Les Athlètes du Vin Chinon 2021

This is a crisp, bright bistro wine and textbook Cabernet Franc. The price might say “entry-level” but the concentration and complexity suggests otherwise. It jumps with delightful red fruit aromas, blackcurrant and plum on the palate, with herbal undertones and vibrant acidity. A well-structured wine with a lingering finish. Serve with a slight chill on it.

Les Athlètes du Vin is a négociant project focused on typical, value-driven wines from the Loire Valley. The idea was conceived by a group of French winemakers called Vini Be Good, who work together to distribute their wines across France. The wines are vinified by various members of the Vini Be Good network using their own grapes or grapes purchased from friends and neighbors in the Loire. They are proud to present these wines made by their friends and family, as several of the cuvées are vinified by Gérard Vallée, brother of Mathieu Vallée from Château Yvonne.

The labels for Les Athlètes du Vin are drawings by French artist, illustrator, and cartoonist Michel Tolmer, who has been the unofficial lead artist of the French natural wine movement since the 1990s.