Jean-Max Roger Sancerre

At a Majestic tasting in Leicester in August 2019 we tried Jean-Max Roger's Sancerre Cuvée Genèse and although nice for me it had something missing. As you know I love Sancerre wine but had I been given this blind I would not have said it was from this appellation. Feeling the need to cleanse/change my palate I nibbled on the selection of cheeses offered ..... and yes it worked. Still a light Sancerre the flavours of gooseberries and citrus appeared. A good amount of acidity with now more length on its finish, but it left me a little disappointed.

In September 2019 we visited Sancerre  (a dream trip) and as Jean-Max Roger is in Bué, just outside Sancerre village but still within the appellation, we drove over and met Jean-Max's son. They were busy bottling 2018 vintage in order to make room in the vats for this year's wine with the grapes being harvested in the next week. I find it fascinating to see the articulated lorries at the domaines, turning into a mini bottling plant with the distinctive sound of bottles chinking along the conveyor belts.

We were warmly welcomed, especially when we said we had tried their wine at Majestic, although I did not mention my disappointment. We tasted four wines from their range of both soil varities and vintages. As soon as I tasted the second wine I knew it was the one we'd had at Majestic Leicester, confirmed by checking my photos online!

Last night we enjoyed a bottle of their Cuvée Les Caillottes that we had purchased when visiting the domaine two years ago. It's a beautiful elegant Sancerre, full of minerality with fresh citrus. This is my style of Sancerre and I really enjoyed it, many memories of our holiday.

This, and our trip, highlights for me two things: the vast different in any appellation, even by the same winemaker, and how much is discovered by visiting vineyards and domaines, something I hope we can be doing again soon.