Our line-up of Loire Valley wines
This Summer, I was invited to a wine chat focusing on Loire Valley wines led by Master Sommelier David Keck. While I arrived on time for the tasting, the wines didn’t, so I had the chance to experience them on my own a few weeks later.
You can’t do an Internet search without descriptors like “jewel and treasure.” The area is diverse. It begins on the Atlantic near Nantes and continues to the hills of Auvergne. This region is known for its castles, history, food and of course, wine. But there is no one specific style of wine – it’s a diverse selection from sparkling to white to red to rosé.
We tried four wines from four different appellations — Savennières, Anjou-Samur, Vouvray in Touraine, and Quincy in the Central Vineyards. We began with two chenin blancs which tasted very different due to the diverse climates of the regions.
- 2016 Domaine Des Baumard Savennières – this 100% Chenin Blanc was a lovely wine with notes of green apple, pear, almond, lemon grass and a nice minerality.
- 2017 Domaine Vigneau-Chevreau Cuvee Silex Vouvray France – this 100% Chenin Blanc was sweeter with notes of peach, tropical fruit, honey, stone and Asian spice with a nice acidity.
- 2017 Domaine Lecomte Quincy France – this 100% Sauvignon Blanc has notes of citrus, lemon grass, herbs, wet stone and a great minerality.
- 2017 Chateau de l’Eperonnière Rosé de Loire France – this Rosé was gorgeous and had notes of rose petals, raspberries, orange blossom, herbal notes and a nice minerality. It is a blend of Cabernet Franc (primarily) with Grolleau and Gamay added.
These wines were diverse and delicious. The most expensive (the Savennières) was $33 and the other three were under $20. I was surprised to see my husband searching our local wine merchants to find two of them because he liked them so much. For now, you’ll need to look on Wine Searcher to find your closest merchant. Take a chance on Loire wines and you will soon understand the #loirelover movement!
