Loire
Loire
Within France, the Loire Valley region produces the greatest diversity of wine styles. The array of wines made reflects the different sub-regions that share little in common due to the region's sweeping expanse. It's an exciting mesh of sparkling, dry, sweet, rose and reds styles.
Known as the 'Garden of France' the Loire Valley is a prolific food bowl producing delectable treats across cheese, cherries, apples, butter and vegetables. Covering 1000km from east to west, this picturesque region is a feast for both your eyes and tastebuds.
Grapes
White: Chenin Blanc, Melon de Bourgogne (Muscadet), Sauvignon Blanc
Red: Cabernet Franc, Gamay, Pinot Noir, Grolleau
Styles
The Muscadets of the Nantais are influenced by the maritime climate. These wines are subtly textured, freshly fruited and best drunk young with some oysters. Anjou is where Chenin Blanc shines in various styles - sparkling, dry and sweet. Touraine is home to the tuffeau soils which Chenin blanc loves in Vouvray, and we see some red wines here too. Lastly, in the Central Vineyards where the soils are similar to Chablis, Sauvignon Blanc is the cross-bearer producing some exhilarating wines in Sancerre and Pouilly Fume.
Favourite Producers
Pepiere, Baumard, Pierre Bise, Roches Neuves, Huet, Francois Chidaine, Didier Dageneau, Vacheron, Gerard Boulay,
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Damien Pinon Tuffo Vouvray Sec 2022Damien Pinon is the third generation of his family to naturally farm Chenin Blanc in the chalky soils of Vernou-sur-Brenne in the appellation of Vouvray. His vines are old, creating lush, expressive white wines.
Ah Tuffo! This wine seems to never fail us. Not only is it a wonderful example of classic Vouvray it always delivers that little x-factor and bit of pizzaz we like. That lovely clay/waxed citrus and quince fruit comes at you straight off-the-bat with that slaty chalky thin that chenin does in the Loire so well. Some apple and pear drop generosity on the palate is cut by crunchy acidity and a little hit of phenolic grip that stick all those beautiful flavours to your mouth. There is a little floral flourish in the middle and spritz of mixed sweet spice on the finish. A cracker!2022Chenin BlancFrance422$38.00 As low as $34.20 -
Jonathan Didier Pabiot Pouilly Fume Leon 2023 375mlMore product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2023sauvignon BlancFrance422$41.00 As low as $36.90 -
Rocher des Violettes Vin de France Chenin 2023The 2023 Chenin is dry, clean and pure-fruited. Youthful, with a focus on the fresh fruit that's all pear and honeydew melon, it’s light in body but rounded. This is a silky, appealing style that has some nice juicy fruit. It’s attractive from day one. REBECCA GIBB MW, Vinous2023Chenin BlancFrance422$46.00 As low as $41.40 -
Rocher des Violettes Touche Mitaine Sec Montlouis 2022The 2022 Montlouis-sur-Loire Touche-Mitaine is an aromatically restrained style that focuses more on the lemon, mineral side of Chenin Blanc, displaying notes of autolysis from a year on lees and creaminess through the mid-palate. It’s rather nicely made—hands-off and with delicate juice. The 2022 spent a year maturing in very old 228-liter barrels, allowing the purity of fruit to shine and shaping its edges. REBECCA GIBB MW, Vinous2022Chenin BlancFrance422 -
Y.amirault Amirault Bourgueil Cote 50 2022The old La Coudraye, which changed to La Côte back in the 2018 vintage to reflect the variety of origins for the fruit. This is a sample drawn before bottling. A vibrant hue in the glass, and a beautifully pure and eager nose of black cherry, blackcurrant and damson fruits. The palate remains true to the nose, with that same sense of purity and an underbelly of soft chalk, before a sappy cherry-skin character at the end. Modestly extracted tannins, firm but not over done, with nice acidity for this warmer vintage, this should evolve nicely for some years, but should be ready to go within a year or two. The alcohol is said to be 13%. CHRIS KISSACK, Thewinedoctor.com2022Cabernet BlendsFrance422$47.00 As low as $42.30 -
Damien Pinon Vouvray Brut NVThird generation vignerons, the Pinons have 25 hectares in Vernou-sur-Brenne. 50% of their production is sparkling and 50% still wine with nothing sold off to the négoce.
