At A Glance
- Field
- Detail
- Base
- Sury-en-Vaux
- Appellation
- Sancerre
- Main grapes
- Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir
- Wine style
- White Sancerre
- Named bottles
- Les Denisottes, Les Chailloux, Monoparcelle 538
The Producer
Domaine Claude Riffault farms 15.3 hectares, with 13 hectares of Sauvignon Blanc and 2.3 hectares of Pinot Noir. The domaine is based in Sury-en-Vaux and works within the Sancerre appellation, with white wines named for individual cuvées and parcels.
The planting gives Sauvignon Blanc the larger share, while Pinot Noir remains part of the domaine's vineyard composition. The range includes Les Denisottes, Les Chailloux, Les Boucauds, Monoparcelle 538, Monoparcelle 469 and Mosaïque Calcaire.
Place
Domaine Claude Riffault is a Loire family operation in Sury-en-Vaux, with Sancerre as the appellation carried by its wines. An appellation is a regulated place name that connects the bottle to a defined origin. Here, that name sits beside cuvée names such as Les Denisottes and Les Chailloux, and parcel names such as Monoparcelle 538 and Monoparcelle 469.
The place remains constant across the range while the labels narrow the focus through different bottle names. Monoparcelle is a French term for a wine from one parcel, so the number becomes part of the label's information.
Wines
The range consists of white Sancerre wines. It includes Domaine Claude Riffault Sancerre Denisottes, Domaine Claude Riffault Sancerre Les Chailloux, Sancerre Les Boucauds Domaine Claude Riffault, Sancerre Monoparcelle 538 Domaine Claude Riffault, Sancerre Monoparcelle 469 Domaine Claude Riffault and Sancerre Mosaïque Calcaire Domaine Claude Riffault.
Les Denisottes has a striking, zesty nose with grapefruit, lime, cassis and salty iodine notes. Les Chailloux reveals wet flint, juicy lemon and orchard fruit aromas. The two wines give the range different aromatic signatures within the same Sancerre appellation.
Final Word
Domaine Claude Riffault joins Sury-en-Vaux vineyard holdings to a Sancerre range whose labels move from named cuvées to numbered Monoparcelles.