L'Union des Gens de Métiers unveils their latest vintages!

Report from the Union des Gens de Métier (UGM) salon in Paris on Monday, 11 June 2018

The UGM Salon brings together talented men and women working in harmony with their environment and their land. It was under the impetus of Didier Dagueneau, in 1990, that these artists of the vine gather each year to share their precision. Driven by the same passion, our Vins & Millésimes experts set out to discover the latest vintages from these devoted terroir enthusiasts. Champagne Selosse - Anselme Selosse Back at the family estate since 1974, Anselme will be harvesting his 45th vintage this year. He proudly champions the uniqueness of each harvest and offers Champagne lovers the precision of his terroir through his 14 cuvées, sourced from 8.5ha, primarily in the commune of Avize, the cradle of the Côte des Blancs.

• V.O. - by Anselme Selosse, delivers its sharpness and its characteristic precision over a phenomenal length.
• Substance - by Anselme Selosse, explodes on the palate with the complexity of a Champagne that has lived, yet retains all the freshness of its very first day,
• Lieu-dit Sous le Mont, Mareuil-sur-Ay - by Anselme Selosse, a 100% Pinot Noir, which is uncommon at the estate, combining vinosity and the power of a Grand Cru terroir. A lesson in patience is required for this great Champagne.

Domaine Didier Dagueneau - Louis-Benjamin Dagueneau With 11ha at the heart of the Pouilly Fumé appellation (plus 1ha of Sancerre in the Côte des Monts Damnés in Chavignol), Louis-Benjamin and his sister Charlotte are convinced that the difference lies in the details, just as their father before them. Purity and respect are their guiding principles: as much work by hand as possible, minimal intervention, with particular attention paid to the vine in order to harvest the finest grapes and produce elegant, deep, and authentic wines.

• Blanc Fumé de Pouilly 2015 - by Louis Benjamin Dagueneau 
• Silex 2015 - by Louis Benjamin Dagueneau 
• Astéroïde 2016 - by Louis Benjamin Dagueneau, a cuvée so confidential (and financially untouchable...) that it was served only to a select few... A UFO... of unusual concentration that will require a great deal of aging.
• Les Jardins de Babylone - by Louis Benjamin Dagueneau, a delight of balance and vibrant fruit.

Domaine Roulot - Jean Marc Roulot Located primarily in the commune of Meursault, Guy Roulot was one of the first winemakers to vinify his Meursault village wines separately in the 1960s, paving the way for defining the diversity of Burgundian soils and their most authentic expression. Winemaker at the family estate since 1989, Jean-Marc follows in his father Guy's footsteps by developing a biological, then biodynamic approach in the 2000s. The estate's 2016s are in line with the emerging profile of the vintage: a marked acidity, sometimes slightly austere, requiring a great deal of patience. An analogy can be drawn with the 2007 vintage, with the hope that the Meursault 2016s from Domaine Roulot will find the same destiny.

• Meursault 1er Cru Clos des Bouchères 2016 - by Jean Marc Roulot
• Meursault A Mon Plaisir Clos du Haut Tesson 2016 - by Jean Marc Roulot

Clos Rougeard - Nady Foucault An international phenomenon still little known twenty years ago, Clos Rougeard has become the darling of the Loire Valley with its superb Cabernet Francs. Following the acquisition of Clos Rougeard by Martin Bouygues in 2015, Nady Foucault remains in charge of the coming vintages and continues to work as the eight generations before him did: with the support of time. The 10ha of the Clos produce 40,000 bottles in the finest high-yield years, with impeccable clusters harvested at perfect ripeness and aged for twenty-four months, followed by two years of cellaring.

• Clos Rougeard Saumur Champigny 2013 - by Nady Foucault, delivers remarkable fluidity and superb fruit. A low-yield vintage (almost no Poyeux or Brézé, 30 to 50% less across the other cuvées...) that will offer a great deal of immediate pleasure. The wine will soon leave the estate's cellars.
• Clos Rougeard Saumur Champigny Les Poyeux 2014 - by Nady Foucault, after a few swirls of the glass to let a slightly reduced wine breathe, this Poyeux shows a somewhat harder profile, different from what one is used to tasting in this cuvée. Worth waiting a while.
• Clos Rougeard Saumur Champigny Les Poyeux 2015 - by Nady Foucault, wine drawn straight from the barrel for the occasion, with perfect ripeness, supple tannins, and perfect balance. Magnificent!
• Clos Rougeard Saumur Champigny Le Bourg 2015 - by Nady Foucault, the Poyeux version plus! Superb ripeness and concentration. Numerous tannins, well-ripened and superbly integrated. A high-flying élevage. A very great Bourg... for 20 years from now...

Jacques Puffeney After 52 vintages and at the age of 70, Jacques Puffeney leases half of his estate to the Marquis d'Angerville and keeps the rest for his nephew and himself. It is with these emblematic plots on the marly terroirs of Montigny-les-Arsures and Arbois, among others, that the Marquis d'Angerville created the Domaine du Pélican, a domaine well worth discovering.

• Vin Jaune 2011 - by Jacques Puffeney

Because indulgence has never been a real fault, we took the opportunity to meet artisans of gastronomy who certainly did not leave us wanting... Alex Croquet: "I love bread rich in flavour, in crust, in creamy crumb with anarchic holes, revealing the generosity of wheat ripened in the sun."