Merlin-Cherrier

Bué, Sancerre, Loire Valley, France

Thierry and Sophie Merlin-Cherrier own 13 hectares of prime location Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir in the village of Bué, one of the principle hamlets surrounding the old walled town of Sancerre. The soils here, caillottes and terres blanches (or Kimmeridgian Marl), deliver pointedly fruity, rich, and long-lived wines. In addition, Thierry has just under a hectare of vines in the great vineyard of le Chêne Marchand, purchased in 1999.  Chêne Marchand is one of the crown jewel vineyards of Sancerre and is the appellation’s outstanding example of Caillottes terroir. If ever Sancerre were to classify its vineyards, Chêne would be a certain candidate for grand cru status. The vineyard grows on the western plateau above Bué where Thierry has two parcels, totaling only 0.84 hectare.

Thierry, a fourth-generation winemaker who made his first vintage in 1982, maintains age-old traditional practices; plowing and hoeing are standard here, as is careful pruning. The vineyards are lutte raisonée. 

Our Selections

Merlin-Cherrier Sancerre Blanc 2022

Merlin-Cherrier’s 2022 Sancerre reflects Bué’s chalky terroir beautifully with a seemingly paradoxical profile of “generous precision” or “concentrated elegance.” This is a blend of 28 micro parcels from around the village of Bué totaling about 11 hectares. The wine is a combination of the ‘terres blanches' (clay-limestone white soils) and 'caillottes' (limestone and very stony soils) soil types.