Loire 2019 – Saumur, Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil and Bourgueil

Picking @Domaine de la Butte, Bourgueil

Some photos and reports from harvest in Saumur, Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil and Bourgueil on 3rd October.

2019 Cabernet Franc in vineyard along Montée de l'Angle Cher, Saumur 
Above and below
(Saumur-Chempigny)

 

Picture perfect Cabernet Franc

We made a number of visits on Thursday 3rd October to vignerons to see how the 2019 harvest was progressing. The overall message is that 2019 is another quality vintage, that it is a very good vintage for whites with a better balance and freshness than 2018. However, unlike the generous 2018 vintage, 2019 is a small vintage due to a combination of factors – spring frosts, coulure and millerandage during flowering due to wet conditions in early June, drought and grapes being grilled by the sun.

In last week's post I raised the frequency of grapes being frazzled by the heat spikes at the end of June and during July. It would appear that the spike at the end of July caused the most damage. It also seems that Chenin Blanc was more affected by the heat of the sun than Cabernet Franc.  Raising the height of the canopy is one way of providing more protection through increasing the amount of shade compared to vines with a low canopy.

As is often the case there were some who were only just starting – Anthony and Cedric Bonneau (Domaine de la Bonnelière – Saumur and Saumur-Champigny.  They had started that day on picking Cabernet for their rosé and would also be picking their Chenin Blanc for their Saumur Blanc. They had picked grapes destined for their Crémant de Loire between the 22nd and 24th September. However, they would only start picking their Cabernet Franc for Saumur Rouge and Saumur Champigny at the beginning of this week beginning 7th October. In contrast Antoine Sanzay, Jean-Pierre Chevallier (Ch de Villeneuve), Frédéric Mabileau, Yannick Amirault and Philippe Boucard (Lamé Delisle Boucard) were all close to finishing.

Higher trained vines not only provide more foliage
but also increased shade give further protection against sunburnt grapes

 

Example of higher foliage providing more shade
+ vine suffering from Esca

 

Chenin Blanc grapes grilled by the sun, Saumur

Picking @Domaine de la Butte, Bourgueil

Frédéric Mabileau– 2019 Cabernet Franc
again picture perfect fruit

Jean-Paul Mabileau (doesn't want to wait for the 2019 wine to be made
– he wants to enjoy the grapes now!

 

2019 Cabernet Franc macerating, Domaine Yannick Amirault
Bourgueil and Saint-Nicolas de Bourgueil

 

Barrels and amphores @Domaine Yannick Amirault

Frédéric Mabileau and his small egg
containing Chenin Blanc with pips and skins

 

•••

Antoine Sanzay's renovated cave 

The entrance to the complex of caves

During our visit to see how 2019 was progressing at Antoine Sanzay (Varrains), he quickly showed his renovated cave. The complex of cellars, part of which was once a dwelling, has for many years existed but now they have been renovated to provide wine storage space. The major work was concreting the floor to make an easy and convenient surface.

Antoine has installed a lift for easy access for his wine

 

The lift housing 

Nick Faith, 2018 Loire, Paris-Tours highlights Vouvray

Au revoir Nick

 

2005 – Nick Faith receiving the 2004 André Simon Drinks Book Award 

The eminent journalist and writer, Nick Faith, died on Wednesday 26th September at the age of 85. He was born in London on 6th July 1933.

I was privileged to get to know Nick when he joined the Circle of Wine Writers around 1996. He was a great support for me when editing Circle Update, the newsletter of the Circle of Wine Writers. For a number of years he checked the newsletter for libel.

Nick was a leading authority on Cognac as well as writing detailed and impressive accounts of the Cruse scandal in Bordeaux in The Winemasters (1978), which won him an André Simon Drinks Book Award, and The Bronfmans: The Rise and Fall of the House of Seagram on the once powerful Canadian drinks family.  Railways were another of his passions and interests.

Nick will be sadly missed.

Obits:
Farewell Nick Faith by Jancis Robinson MW
Guardian

***

2018 Saumur & Saumur-Champigny

 

 

Last Thursday we made a quick dash through Saumur-Champigny to see how the 2018 vintage is progressing before heading off for an excellent lunch at Vincent le Cuisinier de Campagne , Ingrandes de Touraine.

We had time to drop in on three producers – Anton Sanzay, Domaine de la Bonnelière (Bonneau Frères)  and Rocheville (Agnès et Philippe Porché). There was a interesting variation in picking times. Both Antoine Sanzay and Rocheville had finished – Antoine on Tuesday evening while Rocheville were right at the very end of picking. In contrast the Bonneau brothers were barely halfway through their harvest. Cédric Bonneau explained that they had started the reds a week ago and that the tannins in the skins and pips remained strong, so they were taking their time with still a week's picking ahead. They still had all the vineyards on the coteaux (clay-limestone) to harvest.

