Thierry Germain - Saumur Brut 'Bulles de Roche' Sparkling 2021

Grape

Chenin Blanc 90% with 5% Chardonnay and 5% Cabernet Franc.

Tasting notes

Crafted from a biodynamic blend of Chenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc, and Chardonnay, this artisanal sparkling wine is a remarkable alternative to Champagne. Fermented in both tank and oak, then aged 18 months on lees with no dosage, it delivers a spine-tingling freshness and racy mineral character.

On the palate, it’s salty and taut, yet unfolds with layers of pear, golden apple, and almond, striking a beautiful balance between tension and texture. This is lo-fi French sparkling at its best—vibrant, complex, and utterly delicious.

More About The Winery

A leading figure of the Loire Valley’s new generation, Thierry Germain has redefined the identity of Saumur through a relentless pursuit of purity and terroir expression. Since taking over Domaine des Roches Neuves in the early 1990s, he has transformed the estate into one of the region’s benchmarks.

Working with biodynamic principles, Germain cultivates his vineyards with a deep respect for living soils, primarily composed of tuffeau limestone—a soft, chalky rock that brings tension, freshness, and remarkable minerality to the wines. His approach in the cellar is equally precise and minimalist, favouring gentle extractions and, increasingly, the use of large oak, concrete, and amphora to preserve energy and finesse.

Cabernet Franc is at the heart of the domaine. Here, it reveals a style far removed from rusticity: vibrant, lifted, and finely structured, with notes of red berries, graphite, violets, and subtle herbal nuances. The tannins are refined, the acidity bright, and the wines carry a distinctive sense of verticality.

The whites, crafted from Chenin Blanc, show equal precision—textural yet taut, with layers of citrus, orchard fruit, and saline minerality, capable of both immediate pleasure and graceful ageing.

Domaine des Roches Neuves stands today as a reference for modern Loire wines: precise, energetic, and deeply expressive of their origin, guided by one of the region’s most thoughtful and influential vignerons.