Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
From another early, low-acid vintage, the golden shining, botrytis-free 2003 Vouvray Le Haut-Lieu Moelleux Première Trie shows a beautifully intense, extraordinary clear, refined and elegant bouquet of ripe fruits intertwined with mineral flavors –– fascinating! Sweet, intense and delicate on the palate, this highly elegant and lovely concentrated Chenin is of great purity, balance and finesse. Its length is impressive, its generous flow is extremely sensual and its overall intensity and accessible generosity are absolutely gorgeous. This 2003 is great today, but will probably even more fascinating in 50+ years. The balance and drinkability is superb. Highly recommended. Drink date: 2015-2065
Unquestionably one of the most diverse grape varieties, Chenin Blanc can do it all. It shines in every style from bone dry to unctuously sweet, oaked or unoaked, still or sparkling and even as the base for fortified wines and spirits. Perhaps Chenin Blanc’s greatest asset is its ever-present acidity, maintained even under warm growing conditions. Somm Secret—Landing in South Africa in the mid 1800s, today the country has double the acreage of Chenin Blanc planted compared to France. There is also a new wave of dedicated producers committed to restoring old Chenin vines.
An important white wine appellation in the Touraine and one of the top in all of the Loire, Vouvray uniquely specializes in a wide range of styles from dry to sweet, and still to sparkling, each with its own definitive character. Vouvray is almost always 100% Chenin blanc (however up to 5% Menu Pineau is theoretically allowed but not often used).
Vouvray is also the name of a pretty little town just east of Tours on the northern bank of the Loire—its vineyards surround it to the northeast. Houses and cellars are carved out of the local tuffeau, a chalky or sandy, fine-grained limestone. Vineyards inhabit clay and gravel topsoil over tuffeau on the plateau, the best of which have a slight slope with a southerly aspect.
Chenin blanc’s high acidity and natural adaptability allow it to produce a wide range of styles with enormous success. Styles under the Vouvray name include sparkling, both Brut and Demi-Sec and still: Sec (dry) and Tendre (off-dry) as well as Demi-Sec (noticeably sweet), Moelleux (very sweet) and Liquoreaux (botrytized). Most can age about five years but the best quality versions will continue to improve over decades.