2018 Quarts de Chaume Les Quarts

Full bottle 1,532 g. 3.08-ha vineyard on a slope that goes from between 10 to 20 degrees. South-facing. Liquoreux. Dark caramel orange. Rich, fudge-like, peach toffee. Absolutely stunning. So sweet it makes the spine buzz and the hair on the back of your neck stand up. I find myself wanting to spoon this into my mouth, the intensity of the peach and toffee is so great and the texture is so wonderfully dense. This is simply outstanding, although, by opening the bottle, I have committed a crime. One bottle of this tasted too early is one bottle of this lost forever. I feel like I need a mourning ceremony. (TC)

"Les Quarts is the original plot that gave its name to the Quarts-de-Chaume appellation," reminds Ivan Massonnat, spiritus rector of Domaine Belargus. The Quarts-de-Chaume terroir—a sunny, south-facing hillside on schists, exposed to the morning mists of the Layon River and ventilated by constant winds—results in "a botrytis of rare concentration," says Massonnat, as the 2018 Quarts-de-Chaume Grand Cru Liquoreux Les Quarts demonstrates impressively. Amber-orange colored, the nose is deep, intense and concentrated, very complex and elegant, with spicy and balsamic apricot notes, nougat and porcini aromas as well as flinty-mineral notes and associations of crispy ham hock. Round, smooth and sweet but with great finesse and elegance, this is a rich yet almost weightless and perfectly balanced liquoreux from the central Les Quarts plot of the QDC appellation that develops a vertical, highly stimulating and filigreed structure that leads to a long, crisp and frisky piquancy and salty finesse that makes this grand cru wine extremely digestible, even at this very early stage. Belargus's 2018 Les Quarts pairs richness and sweetness with crystalline finesse and elegance in an unrivaled way. A fabulous, irresistible grand cru! 11% alcohol. Tasted in June 2021.

South-facing plot on pudding-stone bedrock. More gingerbread than Les Rouères, Les Quarts displays right from the first whiff all its power and complexity. Density and energy join forces for a full, unctuous wine with significant ageing potential. Superb.