Sébastien Riffault wine tasting: thoughts and conclusions

Sébastien Riffault wine tasting

I always like to explore areas and styles, discover new wines, and keep my palate up to date. So, an idea with all Riffault wines in our glass came to our minds after we tried the fantastic Akmèniné with a close friend. We ordered all the wines, cleaned up our Zalto and prepared some tapas to accompany each wine. We did not taste all the wines at once, but we made our choices from time to time. And now, after many debates and throwbacks, is the time to release my thoughts. 

Firstly, Sauvignon Blanc does not mean only fresh aromatic wines, which is far from that in the Riffault case. Wines that will travel you to another place in time but not in the Loire if you are unfamiliar. Are the Riffault wines a typical example? The answer is no. Are the Riffault wines terroir driven? Well, yes and no. Yes, because they express the winemaker's perception and philosophy and expand the region's diversity. No, because most people have connected Sancerre with fresh, floral and crystal wines. Then should Riffault wines have the AOC legislation? I am not the right person to answer that, but there is room for everyone, and diversity is a good thing from my point of view.

Riffault's philosophy is what makes his wines unique. Biodynamic cultivation and harvesting when an actual amount of grapes is affected by botrytis. The hands-off approach in the winery and fermentation with natural yeasts and no rush for anything leaving the wines to take their time. Almost all wines spent several years in old, big barrels with their fine lees before bottling. Who expects ordinary wines after reading all these?

I already mentioned the exciting Akmèniné and what kind of chain reactions it triggered. The next one was the unbelievable Les Quarterons, a wine with a distinct style. Saulétas was not at the same high-quality level, yet it delivered many pleasures and smiles on our faces, although an unexpected lousy surprise was waiting for us at the bottom of the bottle. Finally, Auksinis was fascinating and complex, yet the Auksinis Maceration was a perfect example of how orange wines should be. Unfortunately, the clear score was interrupted by the last two wines. Skeveldra was a mediocre wine, and Raudonas were from those experiences you try to forget. 

Riffault wine tasting gave me food for thought for several issues and created more questions about what I expected. Evolution is the magic word, and one cannot go through without challenges and self-awareness.