Sylvain Bailly Sancerre Chene Marchand 2020

Producers like Sonia Bailly and her tiny family domaine in the heart of Sancerre have been some of the hardest hit by the ongoing pandemic. They’re a fantastic little family-owned and operated boutique making must-have wines that earned her almost an exclusive U.S. deal with Keith McNally selling to Balthazar, one of the busiest restaurants in the entire world.

Last year, we helped lighten the load for the small winery, and unbeknownst to us, no good deed goes unpunished. Someone moved us all the way up the allocation list to be the first to offer her top vineyard in all of Sancerre, Chene Marchand bottling.

Sitting in the heart of Bue, on a slope facing South with very rocky soil representing the holy grail Sancerre combo of caillotes and a little clay, Chene Marchand Sancerre has the magical trio of sophistication, depth and mineral cut that nearly all neighbors in the region can’t come close to touching.