Loire Tasting

[TheEngineer]

Went to a Loire tasting yesterday. Arrived back in boston at 3:00pm and headed straight there. There were some ‘06’s but most of them were 07 and 08. The whites from the 07 and 08 were rather similar, with the 08 having a bit of an upper hand in density. The nice thing about these wines (which were all sub $35,…expect for the Quartes Des Charmes) were the nervous acidity that were found in them all. My teeth were hurting by the end of the tasting but that is what I want in my Loire whites.

So onto the tasting. There were a lot of wines so please forgive my shorter notes. Also as most of these wines were made to hit a price point, many of the descriptions will be the same. My favourites were the Baumard wines (surprise surprise), the Chateau de la Roulerie wines and the Langlois Chateau Roses (simple as they were but wonderfully refreshing).

2008 Domaine de la Chauviniere Muscadet Sevre et Maine, very clean good solid nose, grapefruit and minerals, on palate, much the same, nice acidity, slightly salty.

2008 Domaine de la Chauviniere Sauvignon Blanc, more modern in style, solid nose of grapefruit, nice mineral sense, very clean on palate, tropical, grapefruit, guava, good density, lingering finish, well put together but not necessarily my style of Loire SB.

2008 Pierre Duret Quincy, solid nose, getting sense that this style of nose is something that the importer wants, good backbone in wine.

2008 Chateau de la Roulerie Chemin Blanc Sec, rather elegant nose, well put together, nice floral components, off dry but good acidity, overachieving for the price

2008 Chateau de la Roulerie Cabernet Franc, again very solid cherry nose, more modern, lacking the vegetables that I like in a good CF, smooth mouth feel but with grip still from the tannins, solid wine and effort for the price

2008 Sincerite Rose, pretty nose with nice salmon colour, nose is rather floral but lacking a bit in elegance, slightly of dry but crisp to the taste, overachieving again for about $10 a bottle.

2008 Joseph Mellot Rose, much better than the Sincerite but only from a style perspective, much more dense and a again slightly sweet but elegant and well put together. Tasted side by side, the Sincerite tastes the rougher of the two.

2007 Remy Pannier Muscadet Sevre et Maine – Citrusy, peachy nose, good mouth feel a bit lacking in the mineral department, slightly salty, but nice acidity. A bit discombolutated right now.

2008 Remy Pannier Savignon Blanc – very clean, nose is slightly off dry, grapefruit, lychee, elegant, slightly flinty and good acidity

2008 Remy Pannier Sancerre – a more muddled nose, on palate, citrus rind, good acidity , nicely balanced but lacking much interest.

2008 Remy Pannier Vouvray – High toned nose, citrus rind and slightly off dry but good backbone beneath.

2008 Remy Pannier Rose Anjou – nice pretty salmon color, slight off dry but good structure, subtley floral and berries, great summer wine.

2007 Remy Pannier Chinon Estate Bottled – Deep purple colour, medium body, red fruit, but slightly off dry, good grip and nice persistence.

2008 Joel Delaunay Sauvignon Blanc – very clean, lighter nose, grapefruit, but rather uninteresting, good acidity, peachy, citrusy.

2008 Therry Delaunay TYDY Savignon blanc - More minerally than the previous wine, bit better balance

2005 Clos du Papillon – very nice nose, floral, peachy, very nice acidity, very nicely done. Maybe the vintage had a lot to do with this.

2007 Baumard Coteaux du Layon – a bit closed, lighter nose than usual, medium density and length, nicely structured and good acidity, wine is smooth and off dry as expected but lacking in the interest I was expecting from Baumard.

2007 Baumard Quartes De Charmes – rich smooth floral nose, rather elegant for a Quartes, nicely balanced wine with peach, lychee, nice acidity and dense. Not quite the effort of the 05 but a worthwhile drink nonetheless.

2008 Domaine de la Quilla Muscadet Sevre et Maine – reserved, slightly salty, good structure and nice long finish.

2007 Domaine Phillippe Portier Quincy – very fresh, very clean, floral, high toned, light in fruit, slightly woody, minerally

2007 Domaine Thomas Sancerre – light, slightly chalky, minerally, vervy but one dimensional

2007 Domaine Seguin – Puilly Fume – Very clean, slightly off dry, citrusy

2007 Larent Kraft Vouvray – slightly dumb on nose, but more on the palate, dense, off dry slightly salty

Domaine des Corbilleres Touraine Cabernet Franc – High toned, berries, slightly woody, not yet totally together, on palate, rather mellow, asparagus, medium density and medium finish.

2008 Domaine de la Louvetrie Muscadet, nose and palate are rather dense, fully, slightly salty

2008 Domaine Henri Bourgeois Sancerre – Bright clean wine, elegant nose, crisp, high toned grapefruit, pomelo, nicely done

2008 Domaine le Capitaine (Vouvry) clean nice nose, slightly off dry, good acidity but simple. Good sandwich wine.

2006 Francois Chidaine Vouvray – off dry, thicker on palate, very ripe

2008 Domaine le Capitaine – Vouvray – sparkling wine, very straightforward, but wonderfully crisp and vervy, moussy versus stream of bubbles, (could be the glass), nice vibrancy, very clean but lacking in character and complexity.

2008 Lame-Deslise-Boucard Bourgueil CF – berries, veggies, high toned acidity, medium body and density, but again lacking in character.

2008 Chateau de Hureau Samur-Champigny CF – much better than the above, more modern in style, smother, slightly off dry, rounder and long finish but not my style of Samur.

Langlois Chateau Rose – Simple rose, slightly sweet, berries, very crisp, good balance and very refreshing

Langlois Chateau Sparking Rose – very clean, crisp, simple but nicely done, very refreshing again.

2008 Chateau de Touche Muscadet, good solid nose but slightly more tart than I’d like

2008 Serge Laporte Savignon Blanc – nice grapefruit nose, good structure, more minerally.

2008 Domaine Lavigne Samur Champigny – red fruit on nose, medium body and density, slightly off dry

Domaine Rouchard Bourgueil – good structure, solid wine good grippy tannins,


That was only 1/3 of the tables.......i arrived late and only got to try 1/3 of the tables.