PATTES LOUP: NEW WAVE CHABLIS FROM THE REGION'S HOTTEST YOUNG WINEMAKER
Thomas Pico's Pattes Loup project is shaking things up in Chablis, and at barely over 30 years old Thomas is Chablis' newest superstar winemaker. Already known for being an organic viticulture pioneer, Thomas is taking his family's tiny Chablis domaine to new heights. He studied under organic winemaking icons and fellow Chablisienne winemakers Alice and Olivier de Moor before taking over his father's tiny estate of 2.4 hectares based in Courgis just outside the village of Chablis. To say that biodynamics is difficult in Chablis would be an understatement with the persistently cold and damp weather being a tremendous hindrance for all but the most dedicated vignerons.
Thomas takes precision to the extreme and is as hands on as humanly possible. All of his vines are hand harvested and grapes are also hand sorted to ensure only the most perfect berries are included in the ferment. Thomas' vine material is some of the best in the entire village thanks to a massale selection of Chardonnay vines planted by his grandfather at nearly 300 meters in elevation over 60 years ago. The village "Vent d'Ange" Chablis is pressed from those old vines, fermented and aged in a mix of stainless steel and concrete eggs before being bottled without fining or filtration. The style is multi-faceted and full of flavor, with electric acidity, intense salinity, and ripe but chiseled lemon, white peach, and green apple notes. Thomas' wines show a unique purity and kaleidoscope of complexity that can be achieved in the right hands in Chablis, and this 2021 vintage is particularly well balanced and beautiful. If you enjoy cutting edge producers like Alice & Olivier de Moor, Richard Leory, and Marc Soyard, Thomas' wines are must-adds to your cellar.
