Joseph Mellot Sancerre La Chatellenie Review

The pinnacle of Sauvignon Blanc? We review a rich yet lively example from the famed silex soils in the Sancerre region in France.

Sauvignon Blanc from vines averaging 25 years, planted in flint clay (argiles à silex) soils in the Loire Valley of France. The wine was fermented and aged in stainless steel.

Sample submitted for review. The Joseph Mellot Sancerre La Chatellenie has an SRP around $40 but is available closer to $30. It is imported by Albert Bichot USA LLC.

Sancerre, which many people consider the top of the line for Sauvignon Blanc, can be quite expensive. Today we’re checking out a reasonably priced example (although still a Saturday Splurge candidate) from a winemaking estate (Joseph Mellot) that can be traced back to the early 1500s!

From the bottle:

LOCATION: Loire Valley
GRAPE: 100% Sauvignon Blanc
NOSE: Intense and frank, yellow flesh fruits lime
PALATE: Mineral, lively and fresh attack with notes of lime zests. Mineral and precise finish
FOOD PAIRINGS: Ideal with a scallop carpaccio, a creamy risotto with creamy shrimps or a vegetarian Bo Bun.

PRODUCED BY: Domaines Joseph Mellot
13% Alcohol

The 2023 Joseph Mellot Sancerre La Chatellenie opens with a pleasing aroma of lemon and other citrus plus pear, some floral touches and lots of mineral notes. It’s a great start.

The wine tastes juicy, rich and flavorful yet is also light, lively and delicious. Featuring great balance, it also has a wonderful minerality to it with plenty of sea salt notes plus some other flinty, chalky notes. And it might be even better once it warms up, which isn’t always the case with a lot of white wines.

It ends crisp, dry and very long with lots of lasting tart juicy fruit and a bit of a salty mineral note on the lip-smacking finish. This is good stuff!

Looking for more of the Best Sauvignon Blanc? Check out our giant list!

You may also want to check more of our favorite wines from France.