2016 Tonton Rouge

Vincent Wallard is wild, chaotic and at the same time deeply charming – just like his wines! He spent a number of years in Argentina and Chile as a winemaker, but it can be a challenge to be a Frenchman in South America who wants to make natural wine when the local winegrowers think you have a screw loose, harvest far too early, make wine that is too thin and also uses too little sulphur.

In 2015, he returned home to Loire, where he began making wine from purchased grapes, according to his own principles and with impressive results. It is as low-tech and unmanipulated as anything can get. Cultured yeast, sulphur, fining, filtration and new casks are complete no-gos. His Cabernet Franc is both deeply serious and extremely mouth-watering. His Chenin Blanc takes notoriously long to finish fermenting, which would make any classically trained oenologist sleepless at night. But Vincent allows himself the time and is not afraid to wait four to five years to release a wine, if that is what it takes for the balance to emerge. And when his wines are finally ready, it is in all sincerity one of the most vibrant, energetic, juicy and joy-provoking wines that we have in our portfolio.

In 2020, Vincent bought a new cellar in Berrie (Anjou), on the same road as François Saint-Lô, where Vincent Wallard now produces his wines.