Kevin Judd@Liberty Wines tasting

Kevin Judd: The Landscape of New Zealand Wine

Managed a quick half-hour at Liberty Wines autumn tasting@The Oval Conference Rooms before heading off to the RSJ Restaurant for the Loire offline (later posting). Just time to taste the Loire whites being shown by Liberty plus have a quick chat with Kevin Judd, famous as Cloudy Bay's winemaker and now with his own venture Greywacke plus a new book called The Landscape of New Zealand Wine. The stunning photos are Kevin's, while he shares the words with Bob Campbell MW. This new book project is something Kevin has been planning for ten years. It will be published in October by New Zealand publisher Craig Potton.

Kevin is keen to find distribution in the UK, so any publisher interested in adding this beautiful book to their list should contact Kevin on kevin@greywacke.com

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Notes on wines tasted@Liberty Wines
Domaine FL

2007 Le Chenin, Anjou

2007 Le Chenin, Anjou Blanc £10.50 plus vat
Attractively clean with quince and peach fruit.

2007 Chamboureau, Savennières

2007 Chamboureau, Savennières £17.50 plus vat
This has the typically clean precision of the 2007 vintage – it's mineral, lean and long.

2007 Roche aux Moines, Savennières (apologies for the rather hazy image – taken at speed!)

2007 Roche aux Moines, Savennières £32 plus vat
More weight than the Chamboureau but the oak is currently far too dominant. Will it marry with the fruit in time? Maybe but the oak treatment looks rather clumsy at the moment. Not convinced that it is worth nearly twice the price of the Chamboureau.

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Other Loires tasted
2008 Sauvignon Blanc VDP, Vignerons de Valençay £5.38 + vat

Easy drinking grassy, crisp, lemony style – not assertive.

2008 Valençay, Sebastien Vaillant £6.28 + vat

Sauvignon Blanc closed with a screwcap – lemony, crunchy fruit with some depth of flavour.

2008 Quincy, Domaine des Ballandors, Jean Tatin and Chatal Wilk £8.50 + vat
Precise, grassy, gooseberry and apricot flavours although still quite lean. May well take on further weight with more time in bottle. Jean and Chantal's website is here.

2007 Sancerre, Domaine Nicolas Girard £9.25 + vat

Closed with a screwcap, some weight and a touch of sweetness and some green asparagus flavours in the finish. This appears to be the same producer as the one below, also at Les Brosses.

2008 Sancerre, Domaines des Brosses, Alain Girard £9.35 + vat

Rather green and lean, crunchy style and decidedly green in the finish. Alain Girard is a producer (www.pays-sancerre-sologne.com/cqa/girard.htm) in Veaugues with nine hectares.

2008 Pouilly-Fumé, Domaine de Bel Air £9.55 + vat
Again, a lean and minerally style, grassy and good length – certainly more attractive than the two previous Sancerres. Producer in Pouilly-sur-Loire itself (www.belairpouilly.com)

2008 Sancerre Domaine Sautereau £9.70 + vat
Richer style than the previous Sancerres with attractive peachy fruit. Produced by David Sautereau, who has an 18ha estate at Les Epsailles, Crézancy.

I also tasted three South African Chenins with the 2008 Dancing Chenin Blanc from Fairview being the most attractive with its apricot and peach flavours and clean minerality.

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South African Chenin Blanc: Is the consumer confused by the range of styles?

Article here on a conference held by The Chenin Blanc Association