Loire Valley Wine Tasting @ Estima in Singapore

Click to view: Map of Loire Valley

The Loire Valley wine region often takes a backseat to its famous native neighbours when discussing French wines. French wine drinkers and lovers often opt for a classic white Burgundy and rich Burgundy red, or a prestigious red Bordeaux, or perhaps a Southern Rhone Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

Of all of the French wine producing regions, the Loire might produces the greatest variety of wines. They range from still to sparkling, very dry and acidic to hearty sweet, and clear in color to a deep purple. The diversity of wine produced in this region is due in part to its dynamic climate, which ranges from Continental to Mediterranean. This region is best known for Sauvignon blanc, Chenin blanc and Cabernet Franc. The most famous areas in the Loire Valley may be Sancerre and Vouvray.

It was a revelation of what Loire Valley wines can accomplish as we swirl through 4 whites, 3 reds and 1 sweet put together by Estima and participated by a mix of professional executives and managers, including Gary Ong and myself. We thank both Franck and Eric for their invites and we do hope members and readers from the wine community will enjoy the following read and report.

First the vintage guide …

Vintage Guide: 2005 Loire Valley: A remarkable grape quality has made 2005 an extraordinary vintage. Overall warm and dry, 2005 fluxuated between hot and cool periods. Well adapted to the vine’s cycle and the grape’s needs, this climate was almost ideal. Whilst 2005 is not a great botrytis year, the concentrated and minerally dry whites are excellent thanks to dry, warm conditions, while the reds are dense & lush.

Vintage Guide: 2004 Loire Valley: A wet summer balanced with adequate sun in September where winemakers churned out their wines pretty well. If anything, reports from the central vineyards’ appellations of Pouilly-Fumé and Sancerre are even better. The wines are fresh with good acidity, particularly welcome after the almost over-ripeness of the 2003s.

And the notes to an evening of floral whites and charming reds.

2004 Château Yvonne Saumur Blanc
France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur

Producer Profile: Chateau Yvonne is a small producer with 7 to 8 hectares of vineyard in the Loire Valley of France and owned by Yvonne et Jean-Francois Lameunière. Making only Chenin Blanc, 80% of which are from vines are over forty years old. Their vineyard is biodynamic, and their wines are made without filtration or sulfur.

M25022008. 12.5%. 100% Chenin Blanc. Vibrant and intense blossoms, passion fruit with light vanilla from barrel age. Medium-bodied, with melon notes, minerals, bright and alluring acidity, honey suckle. Dry medium finish. First wine of the evening’s flight and it’s already so beautiful. This would have been a fun wine candidate for blind tasting, especially for Burgundian wine lovers. Enjoyable now. Drink between 2008 to 2012. Price: €7.00 to €20.00. S$78.00.

2005 François Chidaine Montlouis-sur-Loire Clos du Breuil
France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Montlouis-sur-Loire

Producer Profile: François Chidaine with his father owns two independent estates. Their wines are made traditionally, with organic viticulture and he is a known champion for the Chenin Blanc grape and its ability to produce vibrant wines that age gracefully. Chidaine’s estate is divided into 8 distinct plots, with much of the vineyards between 40 and 80 years old. Visit website.

Montlouis Clos du Breuil: From our sources, Chidaine’s holdings include several plots spread over 3.5 hectares, each varying slightly on a typical Montlouis theme of clay and silex over chalk. The vines average about 40 years of age, although the oldest ones are 80 years old, and this is always made as a dry wine (with 4 to 5 grams of sugar added). It’s racy and extremely minerally, one of the classiest dry chenins of the area.

M25022008. 14.0%. 100% Chenin Blanc. Floral with wet stone, and some light white fruit. Medium-bodied, fresh soft apple, hay and more and more stone as it shines in the glass. Beautifully made, well balanced acidity, dry and a deep medium finish. Impressive and enjoyable now. Drink between 2008 to 2012. Price: Around €15.00. US$26.00. S$59.00.

2004 Domaine de Bellivière Jasnières Les Rosiers
France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Jasnières

Producer Profile: The estate founded in the 1930s, is the fruit of Eric Nicolas. Some 9 hectares, scattered over the territory of 6 villages (hence the name of their cuvée of Coteaux-du-Loir Vieilles Vignes Éparses or Scattered Old Vines). The estate is planted with Chenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc and Malbec. Visit website.

M25022008. 13.0%. 100% Chenin Blanc. Medium-bodied, with a hint of sweetness and some spiciness on the mid palate. Good weight and cooler tropical fruit flavors, honey, dried figs. Dry short finish. Drink between 2007 to 2011. Price: Around €17.00, US$30.00. S$69.00.

