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Winemaker Jean-Max Roger
100% Sauvignon Blanc
“One of the greatest Sancerres I have ever tasted…” Robert Parker.
Cuvee GC is one of the most famous vineyards in Sancerre. The combination of this great site and the expertise of the JMR team has resulted in a fruity, intense wine that is full, complex and elegant. Ideal for seafood, Sancerre of this quality is also perfect for chicken, veal, trout & salmon as well as most cheeses, particularly goats cheese. Although the wine will age for up to 5 years it is advisable to enjoy this wine before it passes three years old.
Jean-Max Roger is one of the quiet men of Sancerre. His family have been vignerons in the Southern part of the Sancerre region since the 16th century and have created a distinguished portfolio of some astounding Loire wines that adhere to the classic style of the region. Today Jean-Max Roger wines enjoy an enviable reputation that they richly deserve.
The cellars and most of Jean-Max’s vineyards are to be found at Bué on the south western edge of the Sancerre appellation. Importantly many of the slopes face south and south west here, accounting for some of the richest and most complex of the Sancerre wines. Bué's local motto is "Des vins du Sancerrois, celui de Bué est roi" (of all the Sancerre wines, that of Bué is king). If Jean-Max Roger wines are to be seen as the ambassadors for Bué then it is clear that this is no empty boast.
Today Jean-Max Roger owns some 27 hectares of vines yet his Le Grand Chemarin site is just a 6 hectare plot; planted exclusively with Sauvignon Blanc grapes. Once harvested the grapes are pressed on arrival at the winery. Fermentation is in stainless steel vats at a controlled temperature of 15 to 17°C. This temperature promotes aromatic qualities but is warm enough to allow complex flavours to develop on the palate of the finished wine. To protect the freshness there is no malolactic fermentation and the wines are left on their flavour inducing yeasty lees until February or March following the harvest before being racked – this gives the wine a further dimension. A final racking will take place before filtration and bottling from the Spring after the harvest. No one trick pony Cuvee GC is a classic Sancerre and is not a wine that would ever be confused with a New Zealand or Chilean Sauvignon Blanc, no matter their quality.
Robert Parker rates Jean Max Roger as an "Excellent" producer. In The Wine Advocate Robert Parker described the "Cuvée G.C." as "One of the greatest Sancerres I have ever tasted, this spectacularly rich, full bodied, yet impeccably balanced fresh, honeyed style of Sancerre is dry, and crammed with smoky, herbaceous, melony flavours.” If two adjectives could be used to best describe Jean-Max Roger's specific style of Sancerre, they would be "full and rich". Coming from Bué, these are the classic characteristics. There is however an added dimension to Jean-Max's wines. Through the prime location of his vineyards he manages to make wines which have enormous elegance, depth and great charm. In our view these factors combine to put Jean Max Roger wines in a class of their own.