Pierre Ménard, 2018 Anjou Rouge “Orion Alpha”
Cab Franc du Jour #160
Pierre Ménard comes from a family of vignerons from around the hamlet of Valette in Faye d’Anjou. Following his viticultural studies in Angers, he did vintages in Bordeaux, Porto, New Zealand, the Niagara Peninsula, and Hungary before returning home to establish his own domaine with some of his family’s parcels, with a first vintage in 2013. Today, Pierre farms around four hectares in Faye d’Anjou, mostly planted with Chenin Blanc alongside a tiny parcel of Sauvignon Blanc and just under half a hectare of Cabernet Franc, which is the source of his Anjou Rouge, Orion Alpha.
Cabernet Franc in Western Anjou
Western Anjou is fundamentally Chenin Blanc country. While Cabernet Franc remains the most planted variety in the broader Anjou-Saumur region, representing around 40% of vineyard area, once you move roughly 30km west of Saumur into the heart of Anjou, the majority of Cabernet Franc is used for rosé production, and white wines reign supreme thanks to the history and prestige of the sweet wine appellations of Coteaux du Layon, Bonnezeaux, and the grand cru Quarts de Chaume. Despite this shift, many domaines still produce at least one or two examples of Anjou Rouge, typically based on Cabernet Franc, and these wines are fascinating precisely because they present so differently from those of Saumur-Champigny, Chinon, Bourgueil, and St-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil.
The Terroir of Western Anjou
Around the village of Thouarcé, the ancient rocks of the Massif Armoricain take over from the limestone-based soils of the Paris Basin. Collectively known as Anjou Noir, these soils are a complex mix of schists, slates, and sandstones: dark, dense, brittle rocks with poor water-holding capacity compared to the limestone terroirs further east. The region also sits in the rain shadow of the Haut-Bocage Vendée, the remnant of an ancient mountain range once as high as the Alps, now worn down to just a few hundred metres, but still enough to deflect Atlantic precipitation. Western Anjou receives only about 600 to 700mm of rainfall annually, making it one of the driest parts of the Loire.
For Cabernet Franc, this combination of free-draining schist soils and limited rainfall creates a real risk of hydric stress. That stress cause an imbalance in the vine, contributing to excessive pyrazines and amplifying the variety’s inherent rusticity, producing wines with harder, more austere tannins. Vintage variation also tends to be more pronounced in this part of Anjou than elsewhere. Site selection is therefore critical, and truly suitable sites for exceptional Cabernet Franc are few and far between in Western Anjou. But on the right sites, in exceptional vintages, these wines can be genuinely compelling, with impressive structure, density, power, and complexity.
Faye d’Anjou Commune
The Orion Alpha comes from parcels in the commune of Faye d’Anjou, historically regarded as one of the top communes of the Coteaux du Layon appellation. The commune sits on the north side, or right bank, of the Layon River, just west of Thouarcé. Its viticultural area stretches from the banks of the Layon inland toward the Forêts de Beaulieu and de Brissac in the northwest and northeast. The topography is quite undulating, with very steep slopes of varying exposures hugging the Layon, becoming progressively flatter as you move north toward the forests. The warmest sites follow the prime slopes closest to the river, with conditions cooling steadily as you move inland.
The dominant soils on the north side of the Layon are the St-Georges series of schists, with pockets of sandstone and soils of volcanic origin, including rhyolite and spilite, concentrated in the western part of the commune. Topsoils vary in texture and depth across the commune but are broadly silt-dominated, with 40 to 60% silt content, and occasional pockets of sandy or more clayey soils. Along the prime slopes close to the Layon, topsoils tend to be shallower with a stronger influence from the bedrock, while further inland they deepen and the subsoil is increasingly dominated by clay.
The Vineyard
The Orion Alpha is sourced from 0.38 hectares across two lieux-dits, Vallet and Clos des Mailles, both in the southeastern part of Faye d’Anjou. Vallet is positioned a little further inland, while Clos des Mailles hugs the prime slopes closer to the Layon.
