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Biodynamic. First made in 2008, this rare, own-rooted wine comes from two tiny parcels of Cabernet Franc planted in sandy plots close to the river. These sites were established using 2,000 mass-selection cuttings from Bernard Baudry’s Franc de Pied vines. The vines are single stake (échalas style) and planted to a density of 10,000 vines per hectare. The deep sandy soils are worked by horse. All this results in the domaine’s lowest yields—although Germain notes that these vines deliver his lowest-alcohol red.
Raised for 12 months in older 12-hectolitre casks, this cuvée is the only Germain red fermented with bunches (30% this year), which helps deliver an entirely different texture and tannin profile from the other wines. It’s never easy to calculate the impact of the ungrafted vines versus the terroir and vintage, but Franc de Pied is Germain’s most ethereal wine in 2023. Seductive and vivid, like putting your nose to a glass full of rose petals, it shines with layers of pure, lifted black raspberry shrouded in fine, velour-soft tannins alongside the moreish savoury/woodland undertow familiar to those who know this wine. Magic, as the grower himself is fond of saying. Decant, serve in a Burgundy glass and enjoy the ride.