their hand in creating a long growing season that result in grapes that are ripe but with good acidity.
Rosé is arguably the most well known type of wine from Provence, but the red wines, particularly from Bandol, possess a great depth of character and ability to age. The white wines of Cassis and Bandol offer complexity and ideal pairings for the sea-influenced cuisine. Mourvèdre reigns king for red grapes, and similar to the Languedoc and Rhône, Grenache, Cinsault, Marsanne, Clairette, Rolle, Ugni Blanc among many other grape varieties are planted.
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Where the newsletter started
Where the newsletter started
Every three or four months I would send my clients a cheaply made list of my inventory, but it began to dawn on me that business did not pick up afterwards. It occurred to me that my clientele might not know what Château Grillet is, either. One month in 1974 I had an especially esoteric collection of wines arriving, so I decided to put a short explanation about each wine into my price list, to try and let my clients know what to expect when they uncorked a bottle. The day after I mailed that brochure, people showed up at the shop, and that is how these little propaganda pieces for fine wine were born.—Kermit Lynch