Jim's Loire: Three Vouvrays: Huet 1970 and 1976 and Fouquet 1989

3rd October 2009

1970 Clos du Bourg Moelleux

CRM's birthday so we have a few friends around to help us try a few bottles. We started with the 1970 Clos du Bourg Moelleux, Vouvray, Gaston Huet. Golden coloured, lightly sweet, honeyed with a wonderful fresh minerality. Certainly not a wine to serve with a dessert but perfect as an apéritif accompanied by canapés of home-made chicken liver paté. There was a view that this was starting to dry out but I think that came from a misapprehension that this was once much sweeter than it is now. Not sure whether we have anymore 1970 but I'm confident that it will keep a considerable while yet.

1976 Le Haut-Lieu Moelleux

Also for the apéritif we had the 1976 Le Haut-Lieu Moelleux, Vouvray, Gaston Huet. As the 1976 is richer than the 1970, I served this second. Despite the level being down an inch or so the 1976 was still fine – honeyed, quite rich and long lasting – a little deeper in colour to the 1970 but neither show their age. Both were lovely but my preference would go to the 1970 because of its precise minerality, which is a signature of wines from the Clos du Bourg. Having more clay at Le Haut Lieu the wines tend to be a little heavier without quite the finesse of Le Mont and Le Clos du Bourg. Both bottles were bought in the early 1980s.

1989 Selections des Grains Nobles, Domaine des Aubuisières, Bernard Fouquet

After this we moved away from the Loire until the dessert – a couple of fruit tarts from the excellent Serge Granger in Montrichard. The 1989 SGN from Bernard Fouquet is now showing well. Unlike the 1990s, the 1989s went through a long dumb stage from which they have now emerged . The 89 SGN has very attractive apricot and honeyed fruit with refreshing mineral acidity in the finish. It was best on its own – not quite rich enough for the tarts. Perhaps Le Marigny – the richer cuvée would have been a better choice.

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The day before (2nd October) we had had an impromptu tour of the Huet cellars when we dropped in to see how the start of the harvest was going. We had just picked up friends, Annie and John, from Tours Airport and Noël kindly suggested that Johan Le Calonnec, who is involved in the direct wine sales from the new tasting room and, very importantly, puts labels on venerable old bottles, would show us round. Here are a few photos.