Character Wine Journey: Loire
Karakter Wijnimport regularly visits wine regions; to visit our trusted farmers, to find new acquisitions, but always to taste. At the beginning of July, we visited the Loire.
Lionel Gosseaume
It was a true pleasure to meet Lionel, a very personable guy. Lionel recently acquired a vineyard robot. It's a lightweight tractor that navigates the vineyard autonomously, primarily loosening the soil with large spoon-like tools. We step into the very narrow wine cellar where the barrels are stored. Lionel explains that he can cool the space to 2 degrees Celsius. He does this during harvest, keeping the juice very cold. At 2 degrees, fermentation doesn't start yet. Only after about thirty days does he raise the temperature and fermentation begins. No one else does this in the Loire, though it's common in New Zealand. All this to guarantee the crisp freshness of Sauvignon Blanc.
Then we walk into the vineyards. We see a team replanting a field with young vines. The tractor is GPS-controlled to ensure perfectly straight rows. It's striking that the soil there primarily consists of sand (sand that also forms the soil of the large and nearby forest of Chambord). It's called Sable de Olonges. Lionel shows the effects of the prolonged cold weather. There's a bit of "fillage." Fillage means that due to cold, instead of a flower forming on the vine, a curled green twig appears. No grapes then...
Organic Farming
A conversation about organic farming ensues. Lionel doesn't do it because he prefers to drive into the vineyard only 2 or 3 times with chemicals (based on natural substances) than organic farmers who sometimes have to spray copper twenty times. According to Lionel, entering the vineyard with machines should be very limited to ensure the microbiology in the vineyard, hence no organic label. And then we return to this cold year; this year he had to enter the vineyard no less than 25 times to combat mildew... Normally, this is only 2 to 3 times. So, a very difficult year with much uncertainty. Lionel has no idea yet how his grapes will ripen. We walk on and see small flowers growing between the vines, a good sign according to Lionel! We see a few rows of Pineau d'Aunis. He is very proud of this and uses it to make red wine that is very popular with sommeliers, etc. He also briefly explains the traditional method of grafting, surgreffage: You cut a vine branch from the woody rootstock and then cut the branch again after the 4th internode. This branch with 4 internodes is placed about 10 cm underground. After some time, a new young vine emerges.
The Rosé
Lionel: 'It's harder to make rosé than white wine.' The Galipettes is made as follows: Hand-picked Gamay goes super-fast to the shed, where it is pressed immediately, the juice is immediately separated from the pulp, and so quickly, with so little skin contact, the wine gets that pink glow.
Valery Renaudat
In Reuilly, we first meet Alexandra, who drives us through the vineyards. Everything looks neat and well-maintained, but much more controlled than at Lionel's. No flowers, herbs, and grasses between the vine rows, so a less organic feel. It's nice to see the terroir of Reuilly: beautiful limestone rocks scattered everywhere among the clay subsoil. Back at the house, Valery has arrived.
We taste his wines, all good, at least solid. The difference between the Reuilly and the Quincy is of course striking. Quincy is very light-footed, elegant, and refreshing. Renaudat produces 600,000 bottles annually from 45 hectares of vines. On average, his vines are 20 years old.
Succession in Small Wineries
The only worrying thing is that Valery says he has no successor. It makes him sad, not really an uplifting message. In 10 years, it will be over for him, and we wonder if he will remain motivated by this.
Le Vieux Pressoir
The Chenin Blancs are on limestone, which they call Tuffeaux in Saumur. It's exactly the same rock as on the coast of Normandy (Etretat!). His very impressive cellars are also made of Tuffeaux. The Cabernet Francs are on limestone, here called Jurassic. This soil is very similar to that of the Côte de Nuits and, according to owner Frederique, is the reason why the Puy Notre Dame appellation was possible.
Due to the cold and wetness, Frederique has already been in the vineyard 9 times to combat mildew. That's a lot for Saumur, although many Saumur winemakers have been in the vineyard even more times... Frederique still considers himself lucky!
The Philosophy of Le Vieux Pressoir
Frederique's wine philosophy: 'If the skins are good, you don't have to do a lot.' So in very good years, he can lean back and relax.
His method for determining the ripeness of his grapes: chewing on the seeds and even the vine shoots. He knows exactly when to harvest, when the bitterness starts to decrease. Very peculiar. Frederique almost whispers his words, but with high intensity and conviction. 'It is not my job to make wines with brett, That’s why I say that sometimes I use extra yeast!'
His Cabernet Franc winemaking uses whole-bunch fermentation and maceration. In concrete (the Chenins are vinified in stainless steel). Young wines 15 days, appellation wines between 21 and 28 days. Then everything is pumped out, pressed, and then the juice goes back into concrete. Wines that age in amphorae longer. Amphora allows less oxygen than barriques.
Anjou vs Saumur
Anjou is thicker, firmer with more tannin. This is due to the terroir of schistes/granite (by the way, the oldest type of rock in the world).
Saumur is gentler, softer, and has less tannin. This is due to the limestone soil.
Finally, we taste a dessert wine without noble rot. He explains that he can make it through 'passerillage': drying the grapes by means of wind and sun.
Pascal Lambert
It was super enjoyable with Pascal again. Beatrice had cooked wonderfully, but Pascal stayed tasting with us in the cellars for too long, or so we thought. Fortunately, it quickly became pleasant again, his wife is a truly kind person; I sat next to her and had good conversations with her. The only strange thing... Antoine wasn't there, even though he is now officially the new owner. We think Pascal will still be very much involved behind the scenes. That afternoon, Teus already said in the 4-wheel drive: 'He'd rather drive his van into a wall than NOT look at his grapes.'
We saw what I believe is a new vineyard site, La Croix Boissé, with limestone and clay subsoil. Along with Le Chêne Vert, these are wines that receive the longest wood aging, 24 months.
Le Puy is an assemblage of juice from foudre and amphora.
Chinon has a total of 2600 hectares of vines, of which 26 belong to Lambert. Of those 26, he has 5 hectares of Chenin Blanc. Given that there are only 130 hectares of Chenin in total, this makes him the largest Chenin producer in Chinon.
Chinon Vintages
2020: good
2021: less good
2022: good
2023: less good
The reason for the uneven years: too much rain.
Finally, we drink a Semillon with a little Chenin, made as an orange wine. Very tasty!
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