L’Esprit Libre

What the RVF says in its 2018 Guide: "Antoine-Marie Arena produced his first wines in 2014. Antoine Arena's youngest son has been working and making wine at the family estate for years. He now signs his own cuvées, taking charge of Hauts de Carco in white and Carco in red, and made his entry in the 2017 edition. The reading of the wines and the sensitivity of the new blended wines confirm the talent of this young winemaker. The coherence and depth of his wines are beyond doubt: we award him a well-deserved second star. The wines: they give a lot of emotion, show both precision and accuracy. Hauts de Carco has great purity, a powerful yet firm mouthfeel. Bianco Gentile is a model, with the maturity of this grape variety, without its drawbacks: full-bodied, it is well managed by bitters that reframe it. Bianchi, a blend of vermentino, biancu gentile and muscat, is subtle. It exhales notes of rose and cumin, and delights us with its harmonious mouthfeel, its quality length; for a lemon chicken. Carco, not very extracted and infused, is distinguished by its right substance and finesse. Memoria is chubbier and fuller, but retains the precision of the fruit and the quality of the tannins. Finally, San Giovanni, still very young, offers spicy nuances and a quality substance. It seduces by its dimension"

"Après avoir appris le métier de vigneron avec Mathieu Vallée au Château Yvonne, Thomas Batardière a quitté le tuffeau de Saumur pour retrouver les schistes d’Anjou où il parvient à acheter quatre hectares à Rablay-sur-Layon en 2012.

Dès le départ, le jeune homme volubile vise des chenins sans fard élaborés avec peu d’intrants, si bien que ces prises de risques ont conduit parfois à des blancs confus.

Mais sa rigueur et sensibilité amènent Thomas à affiner son travail ; il signe aujourd’hui de merveilleux chenins purs et bourrés d'énergie. Parmi ses futurs projets : allonger ses élevages pour diminuer encore les doses de soufre.

La liberté de ton, l'immédiateté subtile, les nuances et la profondeur avec lesquelles se livrent ces cuvées les hissent parmi les plus beaux chenins angevins. Les 2021 sont brillants, purs, clairs, illustrant parfaitement la méticulosité du vigneron. Nous lui décernons la deuxième étoile." 2* RVF Guide