All three were understandably very happy with how clean the fruit is this year with virtually no sign of rot. Serious losses from mildew has been a problem in parts of the Loire. None of these three domaines had suffered from serious losses. As elsewhere a limited amount of mildew damage was quite useful as 2018 was potentially a very big crop losing some grapes through mildew meant that a green harvest wasn't necessary.

Driving through the Saumur-Champigny vineyards it was apparent that there was still a substantial amount of grapes to be picked.

•••

Paris-Tours Classic has Vouvray make-over

The Paris-Tours course from La Nouvelle République

Details of the white roads and steep climbs around the Vouvray Appellation

Doubtless inspired by the Vouvray articles on our blog (Les 5 du Vin), the organisers of the Paris-Tours classic bike race changed this year's edition run last Sunday (7th October) from the traditional route. Instead of featuring some steep hills and narrow roads to the south of Tours, farm tracks and short steep hills in the Vouvray were featured in the last part of the race. The 2018 edition was won by Søren Kragh Andersen, who broke away from his two breakaway companions with 10 kilometres remaining to win on his own.

The race is often known as a sprinters' classic. Over recent years wins have been shared between sprinters and breakaway specialists. If the change to farm tracks and short steep climbs is continued then it is very unlikely that Paris-Tours will ever come down to a big bunch sprint again as the farm tracks rapidly blew the race apart with numerous punctures caused by sharp stones.

The new route made great TV watching but caused a mixed reaction amongst the riders and their team managers – some loved it while others said that farm tracks have no place in road racing.

Paris-Tours was first run in 1896 making it one of the oldest bike races in the world.

2018 VitiLoire – Plouzeau and Bonneau

 

New Chinon Blanc
I tasted the 2016 Silice the first Chinon Blanc from Marc Plouzeau – Château de la Bonnelière  Marc planted his 50 ares of Chenin Blanc in 2013 on a south facing site. This rich and concentrated wine is vinified in 600 litre barrels. There are some wood notes present but these I expect will soon blend in.

 

Rapport qualité-prix in Saumur-Champigny

 

Domaine la Bonnelière
Son of Anthony Bonneau helping Cedric Bonneau on their stand 

Domaine la Bonnelière in Varrains continues to offer remarkable value and quality with both their Saumur-Champigny Tradition (6€) and Les Poyeux (8.50€). The Tradition is currently 2017 and 2015 for Les Poyeux. 

2006 Saumur Champigny, Château de Villeneuve

2006 Saumur-Champigny, Château de Villeneuve

If you listened to some received ideas you would imagine that this 2006 straight Saumur-Champigny from Château de Villeveuve would be well past its best. Not at all! In glass it still looks youthful – no sign of brickiness. Similarly on the palate it has the roundness, soft texture and structure that is associated with the 2006 vintage. Tasted blind I am sure it would be difficult to say that this wine is nearly 12 years ago.

Impressive as this is Jean-Pierre Chevallier's straight Saumur-Champigny and not either the Vieilles Vignes or Grand Clos. 

Robert et Marcel wrap up the Clos Cristal deal

Clos Cristal, Saumur-Champigny 

The deal has been closed. It has been agreed, and will be signed and sealed that Robert et Marcel, aka La Cave des Vignerons de Saint-Cyr, would take a 25-year lease on the famous Clos Cristal, one of two highly unusual vineyards established by Antoine Cristal (1837-1931).

Cristal established two vineyards – Clos Cristal for red and the Clos des Murs for white. As well as enclosing these vineyards with a wall he built walls within the vineyard running west to east. These walls had regular holes which allowed vines to be planted on the north side and trained through through the hole. This means that the roots and base of the vine is in the shade, so helping to keep the roots etc. moist, while the rest of the vine faces south and the sun plus benefitting from heat radiated from the wall.

This agreement ends a crisis that started in early 2016 when L'Institut du Clos Cristal, the company running the Clos Cristal on behalf of the hospital of Saumur got into financial problems. L'Institut du Clos Cristal is now in liquidation with debts of some 300,000 Euros. Clos Cristal had been run since 1996 by Eric Dubois.

In April 2016 the Saumur Hospital appealed for people to make offers for the Clos Cristal on a 25 year long-term rental agreement. This appeal produced a large response – 18 offers. From this five were selected and there was a proposal that le Clos might be managed between a number of partners. In the interim Robert et Marcel were invited to run the Clos, which had been untended for several months, for two years. Unfortunately this was too late to save the 2016 vintage, which will not be released.

