2017 Loire vintage: Muscadet – pickers in action: Bonnet-Huteau: 12th September

Late yesterday afternoon we dropped in to see Rémi and Jean-Jacques Bonnet (Domaine Bonnet-Huteau in the commune of La Chapelle-Heulin. Unfortunately they were badly affected by the late April frosts this year. Apart from greatly reducing the crop it has also made picking difficult due to the marked variation in grape maturity between those bunches not affected by the frost and those that were frosted so any fruit is second generation – inevitably less ripe than the first generation bunches.  

Jean-Jacques was entertaining a couple of Dutch journalists – Esme and Roland. We caught up with JJ and Rémi in a parcel of vines close to the chai where the day's picking was concluding.

Fashionable head gear – happy picker 

anticipating the looming pause 

Marie, who is doing a stage at Bonnet-Huteau, 

has clearly enjoyed her first day picking

Rémi Bonnet 

Jean-Jacques Bonnet being interviewed 

by the Dutch journalists 

Loire producers @2017 Millésime Bio + brief comments (Part 1)

Jean-Jacques Bonnet, Domaine Bonnet-Huteau, 

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine 

Makers of fine Muscadet 

Rémi Bonnet (below)

 

Thomas Carsin, Clos de l'Élu, Saint Aubin de Luigné, Anjou

Excellent Chenins 

Xavier Cailleau, Château Bois-Brinçon, Anjou

Good range of Anjou

Fred Niger, Domaine de l'Ecu, Muscadet Sèvre et Maine 

The great experimenter

 

Philippe Vatan, Château de Hureau, 

Saumur and Saumur Champigny 

has long made a good range of Chenins and Cabernet Francs

Laura Semeria, Domaine de Montcy, 

Cheverny and Cour-Cheverny 

Laura started in 2007

Sadly has been hit a number of times by frost 

Denis Jamain, Domaine de Reuilly
Excellent white and red Reuilly

Benoît Landron, Domaine Landon Chartier

Muscadet Coteaux du Loire  

Good Muscadet's including potential 

future cru Champtoceaux

 Some of the range of wines from Domaine Landon Chartier,

which is in the commune of Ligné on north side of the Loire 

between Ancenis and Nantes 

 

Millésime Bio – around the fair Monday

 Marc Vanhellemont – one of Les 5 du Vin

 Michel Smith – another member of Les 5 du Vin – 

with a good and inexpensive red from the Abbaye de Valmagne

 Rémi Bonnet, Bonnet-Huteau (Pays Nantais)

Bonnet-Huteau: their Muscadet Sèvre et Maine looking very promising – concentration and vivacity.  

 Jean-Jacques Bonnet, Bonnet-Huteau (Pays Nantais)

 Jean-Luc Danto

 Frédéric Sigonneau, Domaine de L'R (Chinon) 
searching for finesse rather than power

 Hamish Wakes-Miller makes a defiant last stand for the tie 

 Jérôme Bretaudeau, Domaine de Belle Vue (Pays Nantais)

Domaine de Belle Vue: 2014 Main-mian – good juicy easy drinking red from Cabernet Franc; 2014 Muscadets very promising with lovely textures and balance.

 Guillaume Pire, Château de Fosse-Sèche (Saumur)

Good 2013 Arcane Saumur Blanc much better than 2012 Eolithe Saumur Rouge. 

Sylviane Quenioux, Domaine de Veilloux (Cheverny)

Another example of a promising 2014: their Domaine white: 85% Sauvignon Blanc and 15% Chardonnay.

2009 Muscadet-Sèvre-et-Maine, Dom. de la Levraudière

With several inches of snow yesterday in south London, opening a bottle of Muscadet was perhaps not the best choice for the weather. However, like other 2009s, the well made  Levaudière is quite rich with attractive floral aromas while still enough acidity in the finish. Made by Bonnet-Huteau in La Chapelle-Heulin this is distributed by de Neuville, part of Ackerman.  

From Wine Rack@£6.99 a bottle.