Exploring Bourgueil's Grand Mont

No.5 | Vineyard in Focus

Spanning around 32ha (79 acres), the lieu-dit of Grand Mont in the commune of Benais in Bourgueil is regarded as one of the top vineyards in the appellation. What makes it particularly special is it’s a rare example of a lieu-dit in the Loire from which the wine drinker can explore several bottlings of Cabernet Franc from a single vineyard made by the hands of a number of different producers.

Situated about 7km north of the Loire River tucked back in the northernmost part of Benais, Grand Mont stretches over 700m from north to south and around 500m wide from east to west, thus given its sheer size, Grand Mont is a complex vineyard to define at a micro level with a lot of variability from parcel to parcel within the lieu-dit. At a macro level, however, there are some key factors that impact the growing environment here and ultimately influence the style of wine from this site.

Grand Mont facing south

The vineyard is located on the east side of the Changeon River on a long, gradual slope at altitudes ranging from 50 to 75m above sea level, and the nature of how the Changeon River cuts through the Bourgueil appellation, as well as the positioning of the Benais forest to the north and northeast, means the lieu-dit has a slightly convex shape, with most parcels pointing towards the Changeon River with a southwest- or full west-facing exposure. These exposures afford the vines here the benefit of the stronger, warmer afternoon sunshine, which aids ripening.

However, the lieu-dit's position within the commune, set back from the moderating influences of the Changeon and Loire Rivers, in addition to its proximity to the Benais forest, means Grand Mont experiences a slightly cooler and longer growing season, allowing for a slow, gradual ripening of the Cabernet Franc grapes leading to enhanced phenolic maturity, as well as greater intensity of flavours, colours and tannins.

Grand Mont in Benais with the village to the southwest

Underlying geology of Grand Mont

In terms of soils, about two-thirds of the lieu-dit is on the Middle Turonian white tuffeau chalk bedrock, while a small pocket of parcels in the eastern part are on the Upper Turonian yellow tuffeau chalk bedrock. The topsoil across the lieu-dit is quite shallow and dominated by clay, with some parcels in the southern and eastern parts of the site with more silt and/or sand with higher proportions of limestone stones.

L: Parcels of Stéphane Guion, R: Tuffeau talk in Aurélien Revillot's parcels

The relationship between soil and what we taste in the glass is a difficult topic to articulate, even for the most knowledgable wine professional, but in my conversations with the vignerons who farm vines here, there are some things of note in this regard.

The tuffeau coupled with the lack of topsoil means the parcels here are naturally low-yielding, resulting in greater concentration in the finished wines. This, in tandem with the enhanced phenolic ripeness of the skins and seeds, creates conditions that allow the vigneron to approach their extractions and macerations with a bit more gusto. As a result, the wines have a marked tannin profile and distinctive structure, and when combined with a high concentration of fruit and balanced acidities, this gives wines with an incredible capacity for aging. Moreover, the presence of the tuffeau, creates for me a sense of tension and verticality in the wines, and contributes to added finesse in the glass.

The Middle Turonian tuffeau of Grand Mont with vines poking out above

Terroir and wines aside, an exploration of Grand Mont would not be complete without a look at what lies beneath the vines. This tuffeau chalk not only serves as the bedrock for these vines, but deep below the surface is a network of hundreds of metres of caves dug out of the tuffeau many centuries ago. The entrance of the caves is located in the southwest corner of Grand Mont, and is marked with the sign that reads “Les Perrières de Grand Mont,” and the limestone here was once quarried (perrière translates to quarry) to help build the famed châteaux in the Loire Valley, and later served as a place where mushrooms were cultivated.

Visiting the Caves de Grand Mont

Known today as the Caves de Grand Mont, this network of tuffeau caves and tunnels serve as a communal cellar for several local vignerons. My first visit to the Caves was in May 2022 with Stéphane Guion, and one cannot help but be in awe of the vastness of this space, and I only saw a mere fraction of what lies beneath the surface. Floor to ceiling, the tunnels are a half dozen or so metres deep, you could easily drive a car or small truck through these tunnels, and no doubt many vignerons do to retrieve wine stored in these perfect, year-round cellar conditions. On this trip to the Loire I visited many tuffeau cellars, but none impressed quite the way the Caves de Grand Mont did. And for a vineyard with the prestige that Grand Mont has, it only seems fitting that the network of tuffeau caves deep below the surface is equally as majestic.

When it comes to the wines from Grand Mont, it should come as no surprise with a lieu-dit of this size, that this is not a monopole for a particular vigneron, rather there are many vignerons with parcels here, many of whom choose to showcase this site as a single vineyard bottling. I’ve been fortunate to taste many examples from this lieu-dit, and while there are distinct stylistic differences from vigneron to vigneron, there is no denying that this is truly a very special site for Cabernet Franc. The wines marry depth, concentration, power and structure, with charm, perfume and elegance, as well as layers and nuances that are only revealed with time in the bottle.

If someone ever argued that Cabernet Franc is only for early-drinking pleasure and is incapable of producing age-worthy, complex wines, I guarantee opening a bottle of Grand Mont from any of the below vignerons would surely change their tune. As these are wines with exceptional potential for aging, consider tucking them in your cellar for a while, or decanting for several hours to enjoy them in their youth.

Domaine du Bel Air (Pierre et Rodolphe Gauthier), 2019* Bourgueil ‘Grand Mont’ (back vintages also do appear on the market from time to time)

Domaine de la Chevalerie, 2016* Bourgueil ‘Grand Mont’

Domaine Xavier et Agnès Amirault, 2020* Bourgueil ‘Grand Mont’ (not yet tasted; this is the domaine’s first vintage from their newly acquired parcels at Grand Mont)

Domaine Stéphane Guion, 2020* Bourgueil ‘Grand Mont’

Domaine Stéphane Guion, 2019* Bourgueil ‘Deux Mont’ (from Stéphane’s parcels at Grand Mont and neighbouring Petit Mont, which Stéphane blended together prior to the 2020 vintage)

Domaine Aurélien Revillot, 2018* Bourgueil ‘Grand Mont’

Domaine Pierre-Jacques Druet, Bourgueil ‘Grand Mont’ (sadly this domaine is now extinct, but assorted vintages of his Grand Mont make occasional appearances through auction circles. I’ve recently tried the 2000, 1996 and 1995 and they do not disappoint)

*For the most part, these are the current (or recent) releases from these producers and can be found in many markets in North America and across Europe. Prices range from around $40 to $70USD on average.