2005 Domaine de la Sansonnière Anjou Les Fouchardes
France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Anjou

Producer Profile: Marc Angeli stared Domaine de la Sansonnière in 1990 having moved from Aix-en-Provence. He studied stonemasonry but was always interested in wine making. He trained in Sauternes before working at Château Suduiraut and now farms his 12-hectare estate biodynamically after his friendship with Nicolas Joly blossomed. The Angeli’s try to be as self sufficient as possible and 4 hectares of their estate are given to non-wine crops along with a small herd of cows for compost, meat and milk for cheese, bees for honey and a vegetable patch. Their wine is made from grapes produced using biodynamic viticultural practices which emphasize the health and balance of the soil and forbid the use of agrochemicals and fertilizers. In essence, a strong advocate of biodynamic viticulture in this celebrated producer. Visit website.

M25022008. 14.0%. 100% Chenin Blanc. Mature wood with a fine honied character. Medium to full-bodied, it has a deep impact of richness, yet simplicity after the mid-palate, and drying acidity. A mildly flavored short to medium finish. Drink between 2010 and 2015. Price: Around €24.50. S$80.00.

2004 Château Yvonne Saumur-Champigny
France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur-Champigny

M25022008. 12.5%. 100% Cabernet Franc. Instant gratification. Strawberry, mushroom, tint of herbs undertones. Medium-bodied with leanness, earthen with a consuming amount of acidity and pure tannins. Lovely-made with a short to medium finish. Drink between 2010 to 2015. Price: S$72.00.

2005 Catherine et Pierre Breton Bourgueil Clos Sénéchal
France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Bourgueil

Producer Profile: Winemakers and owners Catherine and Pierre Breton have been running their 15 hectares vineyard along organic lines since 1991; they’ve been biodynamic since 1997. Located between Tours and Samur in the Loire Valley, they specialize in red wines from the Chinon and Bourgueil appellations. They use indigenous yeasts for their fermentations, and only the minimum use of sulfur dioxide in their bottling. An amusing fact is Pierre Breton (whose last name is also the name for Cabernet Franc in Loire’s local dialect). Their wines is classified as made from “organic agriculture.” Visit website.

M25022008. Very nice label. 12.5%. 100% Cabernet Franc from 30 year old vines, chalky soil, 1.3 hectares. A perfumed bouquet which showed distinct black currant flavored with vanilla oak. Modern and medium-bodied, it is complex with red fruit lavors, dry and yet showing a residue finesse and tannins which stood up in the glass. Nice wine with a short finish. Price: €12.00 to €16.00. US$30.00. S$63.00.

2005 Philippe Alliet Chinon Vieilles Vignes
France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Chinon

Producer Profile: Philippe Alliet is part of a new generation of quality conscious winemakers from the Loire Valley who work hard in the vineyard and harvest at maximum ripeness. He is a small producer that started with less than 8 hectares of Cabernet Franc vines in Chinon. But in 1999, he was able to purchase the beautiful Coteau de Noiré, a steep, south-facing vineyard planted on limestone-clay soil. Now, he is considered to be one of the best Loire Valley producer which we were fortunate to taste and yearn for more.

Today with his 12 hectares domaine, Philippe produces a stunning lineup of 100% Cabernet Franc wines: a basic Chinon of great purity and balance; “Vieilles Vignes,” a gravel-grown cuvee from 50 year-old vines that is aged in year-old barriques; and “Coteau de Noire,” aged in new barriques and grown on a superbly situated hillside vineyard. For all his cuvées, the grapes are totally destemmed to eliminate the vegetal characteristics often associated with Loire Valley reds. A five week maceration period produces a wine with great extract, which is then egg-white fined before bottling and released.

M25022008. 13.0%. 100% Cabernet Franc. This beautiful wine simply wetted our appetite. Lovely and sweet riper fruit flavors. Medium-bodied, savory and spicy, with mineral, earth and herbal flavors, well balanced with tight yet soft tannins. With ample bottle age, this will turn out elegantly with 101% enjoyment. Dry medium finish. Best after 2012. Drink between 2008 and 2020. Price: €16.90 to €17.50. S$75.00.

2005 Domaine de la Sansonnière Vin de Table Français Rosé d’Un Jour
France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Anjou

M25022008. 11.2%. 100% Grolleau Gris? Apricots with some spiced tea flavor. Medium-bodied, viscous and sweet, with an intriguing bitter short finish. Enjoyable now. Drink between 2008 to 2012. Price: Nil.

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Photographs and text by Daniel. Hit us with your best shots; we’ll try our best to listen. Send your inquiries or comments here or via email to jiuwine@gmail.com.