Is all Sancerre the same?

No. Sancerre is a whole district in the eastern Loire, not one vineyard, and the village and the soil the vines grow in change what ends up in the glass.

One name, many villages

The word on the label covers more than a dozen villages around the hilltop town of Sancerre. White Sancerre is always Sauvignon Blanc, but the hillsides are not all alike. Some vines grow on chalky clay, some on hard limestone and some on flint, and each gives the wine a different shape: rounder and fuller in some places, sharper and more mineral in others.

That is why two bottles both called Sancerre can taste quite different, and why a good producer will often tell you which village the grapes come from.

An example: Bué

Bué is one of the best-known villages in the district. Its wines are known for tangy, ripe blackcurrant fruit and real structure.

The wine in this Ask EDKA episode comes from Domaine Merlin-Cherrier, a 14-hectare family estate around Bué. Thierry Merlin-Cherrier spent five decades building it, including a slice of the Garennes plot and a hectare in the Chêne Marchand vineyard, two names that carry real weight in Sancerre. The estate has been farmed sustainably for more than thirty years and is HVE certified. In 2022 Thierry handed over to his youngest daughter, Agathe.

What it tastes like

Sancerre 2025 is 100% Sauvignon Blanc and properly dry, at 0.28 g/l of sugar and 13.5% alcohol. Think cut and tension rather than weight, with that tangy blackcurrant note on an aromatic nose.

Serve it at 8 to 10°C, with oysters, grilled trout, goat's cheese or a simple green salad. Drink it over the next three to five years; no decanting needed. Suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

Want to try it?

See Sancerre, Domaine Merlin-Cherrier 2025.

Not sure it's your style? Answer a few quick questions in Pick My Bottle and it will suggest bottles to suit you.