Antoine Sunier Régnié Cuvée “Montmerond" 2018

Aromas of rose petals, raspberries, cherries and woodsmoke introduce the 2018 Régnié Cuvée Montmerond, a medium to full-bodied, satiny and layered wine that's pretty and elegant, with fine tannins and a livelier, more elegant profile than Sunier's superb regular Régnié. Incipiently complex and utterly charming, this is well worth seeking out. It's matured in used barrels.

Antoine had his first vintage in 2014 and has already gained a very good reputation in this small amount of time. For those who follow Beaujolais, his name will sound familiar as his older brother Julien Sunier has his own, esteemed winery. Trained in Burgundy, Antoine found some organic vines in the villages of Regnie and Morgon, and crafts his natural wine using carbonic maceration with indigenous yeast, using old Burgundy barrels and epoxy-lined concrete tanks. Only a small addition of SO2 is used at bottling. There is a great energy and purity in these wines.