Manoir de la Bellonnière, 2020 Chinon ‘Les Battereaux’
Cab Franc du Jour #110
The Moreau family have been farming vines in the commune of Cravant-les-Côteaux for three generations. The story begins with Yves Moreau, who established his polyculture estate in 1976 with just a handful of vines. His nephew Patrice joined him in 1982, and a further 10 hectares were added in 1992. Since 2008, Patrice’s son Alexandre has been part of the estate, and his arrival marked an important turning point: it is with Alexandre that the family began producing and bottling their own wine rather than selling their grapes exclusively to other producers. The family today farms around 27 hectares in Cravant-les-Côteaux, always without chemical treatments, and since 2022 they have begun the process toward organic certification.
Today’s wine is one of the family’s two cuvées parcellaires from Cabernet Franc, sourced from the lieu-dit Les Battereaux, which is home to some of the domaine’s oldest vines, planted in 1929.
The Alluvial Terrace in Cravant-les-Côteaux
Cravant-les-Côteaux is the largest producing commune in the Chinon appellation, accounting for around 50% of total production, and much of that volume is driven by the large alluvial terrace that dominates the commune. East of the Chinon village, this terrace runs along the north side of the Vienne River across the communes of Chinon, Cravant-les-Côteaux, and Panzoult, stretching about 9km from west to east, with roughly two-thirds of the total area falling within Cravant-les-Côteaux. The vineyard area begins very close to the Vienne and extends roughly 1.5 to 1.75km inland toward the slopes.
Proximity to the Vienne River and the many tributaries that weave across the terrace means water access is generally reliable, and these vineyards naturally tend toward slightly higher yields. The terrace is essentially flat, sitting at a low elevation of around 30 to 38m above sea level, which makes it easier to work and allows for uninterrupted sunshine throughout the day, both of which support consistent ripening.
The alluvial soils here are more complex than they might first appear. The Chinon appellation has identified three broad categories of alluvial soils across the terrace: the recent alluvium of the very low terraces, the recent and ancient alluvium of the low terraces, and the ancient alluvium of the middle and upper terraces. In broad terms, the soils are predominantly sandy to sandy-silty, with the occasional pocket of higher clay content, sitting over a Lower Turonian tuffeau bedrock. Subsoil textures, found at depths of roughly 70 to 120cm, vary considerably from site to site, ranging from sandy or clayey-sand to gravelly depending on location. The light texture and good water availability on this terrace tend to favour lighter, softer, early-drinking styles of Cabernet Franc, though there are always exceptions.
Les Battereaux
Les Battereaux is a sizeable lieu-dit of about 67 hectares, with around a dozen vignerons holding parcels here. It is located in the eastern part of Cravant-les-Côteaux, set back about 1km from the Vienne River. At its northern end, a canal and treeline mark the boundary between the lower alluvial terrace and the base of the slopes above.
The Moreau family holds 3.5 hectares in Les Battereaux, from which Alexandre makes a specific selection of about 3 hectares for this cuvée. The soils in their parcels carry a little more clay and silt in the topsoil than is typical for the terrace, along with a moderate amount of gravel, with about 60cm of topsoil before a shallow, predominantly gravelly subsoil. Vine ages range from 50 years for the youngest to over 90 years for the oldest. The combination of old vines and the nature of the soils keeps yields naturally low, at around 30 hl/ha.
In the Cellar
The fruit is hand-harvested and hand-sorted. Fermentation is whole berry with indigenous yeast in unlined concrete tanks, with the temperature kept below 26C. Alexandre takes a notably gentle approach to maceration, with no pump-overs at all. Instead, the tank is filled completely so that 100% of the juice remains in contact with the berries at all times, which prevents the cap from drying out and eliminates the need for any intervention. Total skin contact is approximately 12 days. After vatting, the free-run and press wines are reassembled, and the wine ages in concrete tank for approximately one year before bottling.
Wine Details
Producer: Manoir de la Bellonnière (Patrice and Alexandre Moreau)
Appellation: Chinon
Commune: Cravant-les-Côteaux
Lieux-Dits: Les Battereaux
Soils: Gravelly, silty-clay to clay topsoil, with a gravel subsoil of 60cm, over the Lower Turonian tuffeau chalk bedrock
Alcohol: 13.0%