Arnaud Lambert, 2019 Saumur Rouge 'Clos Mazurique'
Cab Franc du Jour #25
Domaine Arnaud Lambert began as the merger of two estates: Arnaud’s father’s domaine, Saint-Just, established in Saint-Cyr-en-Bourg in Saumur-Champigny in 1996, and the vineyards of Château de Brézé in Saumur, for which the Lambert family signed a 25-year lease agreement in 2009.
The Clos Mazurique is Arnaud’s entry-level Cabernet Franc, sourced from a single walled vineyard of 3.7 hectares that is a monopole, meaning all of the vines belong to one owner, in this case Arnaud Lambert. The vineyard is located in the southern part of the Brézé commune, about 10km south of the Loire River within the Saumur AOP. The vines are around 40 years old and all certified organic, planted over a Turonian limestone bedrock with a mixed silt and clay topsoil.
Arnaud’s approach in the cellar is worth understanding, because it is central to how he works across all of his estates. He manages several walled vineyard sites in both Saumur and Saumur-Champigny, and he lets the soil of each site guide his decisions in the cellar. Some soils lend themselves to longer macerations and more extraction, while others call for a lighter touch. For the Clos Mazurique, the wine saw a relatively short maceration with no pump-overs, minimising extraction in order to keep the fruit juicy and pure with relatively soft tannins.
Wine Details
Producer: Arnaud Lambert
Appellation: Saumur Rouge
Commune: Brézé
Lieu-Dit: Clos Mazurique (monopole)
Soils: Turonian tuffeau chalk bedrock, sandy-clay topsoil
Alcohol: 13%