Thanks, Julian! Perhaps I’m wrong about this, but I don’t feel like I’ve explored across enough producers in these appellations to be able to do what you just did; although I drink a fair amount of C.F., that’s really mostly because I have a few pet favorites that I return to time and time again.
Cheers Brian - well, I do drink…er…rather a lot of the stuff! Doesn’t mean I’m right though.
A couple of 2009s and a 2005:
** Domaine des Roches Neuves - La Marginale - Saumur-Champigny - 2009**
Dark raspberry, mixed with wild strawberry and redcurrants on the nose, then a bright attack of all three, still crunchy, but much less so than in its youth, before a gently rising middle section of red cherries and cranberries, very silky and elegant, and a dusty, almost Margalais finish. As they age, RN reds become a lot more classical in profile and this is no exception. For me this is a good example of the silkier type of Saumur-Champigny, very subtle but with real persistence. Proof once again that these wines do age well. 92 pts
Château du Hureau - Les Fevettes - Saumur Champigny 2009
Quite a brooding nose still, full of brambly and forest fruits, but with crisper notes of black cherry too, then a full-bodied attack of the same, before the blackcurrant kicks in midpalate, re-joined by the brambly fruits for a powerful but crisp finish. Great structure and breadth, but in a velvet glove. Very impressive, another winner from an underestimated producer. Better than the last bottle I tried of their top wine, Lisagathe, in 2009, though that may have been a bad bottle. 93 pts
It was fascinating to compare the two - La Marginale had brighter fruit and more silky elegance, Les Fevettes had more oomph and depth to it. I just preferred the latter. Interestingly, neither wine showed the syrupy notes that some 09s suffer from - they were ripe, but very classically so.
Domaine de Chevalerie - Vin de Garde - Bourgueil 2005
A wine that certainly lives up to its name - a true Vin de Garde. Very deep notes of forest fruits and earth on the nose, along with hay and leather, plus some really mouth-watering blueberry aromas, then quite a dense mouthful of blackberry, spicy blackcurrant and sweet cranberry, the blueberry coming in a rising middle section, before the crescendo finish which launches towards the top of the palate before lingering on its way down. Yummy stuff. Certainly one of the biggest Bourgueils I’ve tasted, its intensity would have rivalled that of a top Madiran. My only criticism would be that there’s a slight rusticity to the aftertaste, otherwise excellent, but it costs it a couple of points. Still worth 93 pts
I’m a great fan of Chevalerie but I’d never tried this cuvée before - definitely one to look out for but I still prefer the Grand Mont.
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Your Chevalerie note got my attention! I’ve had terribly mixed results over the three bottles I’ve tried from them …
2014 Diptyque, tasted in 2017, was 87-88 pts for me.
2001 Chevalier, tasted in 2012, 78 pts
1996 Galichets, tasted in 2009, 91 pts.
Maybe I’ve just had an oddball lineup of theirs, I dunno … ?
La Chevalerie have the advantage or disadvantage of producing a large number of different wines. I’ve lost count how many and I have never tried most of them!
The best ones are Bretêche, Busardières, Chevalerie and Grand Mont. I think Vin de Garde was only produced once in 2005.
Grand Mont is hard to find, but the others are quite easy to get over here. I’m definitely a fan - one of my favourite Bourgueils in fact. I love the combination of silky finesse and juicy red fruit, with sometimes an almost Chinon-like chalkiness.
You should try another one!
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I repped Chevalerie a long time ago. They had some nice library stash going back ~20 years into the 80s. My experience was similar to yours. Some highs, and lots of variation on down to some fairly mid range lows.
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Sylvain Boton Bourgueil Enracines 2023
Correct CF profile. Good fruit, adequate acidity/tannins interplay, polished. Good, yet it comes across as somewhat generic and lacking personality.
That’s an interesting comment, Brian, and I have to admit that I was really impressed with Julian’s write-up and was trying to extrapolate that information with my own sense of these little regions. I drink a lot of Loire CF but don’t think I could categorize them in such a neat format. I think I just look to specific producers. And like you, I tend to have my pet favorites that I keep hitting.