After founding Domaine de la Taille aux Loups in 1989 and bringing its wines to international acclaim, Loire master Jacky Blot acquired Domaine de la Butte in the appellation of Bourgueil in the summer of 2002. He seized upon the opportunity to make equally great reds by acquiring an ideal bloc of Cabernet Franc vines averaging 30 years of age entirely on one, south-facing slope bordered by protective forests in Bougueil. The entire slope has a bed of limestone rock and different top-soils and microclimates. The variations give rise to the four cuvees that Blot crafts at his Bourgeuil domaine. He aims to produce dramatic, intensely flavored and original red wines. Domaine de la Butte wines have already attracted international acclaim. Blot credits his experience with late harvest Chenin Blancs for giving him an understanding of the phenomenon of ripeness essential for making the finest Bougueils possible.

Blot employs the same exacting “lutte raisonee” vineyard practices as for his white grapes in Montlouis and Vouvray. All the rows are plowed and no chemicals are used to encourage the roots to penetrate deep into the subsoil. Yields are kept low by removing buds at the beginning of the growing season and green harvesting in August. Leaves are removed in order to increase exposure to the sun, ensure aeration of the vines, and facilitate hand harvesting. All grapes are hand selected and picked at optimal maturity and then placed in small boxes for transport to the winery, where they are further sorted on a table de tri. The fruit is destemmed and descended by gravity into wooden and concrete fermentation tanks.

Le Pied de la Butte comes from a clay-limestone soil located at the bottom (foot, pied) of the slope. It is aged in a combination of tanks and large wooden foudres for eight months. The wine offers generous, savory black cherry and cranberry fruit with a soft texture. It is vinified to be enjoyed upon release. The Mi-Pente bottling is the most concentrated cuvee, as it comes from the oldest vines: they are 50 years old. The wine is give a one-month long maceration period, and is then aged entirely in barriques, which are one-third each new, one year and two years old. This is one of greatest Cabernet Francs made in the Loire valley. The Haut de la Butte cuvee comes from the perfectly exposed upper slope on a unique clay and silex top-soil over a bed of limestone. The fruit here is bright, pure and very expressive, offering deep and complex flavors of black berry/cherry fruit and minerals.