A slow wander from Touraine to Anjou

Cabernet Franc (Saumur-Champigny - 15 October 2009)

15 October 2009
Yesterday afternoon we wandered slowly from the Cher Valley to Brissac-Quincé in Anjou. Another lovely bright day but at least ten degrees colder than eight days ago. Yesterday saw the first frost of this autumn with the grass quite white in places. We stopped briefly at the beautiful little village of Candes-Saint-Martin – the confluence of the Vienne and the Loire.

Candes Saint-Martin: just as the two rivers join – the Vienne is the deeper blue and closer, La Loire lighter (above and below)



Houses in Candes Saint-Martin

Then we headed onto Turquant and cut up through the vines passed Souzay-Champigny and onto Saumur. Still plenty of Cabernet Franc to pick in Saumur-Champigny and the grapes continue to look good with no sign of rot, although a few of the berries are now becoming shrivelled. I imagine the degrees (potential alcohol) are now quite high.

Grapillons (3rd generation grapes) Important that these are not picked

Chateau de Villeneuve (Saumur-Champigny) – above and below

Bridge at Saumur

Saumur: the château and Cristal Hotel named after Le Père Cristal

The Loire@Saumur

Saumur: houses on the south bank of the island, which is divided by the two channels of the Loire

After Saumur we drove along to Doué-la-Fontaine and then through Martigné-Briand to Thouarcé (the small town which is part of the Bonnezeaux appellation). Then onto Rablay-sur-Layon, stopping a little before the village to take pictures of the sweep of the terraced Clos Sainte-Magdelaine, a noticeable landmark.

Clos Sainte-Magdeleine (Coteaux du Layon, Faye d'Anjou?)

Dropped in on Catherine and Vincent Ogereau in Saint-Lambert-du-Lattay to get a progress report on the harvest. They are now in their fifth week of the vintage and today and yesterday they have been picking for the Cabernet d'Anjou. At the end of last week and Monday it was the Anjou Villages, followed by their Savennières. They are worried that the forecast for next Tuesday and the following two days is for rain when what they really need is another 10 days or so of fine weather to finish concentrating the Chenin Blanc for the Coteaux du Layon. "The grape skins, especially for the reds are becoming fragile," said Vincent. This he puts down to the prolonged dry spell from June to the beginning of September, when it rained.

Looking at meteociel this evening it looks like the poor weather has now been pushed to Wednesday and Thursday, after which the high pressure returns. Anyway Vincent and Catherine will be doing a tri in their Chenin on Monday. It's still fingers crossed time for part of the harvest and so close to a very good sweet wine vintage!

Emmanuel, Vincent and Catherine's son, is currently on work experience at Domaine Serene in Oregon and you can follow the harvest there on their blog, which includes contributions from Emmanuel. He has been appointed chief grape taster as apparently the winery people don't go into the vineyards there (only the Mexican workers) and Emmanuel was the only perosn familiar with tasting grapes to decide if they are ripe enough to pick.

Then we headed to Brissac-Quincé and Domaine de Bablut, where we spent the night.