2017 Promising Loire harvest in Bourgueil and Chinon

 A picker at Domaine de la Butte, Bourgueil 

testing the quality of this year's Cabernet Franc

As this week is the big week for picking Cabernet Franc in Western Touraine – Chinon, Bourgueil and Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil – we made a quick visit there today to see how the picking of the Cabernet Franc is going. 

We popped into Lamé Delisle Boucard, Pierre and Catherine Breton, Domaine de Chevalerie and Domaine de la Butte in Bourgueil. Then across to Chinon to see – Charles Joguet, Baudry-Dutour and finally Domaine Bernard Baudry, where not only saw Bernard Baudry but also Chris Kissack (The Wine Doctor) and his wife Kim. 

Overall the vignerons are happy with the way the harvest is going, with the grapes coming in clean with little rot, especially on the limestone coteaux. After a some rain on Monday morning this week has been fine – this afternoon temperatures wer up to 26˚C. The good weather is mainly due to last, depending on which forecaster you follow. Météo-France now has some light rain during the afternoon for Bourgueil but further east in the Cher Valley no rain is forecast until at least Saturday 7th October. 

Although many are picking this week: the Bretons finished yesterday, Bernard Baudry will finish tomorrow, Jacky Blot at Domaine de la Butte will finish Saturday and I hear that Philippe Alliet finished last Friday. In contrast, however, Baudry-Dutour have only just started on their reds. The bulk will be picked next week with the prestige cuvées picked the following week. There seems to be considerable divergence between producers this year over the ideal ripeness. Time will tell....   

 

Domaine de la Butte: two friends 

ready for the lunch pause...

 

La force loading a case of grapes onto the tractor 

for the second sorting table above the winery 

 

In the Baudry-Dutour winery 

 Bernard Baudry happy with the 2017 harvest

 Cabernet Franc arriving at Domaine Bernard Baudry

(above and below)

More photos of today's visits to be added in a separate post tomorrow. 

Loire 2017 – some past harvest photos in anticipation

 Man in sombrero – picking in the Pays Nantais 

Picking Melon de Bourgogne – 2010

Dealing with Sauvignon Blanc @Vincent Grall's

garage winery in Sancerre 

Loïc Cailbourdin (Pouilly-Fumé) dealing with the press

Sorting table @ Bernard Baudry, Chinon

An evening @The Lahore Kebab House + a new view of the Shard

 The grey Shard 

 

The Shard with Canary Wharf in the background

The Shard on a grey London day taken from the dining room close to the Decanter tasting room in the Blue Fin Building. I have spent the day tasting reds of various vintages from Saumur, Saumur Le Puy Notre Dame and Saumur-Champigny. Apart from saying that we – @chris_kissack , @LaurePatry and I – tasted some good wines, the results will be out in Decanter in early May. 

Last night Chris Kissack, The Wine Doctor, and I were at The Lahore Kebab House. We rather pushed the boat up running up a bill for two of £40 and a few pence. Still stunning value and I can no longer go to the Lahore without ordering the wonderful starter of grilled chops, so I fancy that the days of three of us eating there for less than £40 are over. Chris spotted the chicken wings, which were a very good choice as I hadn't tried these before, and you get four pieces for a bargain price of £3!

We took two wines with us:  

The rich and impressive 2013 La Part des Anges, Chinon Blanc, Domaine de la Noblaie

(above and below) 

able to stand up to the spicy food and, in doing so, 

revealed more acidity than has been apparent when drunk by itself 

 

 2005 Les Grézeaux, Chinon, Bernard Baudry

Sweet soft fruit unfortunately scalped by a dubious cork

Not as good as it should have been 

     

#2015Loire – Chinon's biggest players prefer to wait

 Bunches of Cabernet Franc near Panzoult (AC Chinon)

Chinon's two biggest players – Baudry-Dutour and Couly-Dutheil – are in no rush to harvest their reds. At Baudry-Dutour their IGT Sauvignon from 11 hectares at Ligré is picked as is some of the Chenin Blanc for the Chinon Blanc and sparkling while Cabernet Franc for the rosé was picked on 21st September. 

"We are not yet ready for the reds," said Jean-Martin Dutour. "We will start on the classic reds from next Monday (4th October) but our top reds from Saint Louans and La Grille won't be started until around 12th October."  

"Yields are a bit higher than last year," Christophe Baudry explained, "probably around 45hl/ha compared to 40hl/ha last year but certainly not the maximum allowed.  

The situation at Couly-Dutheil is very similar. "We have picked some of the Chenin," said Jacques Couly but are waiting until next week to start on the reds and rosés. We expect full maturity around 10th-12th October with yields a little up on last year. 

Across the Vienne at Ligré Jérôme Billard (Domaine de la Noblaie) is waiting for the reds to ripen. "We picked some of the Chenin – those grapes that were fragile and starting to rot – on 21st September and started on the rosé yesterday. 

