schiller-wine: Extensive Cellar Tour and Extensive Tasting at Domaine Alphonse Mellot in Sancerre, with Alphonse Mellot

The Loire Tour 2025 by ombiasy WineTours took place from Sunday, October 5 to Thursday, October 16, 2025. The tour started in Nantes and ended in Sancerre, with a bus transfer and lunch in Paris. There were 9 of us including Annette and myself.

Today we continued to explore Sancerre proper.

Almost all of the appellations of Sancerre lie on the left bank of the Loire, opposite Pouilly-Fumé, in the eastern-most part of the Loire Valley. Sancerre is well regarded for and primarily associated with Sauvignon Blanc, making wines of great purity and elegance. Pinot Noir is also grown, accounting for around 20% of the region's production. A rosé style from Pinot noir is also produced.

The focus of Sancerre winemakers is usually to express the pure fruit flavors of Sauvignon Blanc and the natural terroir of the region. Here we find the famous Silex soils: Silex is a type of sedimentary soil that is rich with flint. In fact, silex is the English word for flint. Silex is basically a harder limestone soil and can have an almost metallic look. Sancerre wines tend to have very little interaction with oak, instead spending most of their fermentation and aging period in large stainless steel fermentation tanks. However, since the late 20th century some producers have begun experimenting with some degree of oak fermentation or aging.

At Domaine Alphonse Mellot, were received by Alphonse Mellot jun.. He took us on an extensive cellar tour, followed by a sensational tasting. Arguably, the tasting with Alphonse Mellot jun. was one of the best, if not the best, of the whole tour.

Domaine Alphonse Mellot is represented in the USA by Elite Wines.

Loire 2025 by ombiasy WineTours led by Annette Schiller

Annette Schiller in her announcement: What comes to your mind when you hear ‘Loire Valley’? Of course images of glorious Châteaux pop up in your mind. Yes that is true and we will visit some iconic château and dig deep into France’s history. However, during this wine tour we also discover a magnificent, but often overlooked French wine region and one of the most exciting best kept secrets of excellent, high quality wines at very reasonable prices. The Loire Valley wine region is a vast area and consists of several distinct wine regions, each with its own characteristic grapes, appellations, and wine style. We take you on a journey from the Atlantic Ocean to the Auvergne mountains to explore this unique region. We learn to appreciate “Sancerre”, "Pouilly-Fumé", “Vouvray", “Chinon”, as well as many other not so familiar appellations.

Domaine Alphonse Mellot in Sancerre

The Domaine Alphonse Mellot was founded in 1513. Alphonse Mellot sen. is the 18th generation of the vintner family in Sancerre. He took over the domaine La Moussière in 1970 and was the driving force in the transformation of the family winery towards the focus on top quality. With conversion to biodynamic viticulture he went much further than other domains in the region at that time. The domaine is certified biodynamic since 1999.

Today the 19th generation -Alphonse Mellot jun.- runs the domain. The winery sits in the middle of the town of Sancerre and occupies a maze of medieval cellars right under the town center, some date from the 15th century. The vineyard area is about 140 acres with a single plot of 75 acres of “La Moussière”, considered the best in Sancerre, solely owned by Mellot. “La Moussière” sits on a large block of Kimmeridgian soil whereas “La Demoiselle” sits on silex soils. There are also 33 acres of Pinot Noir and more vineyards (Chardonnay and Pinot Noir) on the IGP Côtes de la Charité.

Domaine Alphonse Mellot is an iconic producer in Sancerre and that was recognized by the King of France, Louis XIV. long before our times. He named César Mellot as his personal wine advisor in 1698.

With Alphonse Mellot jun. in Washington DC

At the:

La Paulée by Elite Wines at Restaurant 2941 in Northern Virginia: Celebrating 20 Years of Elite Wines with 40 Producers and 4 Chefs, Washington DC, USA

I was sitting next to Alphonse Mellot jun. (see below). It was here that we started to plan our spectacular visit of Domaine Alphonse Mellot during 2024 Loire by ombiasy Wine Tours.

My Table - There were 8 of us at my table. François Villard, Domaine Villard, was sitting on my left and Alphonse Mellot Jr,, Domaine Mellot, was sitting on my right. Also at my table were Lucia Sutera, ColloSorbo, and Federica Grasso, Ca' Del Baio, as well as the wife of Chef Bart Vandaele.ccc

Alphonse Mellot/ Elite Wines

In 1513, the records of Sancerre mention the Mellot family.

The Mellot family, vinegrowers ad wine merchants, was again mentioned during the siege of the town. They pursued their patient labours and continued to gain recognition because César Mellot was appointed as Wine Advisor to Louis XIV in 1698.

At the beginning of the XIX century, Alphonse Mellot founded a tavern in Sancerre where one could savour the local wines and so began the flourishing trade that was to continue.

In 1881, he was granted a licence to ship his wine throughout France and all over the world. This marked the beginning of a pacific conquest which has been pursued and developed by the family business from father to son ever since, with the eldest son continuing to bear the name of the founder Alphonse.

Today, this century old winemaking tradition is perpetuated by Alphonse Mellot Jr, the 19th to bear the name.

Appellation: Sancerre
Owner: Alphonse Mellot
Winemaker: Alphonse Mellot - 19 Generations
Varieties Grown: Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir
Hectares/Age of Vines: About 60 hectares, up to 60 years old with an average of 25 years old.
Altitude/Soil: Between 200–400 meters above sea level. Kimmeridgian Limestone, flint.
Farming Methods: Organic (FR-BIO-01) and biodynamic (monitored by ECOCERT France SAS) wine. BIODYVIN certified. Manually harvested into 25-kg crates. Severe table sorting and gentle pressing.

Arriving