Day 6 & 7
Day 6 started with the long trip from Bordeaux to The Loire Valley. It was a misty and long cold road up north with temperature below zero most of the way. It was cold to say the least…
Our base in the Loire would be Tours for the first couple of days. Truly a beautiful little city on the river. Striking architecture and the feeling of enchantment. This however is typical to the Loire, seeing that it is the area in France that has the most Chateaus and castles. Exquisite driving pleasure. Everywhere you turn your head you see the magnificent structures, carved into the hillsides along the Loire. You often get the sentiment of a forgotten area.
After what we experienced in Bordeaux we thought it would be hard to repeat our experience there. The Loire is as said - a forgotten region. But we were soon proven very very wrong. Day 7 we “landed” three of the biggest producers in one day. With lush, smooth, elegant and steely wines (for those not to clued up on wine – the Loire is a white wine area).
We had a 10.00 rendez-vous at a small producer and decided to try our luck on the way to stop and see if they would help us at Domaine Huet – the most famous producer in the area. Previously they refused us when we tried to make an appointment, but sometimes tenacity pays. So we got there and the lady was extremely cheerful and helpful to serve us. We ended up tasting most of their range of wines and ended up having to phone our scheduled visit to postpone by a couple of minutes. No problem. The whites at Huet were lush, lots of steely and mineraly characters with fresh apricots and pineapple nuances. The length of these wines was simply astonishing and the flavours and aromas lingered in the mouth for a time that seemed endless. In the end we had to rush to get to our already postponed appointment just down the road, but had time to load the two purchased cases of wine in the back of our petite Peugeot.
Next stop – Domaine de la Taille aux Loups. This small producer is not to well recognised in the area. But we were told to go and check it out, so we did. It was fantastic. The variety of wines was astonishing. All in all we tasted almost 20 different wines. The hostess, madame Francoise, was equally elegant and beautiful as the wines she was presenting to us. We started off with some petillant Chenin blanc. That means white wine with bubbles but not too many bubbles. Quite surprising the aromas and characters, but in the mouth not really my cup of tea. We went on to taste the Cab franc reds – astounding quality for a not-so-well-known variety. It had length, rich aromas and flavours, velvety mouth feel. Not what you would expect and it was a unanimous favourite. We continued through the range with the white steely and chalky Chenin’s until we finally reached the “sticky” wines made for Botrytis grapes (this is a grape rot that causes the berries to shrivel up and become more concentrated). The syrup like nectar lingers in the mouth for an eternity and the pure pleasure of “sticky wines” is almost impossible to describe. The concentration of honey, straw, orange peel, quince jelly, hints of pine apple and green figs. With a residual sugar of over 300 (equal to putting 8 teaspoons of sugar in your tea) and a strong enough yet delicate acid to carry this jewel, it is a symphony of harmony, passion and euphoria for any wine lover. Domaine de la Taille aux Loups scores a perfect ten in my book and as for madame Francoise we score an eleven!
In every region there always has to be a “maverick”. Well our last host surely qualifies as that – if not more. The reason why? Simply because t\he does silly and stupid things in his production process that is extremely risky for the quality of his product. But as he says – he has his reasons. Our host was none other than the well-publicised producer – monsieur Henry Marionnet from Domaine de la Charmoise. But his wines – serious and fun. His philosophy is that his wines should project who he is. And they do. Warm and friendly. Funny yet serious and balanced. So much so, that we had the tasting in the comfort of his own home, with the fire cracking in the fireplace and his hospitality stretching so far that it felt like I was visiting my uncle for an afternoon tea and cake occasion. It did not end their. Our host at our departure praised us or our passion and inquisitive searches that he presented us with a case of his most-coveted wine. I salute you dear sir!
The rain settled nicely over the valley as we drove back and the day finished with a perfect dinner in a small bistro in one o the side streets of Tours. Our host was so friendly that he not only made our plat de jours as requested, but also permitted us to drink our own wines. The only pre-requisite was that he was allowed to share in the fun. And so he did. And you though French people were cold and miserable. On the contrary…
…so who knows what will happen next?
