Great Wine Made Simple - Andrea Immer [63]
Chenin Blanc—The Loire Valley’s One-of-a-Kind Wine
From Wall Street, I had taken the fast track to wine. In 1993, scarcely three years after leaving the world of interest rate swaps and currency options, I had graduated from interested to immersed, from tasting blindly to blind tasting. And there I sat, head bent, peering intently at an anonymous glass of white wine, swirling, smelling, willing it to reveal something of its identity to me. There were thirty of us in that room, “working” that same wine under the supervision of a team of famous British wine-tasting experts—the concentration was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Finally it came time to “commit” to an answer. Grape? Region? “Chenin Blanc, Loire Valley” someone boldly offered. Bingo! Year? None of the guesses strayed far from the rest—1990, 1988, 1985. The Brits chuckled, prompting us all to return to the pale straw liquid in the glass, looking for clues.
It was a 1953—forty years old! The fact is that the age-worthiness of Loire Valley white wines made from the Chenin Blanc grape is legendary, though little known to American wine drinkers. I think they are some of the world’s great white wines, and that is why I include mention of them among France’s one-of-a-kind offerings. They cannot be ranked with the French paradigms, because Chenin Blanc grown elsewhere in the world (notably California and South Africa, where it is called Steen) makes quite ordinary wine, never seeming to achieve or even attempt the eminence of the Loire Valley versions. They are sold under the following regional names—Vouvray (Voo-VRAY), Savennières (Sah-venn-YAIR), and Coteaux du Layon (Coh-TOE duh Lay-OHN), and you must try them.
Here are some of my favorite wineries from each region:
Savennières Domaine des Baumard (Domain day Bow-MARR), Nicolas Joly (Jhoh-LEE)
Vouvray Champalou (Shahm-puh-LOO), Prince Poniatowski (Prince Pahn-uh-TOW-ski) Bourillon-d’Orleans (Boor-ee-YOHN Door-lay-OHN), Huet (Hugh-AY), Philippe Foreau (For-OH), Benoit Gautier (Go-tee-AY)
Coteaux du Layon Château Bellerive, Château de Fesle (duh FELL), Domaine Godineau (Goh-duh-NO), Moulin Touchais (MOO-LAHN TOO-SHAY), Domaine Ogereau (Oh-Jhuh-ROW), Domaine Cady (Cah-DEE), Beaumards (Bow-MARR)
SUBTLE BUT SPECTACULAR Using your Flavor Map and Old World/New World reference points, you already have a sense for the character of these wines—apple/pear fruit-flavor profile; light and elegant body and structure; overall subtlety. What makes them spectacular? You must taste for yourself, but it is the virtue that all classic wines share—complexity. Their scents and flavors, and especially the aftertaste or finish, will command your attention and keep you coming back to the glass for more. Expert tasters often refer to scents of beeswax (like a candle), apple, and honey, but if you don’t relate to these specifics, it doesn’t matter. You will still love the wines. There are dry, off-dry, and sweet styles of Loire Valley Chenin Blanc. The sweet styles are usually made, like Sauternes, from grapes concentrated by noble rot. Here is how to use the label to determine which is which:
The Loire wines I have covered here are great ones, and there are other worthy Loire Valley wines, including some tasty reds and rosés, but their availability in the United States is quite limited. If you happen upon a restaurant or shop that takes special interest in Loire Valley wines, let them help you choose some to try. Compared to other regions and countries, value for the money is excellent.
Alsace—France’s Classic Varietal Wines
Shielded from storms