DOMAINE DE LA CHANTELEUSERIE 2022 Bourgueil 'Cuvee Alouettes' (Loire,France)

From the importer: "Thierry Boucard is the seventh generation in his family making wine in Bourgueil, and reminders of his ancestors are everywhere. For starters, his tasting room is built in his grandfather’s old cellar, and fermentation for all red wines takes place in giant oak vats that are at least 125 years old, in which a century’s worth of harvesters have been doing pigeage the traditional way: by foot. After bottling, wines live in champignonnières—an underground labyrinth of perfectly humid tuffeau caves where locals used to grow mushrooms. Rich in heritage, Alouettes harkens to a different era: it’s pleasantly tannic and chalky, with sleek notes of licorice, cranberry, and prickly instances of cracked black pepper."