Domaine Balland Sancerre Blanc Grande Cuvée 2022

From the village of Bué, this wine hails from some of the finest terroir in the appellation.  Now in the hands of Jean-Paul's daughter Isabelle, the standards of this excellent estate remain as high as ever.

Having spent a day tasting 2020s and 21s earlier in March, I have switched away from the Dezat Sancerres, in favour of this wine from Balland  and the wines of Sylvain Bailly (see Sancerre Rosé).

Most white Sancerre should be enjoyed young and fresh; but a handful of growers believe that more complex, rich wines are possible. Jean-Paul Balland makes one of Sancerre's greatest whites. His regular wine is very good (I supply it in the summer months), but his ‘Grande Cuvée’ is superb. Two-thirds of it is aged for 15 months in large, 600-litre oak barrels. The rest stays in stainless steel tanks. The fruit is beautifully integrated and is of the ripe grapefruit sort and blends harmoniously with the slightly spicy flavours of the oak.