On Monday I phoned Charles Sydney, the long established Loire courtier, to see whether he had any reds form the Central Vineyards that were being sold in the UK. The call rapidly turned to the quality and value of these reds with Charles maintaining that there were few decent reds from this part of the Loire and even fewer worth the money – a view that I certainly didn’t agree with, especially having tasted over 160 of them just before Christmas.
We did agree that we approached this from very different perspectives – Charles trying to interest British retail buyers that these wines are good and worth the money, which is particularly difficult as the UK market is increasingly price-driven. I may or may not have crosses to bear but I’m extremely glad that I don’t have to sell wine to UK supermarkets for a living. Charles and Philippa, his wife, have been doing this for over 20 years now. Amazingly they are still reasonably sane.
Salon des Vins 2008: cake to celebrate Charles and Philippa's
20 years in the Loire
I’m in the fortunate position of being able to approach wines from the perspective of whether they are interesting and well made. Price is, of course, a factor but it isn’t dominant and I certainly don’t have to worry whether I can persuade a grower, who has already proposed a fair price, to give a lot more in promotions, BOGOFs and to take the pain each time the UK Chancellor of Exchequer raises excise duty or sterling crashes throw the floor against the Euro. No wonder many fine producers are increasingly happy to ignore the UK market.
Over the past month I have posted a number of comments on Central Vineyard reds. The 2006 Sancerre from Domaine Serge Laloue is further evidence that there are a number of very enjoyable Pinot Noirs now being made in Sancerre and elsewhere in the Central Vineyards. Made by Franck Laloue from a reasonable 45 hl/ha and costing 9.20€ this has attractive, soft vibrant red and black fruits and definite Pinot Noir character. Looking for something comparable in Burgundy, I would suggest something from the Côte Chalonnaise.
The Laloue Pinot Noir was picked by machine. Perhaps this would be even better if picked by hand. Talking to Didier Barrouillet just before New Year he said that Chardonnay and Cabernet – both Franc and Sauvignon – were the two varieties that could best support machine picking, whereas thinner skinned varieties like Pinot Noir are best hand picked.
We did agree that we approached this from very different perspectives – Charles trying to interest British retail buyers that these wines are good and worth the money, which is particularly difficult as the UK market is increasingly price-driven. I may or may not have crosses to bear but I’m extremely glad that I don’t have to sell wine to UK supermarkets for a living. Charles and Philippa, his wife, have been doing this for over 20 years now. Amazingly they are still reasonably sane.
Salon des Vins 2008: cake to celebrate Charles and Philippa's 20 years in the Loire
I’m in the fortunate position of being able to approach wines from the perspective of whether they are interesting and well made. Price is, of course, a factor but it isn’t dominant and I certainly don’t have to worry whether I can persuade a grower, who has already proposed a fair price, to give a lot more in promotions, BOGOFs and to take the pain each time the UK Chancellor of Exchequer raises excise duty or sterling crashes throw the floor against the Euro. No wonder many fine producers are increasingly happy to ignore the UK market.
Over the past month I have posted a number of comments on Central Vineyard reds. The 2006 Sancerre from Domaine Serge Laloue is further evidence that there are a number of very enjoyable Pinot Noirs now being made in Sancerre and elsewhere in the Central Vineyards. Made by Franck Laloue from a reasonable 45 hl/ha and costing 9.20€ this has attractive, soft vibrant red and black fruits and definite Pinot Noir character. Looking for something comparable in Burgundy, I would suggest something from the Côte Chalonnaise.
The Laloue Pinot Noir was picked by machine. Perhaps this would be even better if picked by hand. Talking to Didier Barrouillet just before New Year he said that Chardonnay and Cabernet – both Franc and Sauvignon – were the two varieties that could best support machine picking, whereas thinner skinned varieties like Pinot Noir are best hand picked.
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