Description
Stéphane Riffault is the 4th generation to run this famous estate, located in the village of Sury-en-Vaux, northeast of Sancerre. The estate encompasses 13.5 hectares, meticulously divided into 33 parcels across eight different lieux-dits. Committed to sustainable viticulture, the domaine has been certified organic by ECOCERT and biodynamic by Biodyvin since 2017.
Stéphane trained in Beaune and worked at Domaine Olivier Leflaive before returning home. Drawing on his Burgundian influences, along with advice from his brother Benoit winemaker at Domaine Etienne Sauzet in Puligny-Montrachet, Stéphane has added large oak cuves to the collection of stainless-steel vats at the Domaine and increased the time the wine spends on its lees. The results have been stunning.
Les Chailloux, is the local name for flint soils, a rarity in Sancerre. This comes from two small plots of just 0.6 hectares facing south-west at an altitude of 250 metres, The vines there are about 50 years old giving power, complexity and intensity the flinty soils give great freshness and salinity the whole is very impressive. The wines are fermented in concrete tanks with natural yeasts and aged about 14 months in a range of neutral oak cuves.
