This visit with Agnès and René Mosse took place in January, 2015.

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Agnès et René Mosse Visits This visit with Agnès and René Mosse took place in January, 2015.

1 Agnès et René Mosse Visits This visit with Agnès and René Mosse took place in January, Words by Jules Dressner, photos by Noah Oldham, David Sink, Patrick Capiello, Hadley Foss and Josefa Concannon. Upon arrival to Mosse headquarters, we kind of freaked out these two journalists who were there to write a piece about the estate.

2 After a big hello with Agnès and René, their son Joseph took us out to the vineyards.

When we told him that my car had gotten obsessed with "Fresh Prince" by Soprano (click that hyperlink if you're a fan of the Will Smith sitcom.

3 Joseph is the young man on the left of the picture above. He's 25, had just returned from working with Louis-Antoine Luyt for a year, is obsessed with sneakers and is poised to take over when his parents retire. When we told him that my car had gotten obsessed with "Fresh Prince" by Soprano (click that hyperlink if you're a fan of the Will Smith sitcom. Totally worth it), he told us that that song was terrible commercial rap and played us something really good that I forgot. Though it was reminiscent to one of my favorite french rap songs of all time, "La Rue Cause" by Karlito (RIP DJ Medhi). The Mosse family doesn't have any dogs, so here is a picture of one of their chickens.

4 The first vineyard we visited was a parcel of 10 year old vines that contributes to the production of the base Anjou Blanc.

Joseph explained that the majority of the region is defined by clay topsoil with schist subsoils, with the amount of topsoil schist composition (chunks, pebbles, sand) varying on where you are on the

5 Joseph explained that the majority of the region is defined by clay topsoil with schist subsoils, with the amount of topsoil schist composition (chunks, pebbles, sand) varying on where you are on the hillsides. There are lots of grains grown in the area as well as a fair amount of cattle raising. For the young vines, they do a very short pruning in order to limit yields from the get go. This helps to avoid having to green harvest later in the year. All of the Mosse's vineyards are located in the Coteaux-du-Layon, an area defined by the abundant hillsides that curve and bend alongside the Layon river. The hills help induce humidity in the morning but also make for very warm afternoons; this helps botrytis thrive, which explains why the

6 area has historically produces sweet wines from noble rot. From the young parcel, we drove to Le Rouchefer, a parcel that sees its own cuvée.

8 Le Rouchefer is a 1.6 hectare parcel of 40 year old Chenin Blanc grown on iron heavy clay and gravel on schist, with pebbles and quartz at bottom. As you can see from the photo below, large chunks of schist are easily found on the top-soil.

9 Directly across the road from the Le Rouchefer, one finds the lovely Marie Besnard vineyard.

10 These crazy vines are over 100 years old!!!

Also, for reasons unknown to Joseph, the vineyard is named after Marie Besnard, a local woman accused of poisoning 12

12 René briefly made a Marie Besnard cuvée, but the vines have become so low yielding that he now blends them with Le Rouchefer. Also, for reasons unknown to Joseph, the vineyard is named after Marie Besnard, a local woman accused of poisoning 12 people from 1927 to If you're curious about her, you can get an in-depth bio on her murderpedia page. The final vineyard we visited was Les Bonnes Blanches, from an area widely considered to be the best terroir in the Layon.

As you can see, this was the only vineyard the Mosse hadn't yet pruned. The reasons why this is considered the best is two-fold: first is its geologically ideal proximity to the Layon.

14 As you can see, this was the only vineyard the Mosse hadn't yet pruned. The reasons why this is considered the best is two-fold: first is its geologically ideal proximity to the Layon. This is one of the rare vineyards that can produce an excellent Coteaux-du-Layon every year, but the Mosse intentionally harvest earlier to produce dry whites. The second is that the soils are composed of shallow decomposing schist and quartz on schist rock, so the roots of the vineyards' 40 year old vines can get exceptionally deep, providing an unparalleled amount of minerality in the wine.

After a solid vineyard tour, we got to taste all the 2014 barrel samples as well as some yet to be released 2013's (many of which have now hit the market).

15 After a solid vineyard tour, we got to taste all the 2014 barrel samples as well as some yet to be released 2013's (many of which have now hit the market). Everything is smack dab delicious, including a CURVEBALL TWIST with the 2014 Magic of Juju, which is now 90% Melon de Bourgogne (WAAAAA????)!!! More importantly, we ate the ultimate casse-croute lunch thanks to this butcher:

16 In that pot were some fantastic rillettes. But the ham, rillons, cheese and butter were nothing to scoff at!

18 So simple. So hearty. So good. After lunch, we checked out the cellar.

The entirety of the Mosse production ferments and ages in old oak barrels, often for a really long time. Malo is a prerequisite on the whites, and often happens on the reds as well.

20 The entirety of the Mosse production ferments and ages in old oak barrels, often for a really long time. Malo is a prerequisite on the whites, and often happens on the reds as well. The extended lees contact on the whites gives it a weight and unctuousness that take the wines to the next level. Also, René leaves a radio on 24/7/365 so that the barrels can listen to music at all times. As we set up to say goodbye, the whole thing got very hug-centric:

Fernand Girard Sancerre la Garenne from Fernand Girard.

Fernand Girard Sancerre la Garenne from Fernand Girard. Alain Girard. Photo by Noah Oldham. Profile The Domaine Girard is run by parents, Fernand and Monique, and son, Alain. They come from several generations