We have long loved the wines of Damien Pinon and when we first tried this little number we were pretty stoked. Great sparkling Loire is such a treat. It captures all that zingy, racy, pure goodness of chenin blanc while bringing the added dimension of bubbles into the equation. They seem like a perfect partnership and we absolutely love this wine.
Quince and granny smith, talcum powder, quartyz spice and a gently honeysuckle, floral element that floats deliciously around in the background. Its pure and precise but fills out across the palate with each sip. Sometimes, Loire Sparkling is a little too lean but this deliver plenty of fruit at the same time to balance of the fine, minerally acidity.
NVChenin BlancFrance422$49.00 As low as $44.10 -
Rocher des Violettes Cot Touraine 2020This comes from a wide ranging age of vines between 5 - 129 years old on silty clay over limestone from the sites; Bel-Air, La Rochère, Le Grand Poirier and Les Borderies.
Made from Cot, the local name for malbec there's an ebullient lift to the nose of maraschino cherries, violets and fragrant blackberries with hints of black pepper thanks to the inclusion of whole bunches. A framework of tannins envelopes the intense core of dark berries with an undertow of savoury minerality to support. This is handsomely structured and will repay cellar time, though it's appealing and delicious from the outset. GABRIELLE POY
2020Cabernet FrancFrance422$50.00 As low as $45.00 -
Domaine Landron-Chartier Muscadet Coteaux de la Loire 'Melon B' 2022Endowed with beautiful floral and fruity aromas. Freshness and minerality dance on the palate. A mouth-watering wine that will pair perfectly with a nice shellfish platter on a sunny day.Domaine Landron-Chartier
40 to 80 years old vines on schist terroir. Hand harvested, low yield 35 hl per hectares. Fermentation with natural yeast, ageing 6 to 8 months on lees. Light filtration and low sulphur added.2022MuscadetFrance422$52.00 As low as $46.80 -
Rocher des Violettes Touche Mitaine Sec Montlouis 2020Beautifully expressive Chenin Blanc, fusing both crystalline acidity with flecks of richness; white flowers, ripe lemons and subtle honeyed notes. Energy in glass and complexity that continually morphs as you go back for another sip; Underrated gem! JOHN BARR, BEAUNE & BEYOND
100% Chenin blanc, hand-picked in successive tries from 4ha of vines averaging 35 years old and planted at 6500 vines/ha.
2020Chenin BlancFrance422$55.00 As low as $49.50 -
Rocher des Violettes Les Borderies Demi Sec Montlouis 2023The 2023 Montlouis Les Borderies, a medium-dry wine, opens with a restrained yet distinctive bouquet of iodine, chalk, crushed stones and spices, marked by a flinty, mineral edge. Medium- to full-bodied, enveloping and sappy, it is textured and juicy at the core, despite its austere and introverted personality. Sourced from vines planted on sandy soils in the commune of Saint-Martin-le-Beau, it was vinified and matured entirely in stainless steel, preserving purity and tension in this contemplative cuvée. YOHAN CASTAING2021Chenin BlancFrance422 -
Balivet Bugey Cerdon 2021More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2021Sparkling WineFrance422$59.00 As low as $53.10 -
Rocher des Violettes Les Borderies Demi Sec Montlouis 2020From a single vineyard of 50+ year old vines on sand and silex (with pure limesonte just below).