In contrast Matthieu Baudry (Domaine Bernard Baudry, Cravant-les-Coteaux) is in full harvest mode and expects to finish this week. "We started picking Cabernet Franc on 23rd September, having picked the Chenin on 21st and 22nd. When we started the potential alcohol in the Cabernet Franc was 11.5 to 12 now it is between 12-13. We don't want the grape sugars to get too concentrated. It is important to keep the freshness of the Loire and this North East wind threatens to shrivel (flétri) the grapes.  

Interesting to see the contrast in picking dates both within Chinon and in comparison to vineyards – Bourgueil and Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil north of the Loire.   

Jean-Martin Dutour (Baudry-Dutour) 

and President of the Chinon producers

Jacques Couly (Couly-Dutheil)

Arnaud Couly (Couly-Dutheil) 

Jérôme Billard (Domaine de la Noblaie)

Auberge du Cheval Rouge in Chisseaux

2009 Vouvray Pétillant, Catherine Dhoye-Deruet

With the sad closure of the Agnès Sorel in Genillé we need to find another restaurant reasonably close to us where the food is good plus offering good value. Le Bon Laboureur in Chenonceaux is excellent but the prices make it one for a special occasion. Equally at the other end of the price scale La Cantine, 22 rue Alfred Nobel in Bléré offers a very good value, simple workers' lunch but we need somewhere in between. 

Hearing that the Auberge du Cheval Rouge in Chisseaux had changed hands last year, four of us headed there on Friday night to see how it was doing. The new onwers are Jacques and Jenny Guillaumat. Jacques is in charge of the kitchen, while Jenny is front of house.

CRM and I hadn't been there for a numbers of years and the dining room has been brightened up. There is also another room upstairs and an attractive garden for warm days. Menus start at 29€ offering three courses with a choice of two dishes per course. We went for the slightly more expensive 35€ (3 courses) that gave us more choice. There is another menu that starts at 45€ for four courses. 

The wine list is compact with a good choice of local producers including Jean-François Merieau, Bruno Curassier, La Grange Tiphaine, Jacky Blot and François Chidaine. For an apéro we chose fine 2009 Vouvray Pétillant from  Catherine Dhoye-Deruet. It was just as well that I checked the label carefully as the waiter had brought her Méthode Traditionelle (fully sparkling rather than pétillant).

For our first course three of us chose the demi-caille rôtie, purée de céleri glacé à la coriandre maki de jambon de canard et jeunes pousses de mâche à l’huile de noix and one the langoustines poché dans un consommé de crabe vert, minestrone de légumes au tourteau. My quail was extremely good with some Oriental touches. 

We chose a half bottle of Yves and Pierre Martin's 2012 Chavignol, Sancerre, which confirmed Pierre's winemaking talent but not cheap at 24€ for a half.

Again for the main course we split three to one: civet de lotte, risotto aux jeunes légumes sauce crustacée légèrement safranée got three votes, while the final vote went to the filet mignon de roi rose (cochon de Touraine), purée de panais, pomme de terre en robe des champs et ses girolles. 

After the success of my first course I was bit disappointed with my lotte – not a very generous portion of fish with some of the pieces a little over-cooked. Nor was a really convinced that the risotto gained anything by being smeared across the bottom of the plate. CRM went for the pork and was very happy with its quality and the cooking, although she would have preferred a a few more dabs of sauce finding the dish a little dry. 

We drank Bernard Baudry's very good and slightly herbal 2011 Le Guillot, Chinon. Equally we could have gone for the Saumur-Champigny from Philippe Vatan (Château de Hureau) – the Tuffe cuvée if I remember rightly. 

To finish CRM and I went for notre traditionnel soufflé au grand marnier, glace à la vanille bourbon. Although it looked spectacular, the souffle was OK but not at the level of the first course.

Overall this is restaurant we will go back to but not as good as the sadly departed Agnès Sorel. In addition to the good food and value there Estelle Petit was a big plus. In contrast once Jenny Guillaumat had taken our order  I don't remember seeing her again. The last thing I want in a restaurant is to be fawned over but if the owner drops by during the meal, especially if they are not being rushed off their feet, it does indicate that they hope you are enjoying your meal. However, the meal was well paced but there were only three tables (nine covers) occupied. 

I would have been very happy had all the courses been up to the high standard of the first. However this and the compact wine list makes it worth returning.           

The half quail

 Langoustines

 The pork

2011 Le Clos Guillot, Chinon, Bernard Baudry

soufflé au grand marnier

2014 Renaissance tasting@Greniers de Saint Jean

Stéphanie and Vincent Deboutbertin,  Faye d'Anjou

Their first time at Renaissance

(above and below)

 

Just time this morning for a few photos from the Renaissance tasting before heading out to the Salon des Vins de Loire. Many more to be posted in next few days.