The Vallet parcel covers 0.22 hectares, planted in 2008, and sits mid to upper slope on an east-facing exposure. The topsoil is shallow and clayey in texture with quartz mixed in, over a bedrock of sandstone and schist beginning around 50cm below the surface. The Clos des Mailles parcel is 0.16 hectares, with vines planted in the 1950s, located just below Pierre’s Chenin vines in the upper part of the lieu-dit on a more northwest-facing exposure high on the slope. Here too the topsoil is quite shallow, with a silty-sandy clay texture over a bedrock of green to ochre sandstone-schists.
Pierre feels these two parcels are exceptionally well suited to Cabernet Franc for distinct reasons. The higher clay content at Vallet helps with moisture regulation, meaning those vines rarely suffer from hydric stress. Clos des Mailles, by contrast, sits in a slightly warmer, earlier-ripening area that has historically proven good for red varieties. In warmer vintages like 2018, the Vallet parcel contributes power and breadth, while Clos des Mailles brings aromatics and a floral lift: two complementary profiles that together bring balance to the wine.
In the Cellar
The fruit is hand-harvested, hand-sorted, and hand-destemmed, then fermented as whole berries using a natural pied de cuve starter in wide, 10hl stainless steel tanks. Pierre’s choice of a wide rather than tall vessel is deliberate: the large surface area means the grape skins are in extensive contact with the fermenting wine, reducing the need for extractive intervention. A little punching down at the start of fermentation helps release some juice, after which the wine is left largely untouched for the remainder. Total skin contact is approximately three weeks. Following the post-fermentation maceration, the free-run and press wines are combined, with approximately three-quarters aged in older barrels and the remainder in stainless steel, for around nine months before bottling.
In the Glass
I first presented the 2018 Anjou Rouge “Orion Alpha” in Cab Franc du Jour #31 in spring of 2021. With five additional years in the bottle, this wine has evolved beautifully. Brooding and deeply compelling on the nose, with a dark-fruited, sultry character with notes of blueberry compote, black raspberry, cassis, and a touch of plum form the fruit core, while a more pronounced evergreen and foresty earthiness has emerged (cedar leaf, spruce, fir) alongside menthol-flecked herbals of mint, rosemary, purple basil. The spice profile is exotic and layered (cardamom, coriander seed, cinnamon stick). Subtle dried florals add quiet complexity. This wine has shed its early fruit-forward exuberance and assumed a far more integrated, compelling identity.
The palate echoes the nose, with earthiness pushing forward confidently. Tertiary layers have developed beautifully, like nutmeg, allspice, cigar box, ash, and a dark chocolate note that combines with cinnamon and chili flake creating a profile almost Mexican hot chocolate. The acidity is shows the typicity of Cabernet Franc from schistous soils, that is to say low-toned, subtle, and persistent, creeping in quietly toward the finish rather than announcing itself at the front of the palate. Tannins, once pronounced, have softened and integrated beautifully evolving into a velvety, creamy, enveloping texture. The wine is broad, round, and full through the mid-palate, with exceptional finesse, length and a resolute, firm finish. Grandeur with grace, flesh and focus, deeply satisfying, the Orion Alpha is consistently one of the top expressions of Cabernet Franc from the Western part of Anjou.
How this wine has evolved confirms what I’ve noticed in my tastings of other Cabernet Francs from Western Anjou and these Anjou Noir soils. When they’re young, the wines tend to present with a lot of flesh and a lot of fruit, which is really enjoyable, but then over time, the wines lose that baby fat, and Cabernet Franc’s varietal character, energy and personality really starts to shine, and this varietal identity comes through in tandem with a sense of place and a more precise terroir signature.
Wine Details
Producer: Domaine Pierre Ménard
Appellation: Anjou Rouge
Commune: Faye d’Anjou
Lieux-Dits: Vallet, Clos des Mailles
Soils: 50cm clayey with quarts over schistous sandstone; silty-sand over ochre to green sandstone-schists
Alcohol: 14.1%