L'Auberge Chez Francois 70th Anniversary

This wine passport hereby bestows the bearer all oenophilia rights and privileges for a trip to France celebrating the 70th anniversary of L’Auberge Chez François. 70 years – ce n’est pas possible! Vintage 59 Imports is honored to take you on this voyage du vin around France so please fasten your seatbelt, place your tray table in its upright position, grab your glass, and enjoy!

Alsace

Melanié Pfister Cremant “Breit” Extra Brut The acronym Breit comes from Hangenbriete, the name of the vineyard. The appellation rules for this wine were promulgated in 1976, and Mélanie’s father started making crémant in the early 1980s.

Melanié Pfister Pinot Blanc Paar 2022 Paar means pair in German; this wine is made from the two va rietals, Pinot Blanc and Auxerrois. The vineyard surface is six acres essentially split between the two varietals, but Mélanie’s wine tends to have a bit more Pinot Blanc than Auxerrois. Some is reserved for the sparkling wine, but most goes into this still bottling.

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Loire Valley

Branger Muscadet Fils des Grases Moutons 2022 This lovely organic wine crafted with 100% Melon de Bourgogne is the Domaine’s excel lent wine coming from 26 acres of vines that are over 40 years old. The wine rests on its lees in underground tanks for twelve to fourteen months.

Domaine Chevalerie Bourgueil 2017 This biodynamic wine is produced on vines with an average of about 60 years of age – still younger than L’Auberge Chez Francois! The wine is aged in large old barrels, and bottled af ter 6 months- unfined and unfiltered. Serve cool with roast chicken, pork and vegetable dishes. The 2017 with seven years of age is drinking beautifully now. de la

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Burgundy

Normand Macon La Roche-Vineuse 2022 Alain Normand hails from the Loire Valley, but his ancestral home is Normandy, hence his name. He works eleven hectares (27acres)inLa Roche-Vineuse, an old village nestled on the steep flank of the huge lime stone outcropping that gives name to Vineuse. Alain farms according to the pragmatic principles of lutte raisonnée, or reasoned fight. He plows his vineyards rather than using herbicides, and he doesn’t use pesticides or chemical fertilizers.

Pavillon de Chavannes Côte de Brouilly “Cuvée des Ambassades” 2022 Pavillon de Chavannes was acquired by the Jambon- Chanrion family in 1861. Its history became intertwined with that of Château Thivin when Yvonne Chanrion married Claude Geoffray shortly after the First World War. The Art Deco wine label, created in the 1930s, was a product of that marriage. After Yvonne’s death and the restoration of the Chavannes vineyards, this label became joint property, and now it is used by both domaines under their respective names.

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Bordeaux

Château Pereyre Bordeaux Blanc 2022 Château Haut-La Péreyre produced its first vintage in 1891 in the lieu-dit of Péreyre, back up in the pastoral hills of Entre-Deux-Mers. Olivier Cailleux’s parents began estate bottling in 1974. Olivier himself was given keys to the domain in 1994 after completing his enology stud ies and doing internships in South Africa, New Zealand, and at Cos d’Estournel. He is the sixth genera tion to manage the family’s affairs. 70% Sauvignon Blanc, 15% Sauvignon Gris, 15% Semillon. Haut La

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Monteberiot Owned by

Côtes Bourg 2016

Marie-Hélène and Gilles Marsaudon - this is Marie-Hélène and Gilles’ classic cuvée and their most important wine. The natural beauty of Côtes de Bourg stole their hearts—the region is called Bordeaux’s little Switzerland due to its stunning views over the estuary. The wine ferments in concrete, and just under half is brought up in 1-2-year-old barrels while the rest ages in concrete. 70% merlot, 20% malbec and 10% cabernet franc. Leonard

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Rhone Valley

Château du Ventoux 2021 In 867, the Bishop of Venasque was given Château Unang, then known as Villa Unango. The Greeks first came to the Rhone Valley in the mid 7th century BC and Unango, a most unFrench word, bears an interesting resemblance to the ancient Greek word for wine vessel. The domaine is isolated and self-contained with, interestingly enough, its own geological category: les sables d’Unang. This refers to a particular type of sandy soil that lies overtop limestone. Farmed and certified organic, ths wine is 60% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 10% Cinsault. Unang Côtes

Coupe Roses La Bastide Minervois 2021 Owned by Françoise Le Calvez and husband Pascal Frissant with son Mathias and daughter Sarah and partner David, the Le Calvez family has been here for 12 gener ations. Farmed and certified organic and biodynamic, all ferments in the cellar are permitted to happen spontaneously, without additions of yeast or enzymes. ~50% Carignan and Grenache, 5% Syrah.

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Dear Friends, Family, and Patrons,

This April marks our incredible milestone 70th anniversary in business (April 20, 1954). This date also marks 70 years since Papa and Mama decided to make Washington DC and Great Falls the location for their dream of owning a French restaurant with a “nice atmosphere and good food.” Today, get ting nostalgic, I thought you all may enjoy a little background and history of Papa and his quest to deliver celebratory meals to the Washington D.C. area. Enjoy! Thanks for your patronage, support, and friendship through the years! 70 years in this business has been our family’s great honor and privilege to continue to serve you for all your special occasions and culinary adventures with us. Please enjoy some of this time-honored nostalgia in our very special 70th Anniversary events, including cuisine from Papa’s original 1954 menu offerings.

We look forward to celebrating all year long with you and yours.

“Mes meilleurs voeux” (my best wishes), Chef Jacques Haeringer and the L’Auberge Chez Francois and Jacques’ Brasserie Team.