Borderies is often the first vineyard to be harvested from slightly raisened fruit. Notes of jasmine, apple pie and crushed rocks on the nose lead into a subtle sweetness without heaviness. On the palate orchard fruits join in, signing off chalky minerality and a stream of quince-like phenolics which bring balance and punctuate the flow of sweetness. This is a delectable off-dry wine which could be served with cheese or richer seafood dishes. GABRIELLE POY
A little flint and white flowers with just picked anjou pear and a touch of pineapple and a little hint of bees wax. Fine and elegant with pure white fruits and a chalky mineral streak. Crystal clear and clean. Very pure. MYLES THOMSON, PWS
2020Chenin BlancFrance422$65.00 As low as $58.50 -
Jonathan Didier Pabiot Pouilly Fume Elisa 2023Previously labelled Prélude and now named after the winegrower’s youngest, Elisa, this is the first Pouilly in the range. It’s drawn from the domaine’s younger vines, and shrewd yields and precise farming elevate this above the norm. The vineyards cover the gamut of Pouilly’s soil types from a selection of lieux-dits, including limestone, silica and flint. The grapes are pressed as bunches with some crushing for structure, and aging occurs in stainless steel tanks on the lees for eight to 12 months. Despite the price, this bottling is the domaine’s smallest. It’s also the most citrusy, oozing fleshy ripe lemon, grapefruit pith and flecked with florals and juicy white fruit, all neatly cosseted by chalky salinity. It’s a great window into the Pabiot style.2023sauvignon BlancFrance422$68.00 As low as $61.20 -
Rocher des Violettes Le Grand Clos Sec Montlouis 2021XAVIER WEISSKOPF
The 2021 Montlouis-sur-Loire Le Grand Clos has generosity and a come-hither side to its personality. However, the natural acidity of this later-ripening, clay-based parcel, 91-year-old vines and the 2021 vintage means that there's a vivid line of acidity that trips through the wine, providing direction and energy. Fully dry, it leaves the drinker with a sense of uprightness. It has some richness from barrel-aging (500-liter barrels, 30% new), which lends a sweet, creamy aspect. REBECCA GIBB MW, Vinous
Xavier Weisskopf, the wunderkind of the Loire, has quickly emerged as one of the region’s most exciting talents. After a meteoric rise to Chef de Cave at Château de Saint Cosme in Gigondas, Xavier struck out on his own with Rocher de Viollettes, reviving a historic property in Montlouis. Since arriving, he has focused on restoring and converting the old vineyards to organic practices, preserving pre-WWII plantings while expanding the estate to over 17 hectares. Today, Xavier crafts wines that showcase both the Loire’s underappreciated terroirs and the remarkable potential of its old vines.
I’d like to introduce you to one of the future stars of French viticulture: Xavier Weisskopf. JACQUELINE FREIDRICH, Guide to the Loire.2021Chenin BlancFrance422 -
Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Demi-Sec 2022 375mlMore product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2022Chenin BlancFrance422$76.00 As low as $68.40 -
Domaine de la Chevalerie Breteche Bourgueil 2017More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2017Cabernet BlendsFrance422$80.00 As low as $72.00 -
Domaine Vacheron Sancerre Blanc 2023... its straight Sancerre Blanc, a blend of parcels (limestone 45%, flint 45% and 10% marl), is fermented in tank after being hand harvested. It is a stellar ‘entry’ wine to their range.VINOUS
Domaine Vacheron is one of Sancerre’s elite properties, producing both white and red Sancerre wines of amazing purity and definition. The domaine has been completely transformed over to biodynamic farming with two young cousins, Jean-Laurent and Jean-Dominique Vacheron, at the helm. No synthetic material is used in the vineyard, harvests are carried out exclusively by hand, and the only fertilizer used is produced from the compost pile. Yields are kept extremely low. Having inherited some of the most coveted parcels in the appellation, the cousins are trying a Burgundian approach to Sancerre winemaking, with parcels being vinified .
Flinty sparks mix with fresh thyme and grapefruit pith aromas. The pure core of fruit cascades like a waterfall onto the palate, it’s luminous and palate staining while a minerally vein reminds you of its chalky and fossil laden soils it shares with Chablis. It slithers along, finishing with a mouth watering saline finish. It’s a refined and stylish Sancerre, so very damn delicious. GABRIELLE POY
2023sauvignon BlancFrance422$83.00 As low as $74.70 -
Rocher des Violettes Le Grand Poirier Moelleux Montlouis 2022Crafted from vines planted on sandy and loamy soils with pockets of red clay, the 2022 Montlouis Le Grand Poirier is both complex and deep, unfurling from the glass with expressive aromas of fresh pineapple, spices, smoke and exotic fruits, subtly mingled with minty undertones. Medium- to full-bodied, enveloping and dense, it's sappy with a fleshy texture and perfectly judged sweetness, culminating in a spicy, gourmand finish. It's a richly layered and harmonious wine that captures both generosity and precision. YOHAN CASTAING2022Chenin BlancFrance422 -
Gerard Boulay Sancerre a Chavignol 2023Jumping straight in at the deep end, Boulay’s entry-level is drawn from mature, 35- to 50-year-old vines rooted entirely in the limestone soils of Chavignol. The multiple sites are largely slopes on the Chavignol hillside terroirs of Les Chasseignes, Les Longues Fins and La Rue de Veaux. This is quite distinct from most Sancerre derived from the plains, with more fertile and productive soils. Importantly, Boulay also includes fruit from younger vines on the “star” terroirs of La Grande Côte, Clos de Beaujeu and Monts Damnés.