Day 6 started with the long trip from Bordeaux to The Loire Valley. It was a misty and long cold road up north with temperature below zero most of the way. It was cold to say the least…
Our base in the Loire would be Tours for the first couple of days. Truly a beautiful little city on the river. Striking architecture and the feeling of enchantment. This however is typical to the Loire, seeing that it is the area in France that has the most Chateaus and castles. Exquisite driving pleasure. Everywhere you turn your head you see the magnificent structures, carved into the hillsides along the Loire. You often get the sentiment of a forgotten area.
After what we experienced in Bordeaux we thought it would be hard to repeat our experience there. The Loire is as said - a forgotten region. But we were soon proven very very wrong. Day 7 we “landed” three of the biggest producers in one day. With lush, smooth, elegant and steely wines (for those not to clued up on wine – the Loire is a white wine area).
We had a 10.00 rendez-vous at a small producer and decided to try our luck on the way to stop and see if they would help us at Domaine Huet – the most famous producer in the area. Previously they refused us when we tried to make an appointment, but sometimes tenacity pays. So we got there and the lady was extremely cheerful and helpful to serve us. We ended up tasting most of their range of wines and ended up having to phone our scheduled visit to postpone by a couple of minutes. No problem. The whites at Huet were lush, lots of steely and mineraly characters with fresh apricots and pineapple nuances. The length of these wines was simply astonishing and the flavours and aromas lingered in the mouth for a time that seemed endless. In the end we had to rush to get to our already postponed appointment just down the road, but had time to load the two purchased cases of wine in the back of our petite Peugeot.
Next stop – Domaine de la Taille aux Loups. This small producer is not to well recognised in the area. But we were told to go and check it out, so we did. It was fantastic. The variety of wines was astonishing. All in all we tasted almost 20 different wines. The hostess, madame Francoise, was equally elegant and beautiful as the wines she was presenting to us. We started off with some petillant Chenin blanc. That means white wine with bubbles but not too many bubbles. Quite surprising the aromas and characters, but in the mouth not really my cup of tea. We went on to taste the Cab franc reds – astounding quality for a not-so-well-known variety. It had length, rich aromas and flavours, velvety mouth feel. Not what you would expect and it was a unanimous favourite. We continued through the range with the white steely and chalky Chenin’s until we finally reached the “sticky” wines made for Botrytis grapes (this is a grape rot that causes the berries to shrivel up and become more concentrated). The syrup like nectar lingers in the mouth for an eternity and the pure pleasure of “sticky wines” is almost impossible to describe. The concentration of honey, straw, orange peel, quince jelly, hints of pine apple and green figs. With a residual sugar of over 300 (equal to putting 8 teaspoons of sugar in your tea) and a strong enough yet delicate acid to carry this jewel, it is a symphony of harmony, passion and euphoria for any wine lover. Domaine de la Taille aux Loups scores a perfect ten in my book and as for madame Francoise we score an eleven!
In every region there always has to be a “maverick”. Well our last host surely qualifies as that – if not more. The reason why? Simply because t\he does silly and stupid things in his production process that is extremely risky for the quality of his product. But as he says – he has his reasons. Our host was none other than the well-publicised producer – monsieur Henry Marionnet from Domaine de la Charmoise. But his wines – serious and fun. His philosophy is that his wines should project who he is. And they do. Warm and friendly. Funny yet serious and balanced. So much so, that we had the tasting in the comfort of his own home, with the fire cracking in the fireplace and his hospitality stretching so far that it felt like I was visiting my uncle for an afternoon tea and cake occasion. It did not end their. Our host at our departure praised us or our passion and inquisitive searches that he presented us with a case of his most-coveted wine. I salute you dear sir!
The rain settled nicely over the valley as we drove back and the day finished with a perfect dinner in a small bistro in one o the side streets of Tours. Our host was so friendly that he not only made our plat de jours as requested, but also permitted us to drink our own wines. The only pre-requisite was that he was allowed to share in the fun. And so he did. And you though French people were cold and miserable. On the contrary…
…so who knows what will happen next?
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