Benoît Amirault, Domaine Yannick Amirault

As ever good range of Bourgueil and Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil

Juicy 2012s look to be ready before more concentrated but closed 2011s

 Clément Baraut: very good 2011 Roche aux Moines, Savennières

Bernard Baudry in reflective mood – no surprise that he and 

Mathieu have again made a good range of recent Chinons

Two good Loire Cabernet Francs from Haynes Hanson & Clark

It is good to see a well respected UK merchant listing a range of Loire reds, so it was good to get the Winter 2013-14 list from Haynes Hanson & Clark. They list seven Loire reds. I chose to sample the 2008 Le Clos Guillot, Chinon (£16.90 a bottle or £14.97 by the case) from Bernard Baudry and the 2006 Cuvée Prestige Bourgueil (£15.85 a bottle or £14.02 by the case) from Domaine de la Lande, which also has vines in Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil and Chinon. 

We tried both on Saturday evening and then finished them on Sunday. Both are typical of their vintages – the 2006 Bourgueil more opulent and softer than the 2008, which while also having attractive fruit is more angular with the tannins and acidity more apparent. Both wines come from the limestone slopes – the Chinon being clay limestone, while the Bourgueil is on limestone and flinty soil. 

On the Saturday we paired the wines with a casserole of hare with a rich sauce finished with two squares of 90% chocolate. This matched the 2006 Bourgueil better – its opulence better suited to the richness of the dish. Sunday with a plain roast chicken the result was different as the 2008 shone through, showing more complexity than the Bourgueil.

Both wines are attractive Loire reds – nice to be able buy reasonably mature Loire examples. Of the two, the 2008 may well keep longer than the 2006, although both should easily last another two or three years though the 2008's tannin and acidity is likely to give it greater longevity. In any case the 2006 with its soft black fruits is delicious to drink now.       

Haynes Hanson & Clark Ltd also carry from the Domaine des Rochelles – 2012 L'Ardoise, Anjou Rouge and 2008 and 2007 Anjou Villages Brissac (I'd opt for the 2008); 2011 Tuffe, Saumur-Champigny (Château de Hureau) and 2009 Chinon (Domaine de la Noblaie).  

My thanks to Haynes Hanson & Clark Ltd for the samples.

Matthew Jukes curator of 100 Most Iconic Wine Estates

Matthew Jukes: Quintesstially's 100 Most Iconic Wine Estates

Matthew's Quintesstially's 100 Most Iconic Wine Estates was published by Quintesstentially Publishing at the end of 2012 priced at £30. 

Naturally Matthew's selection spans the entire wine world: from California to Australia and New Zealand by way of Europe and South Africa.

Matthew Jukes tasting

From the introduction:

'The wine world is ever changing, but these estates can be relied upon to make stellar wines year in, year out – they are the shimmering bedrock of the wine world. Showcasing an incredible array of grape varieties, regions and countries, with hypnotic aromas and devastating flavours there are sublime creations on every page. All are unique, celebrating their exact position on our planet and fashioning delicious wines which entrance our senses. A fair few of the pioneers mentioned within these covers have changed the paradigm of winemaking in their sphere. There are wines here that don't cost the earth and that bring great joy; nestling comfortably next to those whose rarity and cost are truly breath-taking. These are also all wines that I would love to have in my own collection; forming the most complete and balanced cellar that I can design.'  

     Bernard and Matthieu Baudry, Domaine Bernard Baudry

There are five Loire estates selected: Bernard Baudry, Filliatreau, Huet, Jacky and Jean-Philippe Blot, and François Cotat. 

 Frédéric Filliatreau testing Cabernet Franc during 2011 vintage@Brézé

 Noël Pinguet, Domaine Huet during the 2010 vendange   

Jacky Blot in Bourgueil@La Butte

Domaine François Cotat – 'closed'  

On Huet, Matthew comments: 'Until recently the estate was run by Gaston's son-in-law Noël Pinguet and with the security of substantial investment it looks set to cruise into the next generation, with winemaking controlled by local lad Benjamin Joliveau and long time cellar-master Jean-Bernard Berthomé.'

I trust that Matthew's optimism is well placed here but given the nature of Noël's departure in February 2012 questions for the moment hang in the air.   

  

Loire vignerons in the round: Bernard et Matthieu Baudry (Chinon)

Bernard and Matthieu Baudry (Domaine Bernard Baudry, Cravant-les-Coteaux, AC Chinon)

Quick trip to Chinon on Monday afternoon  to taste some 2009s. First visit was to Domaine Bernard Baudry where Matthieu has now taken over from his father, Bernard who is now officially retired although in fact he is still very much involved.

Matthieu Baudry

Details of wines and tasting notes to be added.