It’s a fleshier release than last year, and you can look forward to flavours of intense candied citrus, sweet herbs, Kaffir lime and white stone fruit intertwined with a lovely rocky texture alongside deliciously salty, mineral vibrancy, caraway spice and mouthwatering phenolic structure. It finishes with stony definition, chalky cut and great length. The first wine in the range is already one of the finest expressions of Sauvignon Blanc you are likely to find.
2023sauvignon BlancFrance422$89.00 As low as $80.10 -
Rocher des Violettes Le Grand Poirier Molleaux Montlouis 2020From a 0.8 ha plot ‘Le Grand Poirier’ planted in 1950. This has about 50% botrytis and aged in older barrels. RS 85 g/l
Smells so very strongly of fresh sage and honey and pineapple and medjool dates soaked in warm water. Lovely earthiness. Linden leaf. Saffron. An unusual nuttiness. Pineapple syrup and pressed sage on the palate. The sweetness fills the mouth but this is a wine that needs your silence, your listening, your waiting. If you give it time, sit back, find a nook in the garden or tucked into your old armchair, it's a wine that gives so much more than sweetness. It hands you memories of rain on earth, of bruised clover underneath the ripening grapes, of bees, blue skies, black skies, pink-blazed-morning skies, mist-draped dawns. You can taste yeast, old wood, black coffee, a slowly melting fingertip of dark chocolate on your tongue, ginger-biscuit crumbs. It's something, this wine. TAMLYN CURRIN, Jancis Robinson
2020Chenin BlancFrance422$90.00 As low as $85.00 -
Huet Petillant Brut 2019Only the best grower Champagnes have the kind of interest, sense of place and attention to detail this sparkling wine offers. Bottled at a low pressure of 2.5/3 atmospheres (most Champagnes are between five and six), this wine has a more delicate fizz than most. The fruit is all estate-grown (certified biodynamic) and comes from the youngest vines in Huet’s Première Côte vineyards. Crafted in a hybrid méthode ancestrale style (only natural sugar in the must was used for the second fermentation), it’s made in years that favour dry wine production.
Disgorged in October 2023 following 36 months on lees in the Huet cellars, the 2019 release has just over 1 g/L residual sugar and was dosed with the 2018 Le Haut Lieu Moelleux. To quote sparkling wine authority Peter Liem on the style: “It’s a magical, intensely expressive wine, and ridiculously inexpensive for the quality”. Let’s hear that again: ridiculously inexpensive for the quality. 2019 is a magical, fleshy mineral release for this benchmark Loire sparkling.
2019Chenin BlancFrance422$92.00 As low as $82.80 -
Francois Chidaine Vin de France Moelleux (Vouvray) 2018Again this moelleux cuvée has a very gentle residual sugar, with just 25 g/l. Unsurprisingly it feels very pure and fresh on the nose, with a very focused style, with scents of peach leaf and some lightly honeyed orchard fruit. The palate is pure, fresh and bright, mixing a pithy substance of both orchard and citrus fruits, fresh and pure, with a very fine acid backbone. This is quite striking in the finish, where it is long and cleansed with wonderful vibrancy. Very good potential here but it needs time.”
