François
Roussier, Clos de Coulaine (1812)
François Roussier with Roy
Richards, September 2002
The
property has been in the ownership of the Roussier family since 1812 and
takes its name from Jean de Coulaine who first grew vines here in the 14th
century. One of six brothers, François Roussier’s great grandfather
first established Breton (Cabernet Franc) in the region from cuttings he
had bought back from a visit to Bourgueil, which partly explains why over
half the vineyard at Coulaine is planted to the variety. Successive
generations have all been responsible for replenishing the vineyards,
ensuring a higher than average vine age. The last significant plantings of
Cabernet Franc were in 1942. However, François was to be the
last Roussier to make wine at Coulaine, retiring after the 1991 harvest.
Since then, the vines have been leased to Claude Papin with the grapes
being trucked across the
Wine
Overview:
The
wines here were all raised in an old earth covered ground floor cellar.
Both white and red wines would spend a year in barrel before vacating for
the successive vintage. Roussier employed a full time chef
de cave, a local man, Lucien Rousseau, clearly a diligent worker
judging by the old hand drawn chart that hangs in the cellar which
documents the rainfall of every vintage in Savennières between 1950 and
1999.
The
Wines:
1991
Clos de Coulaine
The
last vintage produced in the Coulaine cellar before Roussier retired.
Bright. Pale bronze. Very delicate nose with faint toffee apples and
pears. More Vouvray than Savennières. Bright acidity to the palate.
Although a touch dilute and hollow it retains good, fresh acidity. Quite
lean, and showing some advanced flavours. This is unlikely to improve.
Drink up. (06/04)
1990
Clos de Coulaine
Mid
depth. Bronze. Toffee/mocha nose. Oxidised character. Tired, with the
palate showing the same. Good texture and very firm acid. Dead yeast
flavour with macadamia nuts. Short and autolytic flavours to the finish.
Sadly past its best. (06/04)
1989
Clos de Coulaine
Polished. Mid-depth. Orange-gold. Mature nose with a
savoury edge. Madeira-like and a little cheesy and earthy and starting to
look tired. Marmite too on the nose. Mid-full on entry. Rich and rounded,
with more savoury flavours. Intense and persistent, it is distinctly
mature and shows some ripeness with noticeable alcohol on the finish. It
feels a bit ‘hot’. Mature and needs drinking up. (04/09)
1988
Clos de Coulaine
Broad
yet quiet nose with some faint marzipan. Very dry, mineral and stony on
the palate. Austere and pretty rustic in style. Decent structure; it
builds well in the mouth. This could hold further. (06/04)
1986
Clos de Coulaine
Light
appearance. Luminous green. Very reduced nose. Mineral and tight on the
palate. The reduction should aid as a preservative, although could equally
out-live the wines potential to ever fully mature. Very lean with
citrus/lime profile. Despite the reduction issue, this is authentic and
has the potential to evolve. Very long. (06/04)
1986
Clos de Coulaine Demi-Sec
Youthful
green hints. Rich, honeyed nose displaying a hint of coconut. Very
delicate but attractive. Gentle and ethereal. Perfect balance with great
length and persistence. Mineral, with some citrus. This is delicious now,
but could be expected to evolve further. Lovely. (06/04)
1985
Clos de Coulaine
Mid
depth. Very delicate nose. Faint apples and pears. Very light honey.
Mineral, delicate palate entry. Excellent focus. Very juicy. Delicious.
Very persistent. ‘A point’, but will continue to evolve. (06/04)
1983
Clos de Coulaine
Light,
delicate, mineral nose. Some stale marzipan. Faintly reduced on the nose.
The palate is better; lean with juicy, firm acidity. Good grip. Typical.
Drinking now. Unlikely to benefit with further ageing. (06/04)
1975
Clos de Coulaine
Mid
depth. Green hints. Quince, orange peel and thyme. Delicate. Some terpines
and evidence of ‘dry’ botrytis. Tired on the palate with lean acidity.
Unbalanced and drying out. Drink up quickly. (06/04)
1983
This
spent 18 months in barrel prior to bottling. Even after some 25 years this
still appears youthful. Mid depth red with a bright, fresh red fruit nose.
A true and pure expression of Cabernet Franc. Leafy and a touch herbal, it
shows the ripeness of a warmer year. This is drinking well now, and will
continue to hold and possibly even improve. (04/08)
1989
Anjou Rouge
Mid-full. Just showing some maturity to the rim, but still
pretty profound for the variety. The nose is lovely, with a classic mature
Cabernet Franc aromas; lead
pencils, and suitably stalky, but not unripe. Just a little confit,
showing the ripeness of the vintage. Very good concentration on entry.
Complex and delicate, but with an inky quality. This is still quite firm,
with the tannins still present, and there is some stalkyness on the
finish. The acidity appears high on the finish and it is a little rustic
and over-extracted. The nose is prettier than the palate. It needs food to
counteract the tannin and acidity. This could be expected to age further.
(10/09)
1990 Anjou Rouge
Dull appearance. Mid depth and now showing its age. The
nose is clean, if a little herbal, but good weight and focus. The palate
is more earthy; it builds well and has good grip. The tannins are still
noticeable and the wine somewhat over-extracted and bitter to the finish.
This should keep, but it won't improve. (04/10)