Sancerre Étienne Henri

In the glass

Aroma: ripe peach, lemon curd, honeysuckle, vanilla

Palate: yellow apple, lemon confit, toasted hazelnut, creamy lees

Bourgeois' barrel-aged Sauvignon cuvée named for the founder. Ripe yellow fruits, honeysuckle and toasted hazelnut over a creamy, lees-driven palate that still retains Sancerre's acidity.

What it pairs with

• Roast chicken with tarragon
  Barrel weight and creamy lees support roast poultry; tarragon's anise note echoes the wine's honeysuckle lift.
• Pike-perch with beurre blanc
  Loire's signature freshwater fish in butter sauce meets a Sancerre with the texture to handle cream.
• Lobster thermidor
  Creamy gratin shellfish demands the wine's barrel-aged richness and persistent acidity.
• Aged Comté
  Hazelnut depth in the cheese finds an echo in the wine's lees and oak; acidity refreshes the palate.

History

Created in honour of Étienne Henri Bourgeois, the late patriarch who guided the domaine through the 20th century. The cuvée selects ripe parcels and ages them in barrel to show a richer face of Sancerre.

1. 1990: First vintage of the Étienne Henri cuvée
2. 2003: Estate establishes Clos Henri in Marlborough, expanding the family's Sauvignon project

Facts

Producer

Domaine Henri Bourgeois (Famille Bourgeois) · visiting guide

Grapes

Sauvignon Blanc (100%)

Classification

Sancerre AOC

Oak

Fermented and aged in oak barriques, around 10 percent new, for around 12 months on lees

ABV

13.5%

Price

EUR 45 to 75 at retail

Drinking window

3-15 from vintage

First vintage

1990

Frequently asked about Sancerre Étienne Henri

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