Loire - Garden of France
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A Cultural Landscape
The beauty of the Loire Valley and its proximity to Paris have attracted French royalty and aristocracy since medieval times. Culture, art, poetry, music, architecture and landscape design followed the aristocrats during the French Renaissance, and the grandeur of the chateaux situated on the hilltops, proudly reflect the brilliance of architects and designers as well as the unlimited resources of the owners.
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Middle Loire was recognized by UNESCO in 2000 as a “World Heritage Site”, and was described as "an exceptional cultural landscape, of great beauty, comprised of historic cities and villages, great architectural monuments - the châteaux - and lands that have been cultivated and shaped by centuries of interaction between local populations and their physical environment, in particular the Loire itself."
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History & Climate
Winegrowing in the Loire started 2,000 years ago when the Romans planted vineyards in Gaul (the ancient name of France). As common practice, the Romans brought Roman culture to all corners of the Empire. Viticulture was an important aspect of Roman culture, ensuring that wine is produced in all Roman territories, is drunk by the soldiers and keeps flowing through the veins of the Empire.
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Considering its latitude, the Loire Valley is almost too northern for vine growing and the climate is almost too cool for the vines to flower and for the grapes to ripen. The climate in the Loire is continental yet quite temperamental, resulting in instability in the quantity and quality of vintages.
In the Eastern and Middle parts of the Loire, the river moderates the climate, reflects the sun and creates a warmer environment suitable for wine growing. In the Western Loire, the climate is wetter, colder and windier because of the combination of river and the Atlantic Ocean.
Special Loire Practices
The "coolness moderated by warmth" of Eastern and Middle Loire creates wines that are elegant, fresh, acidic (even zesty), crisp and precise.
Poets and writers praised the Loire wines and the aristocracy drank them. In fact, Loire wines' popularity was high for centuries, even more than Bordeaux and certainly more than Bourgogne. This was partly because of the excellent wines of the Loire, and partly because the river was an easy transportation route to Paris and England alike, compared to the difficulty of land transportation from Bordeaux to Paris and from Bourgogne, that was “land-locked” for many centuries.
The challenges of unstable climate conditions and of grape yields on the one hand, combined with high demand for Loire wines on the other hand, allowed for more flexibility in wine production practices, like chaptalization (adding sugar during fermentation, because sometimes the grapes don't contain sufficient sugar), mechanization of harvesting, and even must heating. In recent years, like in other areas of France, producers are reducing human interference, no longer push for high yields, become more organic, produce natural wines, and use bio-dynamic methods. The quality of wines may vary, even among wines from the same village.
Small Wineries & Cooperatives
Most of the wineries of the Loire are small, family-owned businesses. For historical, economical and commercial reasons, many of these wineries have united over the years in cooperatives, or reached arrangements with “negociants” who buy, blend and sometimes bottle the wines under their own labels.
Loire Grape Varieties
There are many grape varieties along the “east to west” path of the Loire river. Some varieties can be found in warmer regions, however, their expression in the Loire wines is always fresh, crisp and acidic. Although all wine styles are produced in the Loire, the leading wines are white - Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc (both native to the Loire), and Melon Blanc.
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Loire Whites
Starting in Eastern Upper Loire, the main white grape is Sauvignon Blanc. Wines from Sauvignon Blanc are aromatic, highly acidic, fruity, unoaked, with a medium body, usually drunk young because the acidity can sometimes disappear over time. In the Loire, the best wines made from Sauvignon Blanc are from Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume, on the banks of the Upper Loire, deep in the heart of France, with herbaceous, green fruit and vegetable noticeable aromas.
In Middle Loire, we find the largest diversity of grapes. The main grape is white - Chenin Blanc. Chenin Blanc is well suited for its native Loire terroir. Although it can grow in other areas, some of the wines made from Chenin Blanc in the Tours area in Middle Loire, especially from Vouvray, Chinon, Savennieres and neighboring villages, are exceptional. These wines are dry or medium acidic, citrus, green fruit, herbaceous, medium-bodied and fresh.
Further west along the river, towards the cold, windy wet coast of the Atlantic, we meet the third main white variety - Melon Blanc, used for Muscadet. The wines are light, almost neutral in flavor, acidic, and typically unoaked. Sometimes yeast is added to create more body and complexity.
Loire Reds
In Upper (Eastern) Loire, the red grape is Pinot Noir, used for varietal wines. In the Middle Loire, Pinot Noir is used for blends, rose and sparkling wines, together with other red varieties like Cabernet Franc, Gamay, Cabernet Sauvignon and the local native grape - Grolleau. All red wines made from grapes in the Loire are typically light in color, acidic and with fruity, green and herbaceous aromas.
Loire "Noble Rot"
When Chenin Blanc is affected by Noble Rot, the sweet wine produced, Quarts de Chaume, has a warm honey color and unmistakable aromas. It is the perfect dessert wine partner of the Tarte Tatin, one of France’s most famous desserts, created by two local sisters in a tiny village in the area around 1880.
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Loire Sparkling Wines
Sparkling wines produced in the Loire are mainly Crémant de Loire, Rose d’Anjou and Saumur. They can be produced from different red and white grape varieties, typically in the traditional style, aged for a short time in caves at ideal temperatures and humidity. Saumur is the third largest sparkling wine in France, made solely from Chenin Blanc grapes. The sparkling wines of the Loire are relatively simple and fun wines to drink.
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