Domaine Amirault, Saint Nicolas De Bourgueil La Source 2024

Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil is Cabernet Franc's more quietly confident neighbour to Bourgueil, and Domaine Amirault is one of the names that defines what this appellation does best. La Source is the entry-level cuvée, drawn from younger vines on the sandier, lighter soils that give the wine its characteristic bounce and immediacy. This is Cabernet Franc at its most purely Loire: cool, crunchy, perfumed, and completely unencumbered by oak. Raspberry, crushed strawberry, violet, a flicker of green pepper that keeps everything honest, and a stony, almost chalky finish that makes you reach for another glass before you've thought about it. The 2024 vintage across the Loire was one to watch carefully — a cool, challenging growing season that rewarded rigorous sorting and low yields. For a domaine as conscientious as Amirault, that translates into wines with real freshness and definition. Drink this slightly cool, perhaps alongside a plate of rillettes or a simple roast chicken, and it will reward you from the moment the cork comes out.