Savvy wine lovers who are fans of Vérité in Sonoma have a reason to celebrate: Pierre and Hélène Seillan, the father-daughter winemaking team behind the winery, have just released a new brand, Connaissance, and it has been worth the wait. Located in the Chalk Hill AVA between Healdsburg and Windsor, Vérité makes three of Sonoma’s best wines—La Muse, La Joie, and Le Desir—with grapes from their onsite vines and two other estate vineyards in nearby Alexander Valley and Knights Valley. Where the wines of Vérité are blended from holdings which span 18 vineyards and more than 50 individual blocks, Connaissance offers wines from single blocks, which the Seillans refer to as micro-crus. The inaugural 2021 vintage was just released, featuring very different but equally exciting single-varietal bottlings: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec. This extremely limited line consists of just 1,500 bottles of each wine sold in elegant boxed three-packs.
“Every year, my father and I oversee the harvest and fermentation, and then together, we assemble the Vérité blends from our mosaic of micro-crus,” Hélène Seillan tells Robb Report. “These micro-crus are the heart and soul of our terroir philosophy at Vérité,” Each micro-cru is harvested and fermented separately, then aged in French oak barrels using a variety of custom toast levels to highlight the personality of individual lots. She equates the art of blending individual barrels from their varied terrain to pointillism, the painting technique in which tiny individual dots are combined to create a cohesive image. “Usually there are a few micro-crus that catch our attention for their ability to stand alone,” she says. “We’ve decided to bottle them and share with others who want to better understand and appreciate Vérité.”
While Vérité is known for its single-varietal Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc, the first vintage of Connaissance has dropped Merlot in favor of Malbec, which has traditionally been included in small amounts in all three Vérité wines. “This Malbec has consistently been a key blending component contributing depth of color and texture to the architecture of Vérité,” Hélène says. “In 2021 it stood out for its duality; it exudes both generosity and restraint. The inherent richness of Malbec is there but there is a freshness as well.” Merlot lovers also have something to look forward to, as the 2022 vintage will include a bottle of the varietal from Taylor Peak in southern Sonoma County.
The initial trio from Connaissance
Connaissance
Connaissance 2021 the Mountain King Cabernet Sauvignon takes its name from the vineyard’s position, perched at the very top of Stonestreet Estate at 2,400 feet, with exposures to the south and southwest overlooking Alexander Valley below. “The Cabernet Sauvignon from this block is incredibly structured and complex, with aromatics of black currant, freshly shaved graphite, and black tea leaf,” Pierre says. We discovered flavors of ripe summer cherry and cassis wrapped in a firm layer of tannins that peels away to reveal notes of dried herbs and a striking vein of minerality.
Connaissance 2021 the Philosopher Malbec is named for what Pierre calls “the contemplative and quiet nature of the Franz Creek Vineyard.” This block in the north of the Chalk Hill AVA contains rich volcanic ash soils and is influenced by the warming effect of Alexander Valley to the north and cooling breezes from the nearby Russian River to the southwest. “The resulting wine possesses both generosity and restraint, with a lift to the inherent richness of Malbec,” Pierre says. Our tasting revealed feathery tannins and dazzling acidity that provide the ideal backdrop to bold red and black berry flavors.
Connaissance 2021 the Maverick Cabernet Franc hails from Block 29, situated on the southwest-facing slope of the Stonestreet Estate. Nutrient-rich and well-drained soils at 856 feet of altitude lend their finesse to “an elegant, brightly structured expression of Cabernet Franc, laced with an ever-present, subtle iron minerality,” Pierre points out. We noted a gorgeous bouquet of red currant, raspberry, dried thyme, and Turkish delight that leads the way for flavors of pomegranate, red plum, and dried Mediterranean herbs sheathed in plush tannins and backed by a palpable sense of minerality.
Bottlings at Connaissance may change from year to year as the Seillans identify the best wines during the harvesting, winemaking, and blending process for Vérité. Beside the Merlot planned for 2022, there is a new Cabernet Franc in the upcoming lineup, also from Taylor Peak. In the meantime, if you want to get your hands on the current trio of releases, we wouldn’t recommend waiting too long to make your move.