Instead of an arrangement with a number of actors, Robert et Marcel will be the leaseholders of Le Clos Cristal for 25 years. The Clos will continue to be run organically, as a separate entity and managed by François Robinson, who has experience of working in Australia and New Zealand. Robert and Marcel will be investing 1.3 million euros and replanting six of the ten hectares. 10% of this will be Chenin Blanc and 90% Cabernet Franc.

in 1957 the late Robert and Marcel Neau were the founders of the well run Cave des Vignerons de Saint-Cyr in Saint-Cyr-en-Bourg. They were president and director respectively. It was in November 2013 that the Cave de Saint-Cyr changed its name. Robert et Marcel are part of Alliance Loire – now an association of seven cave cooperatives from the Pays Nantais through to Touraine, whose headquarters are at St Cyr.  Alliance Loire is also a shareholder in Ackerman, the region's leading Loire based négociant. Ackerman is in expansionist mode. In particular it has been acquiring individual domaines such as Château La Varière in Anjou and and Château de Sancerre.

2015 Les Poyeux, Saumur-Champigny, Domaine la Bonnelière

2015 Les Poyeaux, Saumur-Champigny, 

Domaine de la Bonnelière

Thanks to Charly and Nady Foucault Les Poyeux is now one of the most famous vineyard sites in the Loire. As well as the Foucaults there are a number of other producers including Antoine Sanzay and the Bonneau family – Domaine la Bonnelière. 

The 2015 Les Poyeux, Domaine de la Bonnelière is very promising: very enjoyable to drink now it will surely repay keeping. It is still youthful with a rich concentration of pure black fruits, softly textured but with structure and some complexity along with good length. Reasonably priced this is a bargain.    

2017 Saumur-Champigny Tradition, Domaine de la Bonnelière

 

Not one of the most fashionable of Saumur-Champigny domaines, Domaine la Bonnelière is a lesser known gem making very good wine at decidedly reasonable prices. The 2017 Tradition is no exception to this: soft, fragrant Cabernet Franc, slightly herbal making this 2017 a very attractive young Saumur-Champigny.  

Several bottles in search of a 70th birthday celebration

Elegant, Touraine Brut, Château de l'Aulée 

Mainly Chenin Blanc with a little Chardonnay

Back to Tuesday 3rd October and a 70th birthday celebration. We warmed up with a bottle of Elegance, Touraine Brut from Château de l'Aulée before moving onto Jacky Blot's Triple Zéro, a firm favourite from Montlouis.   
 

Apéros over it was time for the first course a largely seasonal salad with goats' cheese, lardons and a selection of different mushrooms including cèpes and girolles. This was accompanied by a magnum of the 2009 Clos Saint André, Fiefs Vendéens from Jérémie Mourat. 100% Chenin Blanc this had the richness and soft acidity that worked very well with the salad 

With the main course a couple of plain roasted Poulet de Racan a couple of bottles of the classic 1996 Vieilles Vignes, Saumur-Champigny from Château de Villeneuve. With aged this wine has developed lovely complexity while still remaining youthful. This 1996 must surely be good for at least another 10-15 years and probably more.    

 

Back in time for the cheese with the 1961 Vouvray Le Haut-Lieu Demi-Sec from Domaine Huet. Still amazingly youthful it opened out in the carafe and then in glass. I probably should have opened and decanted this several more hours in advance. Even so it was stunning – wonderfully precise with some honeyed tones.  

We finished with a rich chocolate birthday cake. The 1988 Banyuls Cuvée Francis Cantié from Domaine la Tour Vieille with its rich nutty, raisined and coffee flavours. 

Château de Villeneuve, Saumur – the new cellar and winery

 Front of the new Château de Villeneuve winery 

Last Thursday we dropped in on Florence and Jean-Pierre Chevallier at Château de Villeneuve in Souzay-Champigny. Jean-Pierre had time to show us quickly round their new winery, which uses the amazing cellars/caves that run under the château. The caves are extensive and remarkably dry. 

In 1969 they were sold to the Pays Nantais négociant Santejeau, which is now part of Castel Frères. This was the same year that the Chevallier family bought the estate. Later they were used by the Saumur sparkling wine house, Veuve Amiot. Then 20 years ago Jean-Pierre bought them back and has now renovated them. Previously his wine-making facilities were above Château de Hureau a little under two kilometres further west towards Saumur. 

Jean-Pierre is currently renting his old winemaking facility at Hureau to Patrice Rétif, who used to be one of the partners in Les Champs Fleuris. Patrice with his wife Catherine now has his own domaine – Domaine des Damoiselles.

The entrance to the winery is on the 

main road from Chinon to Saumur.  

Looking down on the winery 

with the caves under the château

Fermentation tanks

(above and below)

 CRM and Jean-Pierre inspect some foudres

 New barrels 

 A couple of eggs

 

The extensive cellars

(above and below)

Root growing down through fissures in the rock

Me and my shadow

Cave privée

Sorting the just picked 2017 Cabernet Franc 

for Saumur-Champigny 

(above and below)