CHRIS KISSACK, thewinedoctor.com
Chidaine does not release a Moelleux from his Vouvray vineyards every year—the balance has to be just so—and so you can be sure that when he does it is worth seeking out. It's drawn from the clay-limestone vineyards (of Le Bouchet, L’Espagnole, L’Homme, La Chatterie et al.) and made in the same fashion as Les Tuffeaux. As we have seen chez Huet, 2018 was a stunning year for sweeter styles of Chenin Blanc and here the song remains the same.2016Chenin BlancFrance422$105.00 As low as $94.50 -
Huet Vouvray Le Haut-Lieu Demi-Sec 2022The 2022 Le Haut-Lieu Demi-Sec is juicy, though never generous, but still a comforting Vouvray that remains focused; there's sufficient tension from the acidity despite the season's warmth. Welcoming and friendly from the off, there's fine fruit here with a pretty talc note. It has a sense of persistence and presence that elevates this wine from purely a fruity Chenin. Really charming. REBECCA GIBB MW2022Chenin BlancFrance422$120.00 As low as $108.00 -
Pierre Bise Savennieres Roche Aux Moines 2020The 2020 Roche aux Moines is a full bodied, round shouldered style with supple texture and a reassuring sense of grip from a combination of acid, phenolics and the schistous/sandstone soils of this famous vineyard. It's a wine that takes its 14% alcohol with ease and glides along, providing long, long length. Having spent 18 months on lees in barrel, there is an integrated nutty oak and pastry-like character within the wine's core. Mouth-watering acidity makes you want more. REBECCA GIBB MW, Vinous2020Chenin BlancFrance422$120.00 As low as $108.00 -
Francois Chidaine Montlouis Les Bournais 2022More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2022Chenin BlancFrance422$125.00 As low as $112.50 -
Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Demi-Sec 2022The 2022 Clos du Bourg Demi-Sec is round and appealing, akin to a cozy night in with your slippers on; there's flesh and succulence, but it retains its shape and a sense of lightness on its feet. The ripeness of white stone fruit reminds me of nectarine and a heady floral character reminiscent of honeysuckle, even verging jasmine. And yet, it shows its pedigree in its fine texture and line. REBECCA GIBB MW2022Chenin BlancFrance422$135.00 As low as $121.50 -
Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi Sec 2022The 2022 Le Mont Demi-Sec is less fruity and charming than, say, Clos du Bourg; its tension and line come from its flinty terroir. Despite its 21g/L residual sugar, it retains a sense of tautness without being totally linear. Radish and pear notes linger on the long finish. This is grown-up demi-sec. REBECCA GIBB MW2020Chenin BlancFrance422$135.00 As low as $121.50 -
Gerard Boulay Sancerre Clos Beaujeu 2023Le Clos de Beaujeu is one of Boulay’s thoroughbred historic sites. Boulay farms two parcels in this terroir, including one within the original clos, established by the monks of Beaujeu in the Middle Ages. This parcel is historically known as Le Grand Clos. For this reason, Boulay names this wine Clos de Beaujeu rather than the more ubiquitous Cul de Beaujeu. In his book Le Vignoble de Chavignol, Thibaut Boulay notes that this vineyard first appears in documents dating to 1328 as the Clausus de Bellojoco, indicating this terroir’s age-old origins.
Vines on this slope of Kimmeridgian limestone and clay (terre blanches) sit between 30 and (a remarkable) 110 years old. The soils here are particularly rocky—limestone-rich and strewn with fossils—making this parcel difficult to farm. A second, even steeper parcel at a 60% gradient lies closer to the village. These southeast-facing Clos de Beaujeu plots grow some of the domaine’s most structured, verdant and nervy wines. This cuvée ferments spontaneously and rests in large, upright cask (60%) and three- and four-year-old 300-litre barrels (40%) for 10 months.
2023sauvignon BlancFrance422$160.00 As low as $144.00 -
Gerard Boulay Sancerre La Côte 2023More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2023sauvignon BlancFrance422$170.00 As low as $153.00 -
Loire Valley Pack French Wine School Masterclass
More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
$195.00 -
Gerard Boulay Sancerre Comtesse 2023More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2023sauvignon BlancFrance422$200.00 As low as $180.00 -
Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Premiere Trie 2020More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2020Chenin BlancFrance422$200.00 As low as $180.00 -
Pascal Cotat Sancerre La Grande Cote 2024More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2022sauvignon BlancFrance422Special Price $229.00 Regular Price $255.00 -
Pascal Cotat Sancerre Les Montes Damnes 2024More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2022sauvignon BlancFrance422Special Price $229.00 Regular Price $255.00 -
Didier Dagueneau Silex 2022The 2022 Silex is not a lot of fun upon release; dry and tense, it really needs time to mellow. There's flesh from the clay element of its clay-flint soils, which is felt on entry but tightens up as it moves through the mouth. This remains a wine of drive, firmness and upright structure; it speaks of the place it comes from rather than its variety. Aromatics are almost a forgotten element; this is a wine about structure and texture. There is a lemony, wild goat cheese-like note and a distinct flinty whiff. SIlex, after all, means flint in French. REBECCA GIBB MW2019sauvignon BlancFrance422$520.00 As low as $468.00