Domaine Didier Dagueneau Vin de France Pur Sang 2019

“What I love most about the 2019 Pur Sang is its focus and precision; the compact, light bodied core carries masses of fragrance across the palate and beyond on the long finish. There’s clarity and freshness, with a thread of acidity and minerality pulling the wine through like a needle and thread. It is starting to show the very first hints of time in bottle with a hint of almond alongside the ripe melon notes and nettle tea character.” 96 points, Rebecca Gibb MW, Vinous

Pur sang is French for ‘thoroughbred’. The label evolved from Didier Dagueneau’s frustration at how often wine writers were referencing the fact that he used a horse to till some of the vineyards. The first iteration of the label was a photographic representation of a horsehide rug!

This is rightly considered one of Dagueneau’s superstars—although, in truth, all his wines are superstars of the appellation. It comes from a densely planted, 30-year-old vineyard in Saint-Laurent-l’Abbaye called La Folie (the madness). It’s hidden between two parcels of woodland about five kilometres north of Saint-Andelain. The vineyard is named for the local farmers, who thought Didier Dagueneau was mad when he purchased the land. It was not a vineyard at the time and was full of huge boulders.

It turns out that Didier had done his homework; La Folie was a historical Pouilly vineyard with very interesting soil—a vein of pure flint and silica-rich clay sometimes called chaille roulées—and its gently sloping, south/south-east exposure made it potentially one of Pouilly’s finest plots.