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The Loire Valley's Sparkling Wines Have Seen Big Gains

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The Loire Valley's Sparkling Wines Have Seen Big Gains Loire Valley sommelier tour Something is bubbling in the Loire The Loire Valley’s sparkling wines have seen big gains in the UK market of late. Four sommeliers from some of the UK’s hottest on-trade spots accompanied Harpers on a recent tour to see if the Loire’s fizz had enough sparkle for their exclusive wine lists For more information visit: vinsvaldeloire.fr ommeliers are under a lot of pressure “I didn’t know the 18.9% over the year to the beginning of July, according to a few big houses” Pashby-Taylor says. “It was bril- Above right: Fontevraud Abbey, by Langlois Château in Saumur. “I think the rosé from these days. They must always be on the to recent Nielsen data. liant to visit some of the smaller producers. It was which now includes a hotel, Langlois Château is going to be a great success in the lookout for something new and interest- wines had this But even in the context of such stellar growth, Loire amazing to see the potential of some of these wines.” restaurant and sparkling wine bar UK, a real boom,” Trapero says. ing; be comfortable with risk as they have Valley wines have performed exceptionally in all cat- Rosendal agrees. “One of my favourites was a small “The sparkling rosés have a richness that would to try out new wines on the list to keep type of potential” egories. Sparkling wines from the Loire region have producer we visited Vigneau-Chevraux,” he says. “The be a nice supplement to my list,” Rosendal adds. it fresh and exciting; and, of course, they Andreas Rosendal, seen a 92% year-on-year rise in volume into the UK wines are rustic, but incredibly charming. This is what are ultimately responsible for the coveted wine list for the first six months of 2014 – and an 85% growth I am looking to find and offer my customers. This is SUNNY SIDE S– which these days can help make or break a Brasserie Chavot in value. what I hoped to find while I was here. Also the bio- Despite the challenges of the last two years, this restaurant. Crémant de Loire, meanwhile, has seen an incred- dynamic crémants that were being produced really year’s harvest went incredibly well. The harvest It was with these pressures in mind that Harpers ible 158% growth in volume up from 386hl to 952hl surprised me. Some of the older vintages were really was lower than average for most producers, but due set out with four sommeliers to see if they could find for the first six months of 2014 and an increase in stunning. I didn’t know the wines had this type of to September’s warm weather, the quality was some sparkling treasures in the Loire Valley. value of 132%. Saumur, which is widely known for its potential.” better than previous vintages. There is a feeling sparkling Chenin Blancs, grew by 51% in volume and The big producers are equally important as they of optimism. SOMMELIER TRIPPERS value for the first half of 2014. The Vouvray and help to bring consistency, raise the brand awareness Gilles Gaudron, of Domaine Sylvain Gaudron in Harpers was joined by Charles Pashby-Taylor from Touraine regions, which were both deeply impacted of the region, and the quality of the product. Vouvray, said: “The 2014 harvest had very few prob- Michelin-starred Dabbous, one of London’s hottest by the freeze of 2012 and hail in 2013, nevertheless “We saw a range of producers that I felt really dem- lems. The vines were healthy and things were very restaurants; Agustin Trapero, from Launceston Place, still saw growth in the UK as well. The region is well onstrated the diversity of the region and the potential regular.” Harvest for the sparkling wine started on another Michelin-starred restaurant located in South known for its sparkling Chenin Blanc. Anjou Mousseux, of the area,” Harrison says. “It is good to see some “The UK is our October 9th and finished nine days later. He admits Kensington; Andreas Rosendal from Brasserie Chavot; which is the smallest area visited by Harpers, only real gems out there.” number-one he was “very lucky” not to have been hit by the and Mike Harrison, who is a consultant with the Hotel produces about 2,900hl per year. Bouvet Ladubay which is currently producing some hail last year that other local producers are still du Vin and Malmaison hotel chains, to name just two All five regions and styles are known for their spar- six million bottles a year – including own labels for market. England recovering from. of his clients. kling wine production as the chalky soil that is some high-end producers – is definitely helping to Vigneau, who is also in Vouvray, said: “We are Several of the players had not been to the Loire prominent around the regions lends itself to develop- raise the quality of wines coming out of the region. is drinking looking at a very good vintage, which was really Valley before – or hadn’t been for more than a decade. ing more elegant and sophisticated wines. “When you have this level of production everything more and more helped by excellent conditions in September.” Despite What would they find? And would it fit the bill for has to be perfect,” says Patrice Monmousseau, Bouvet yields being lower than expected, Vigneau said: their coveted wine lists? THE BIG AND SMALL OF IT Ladubay’s larger-than-life president. “You can’t have sparkling wine “Vintage 2014, will certainly be the best vintage The importance of having both larger producers and mistakes when there is this type of volume and the and we believe since 2010.” THE LAY OF THE LAND small family-run outfits helps to showcase the variety quality of the product is so important.” Delhumeau, from Domaine de Brizé, said: “The Loire sparkling wines are already rising in popularity and styles of the sparkling wines that are coming out Monmousseau seems to have got the mix right as we have a place 2014 vintage is very promising” in the UK, so the trip for the sommeliers could not of the region as a whole. Bouvet Trésor Blanc, Saumur Brut AOC 2009, won Laurent Onillon, from Langlois Chateau, started have come at a better time. But that diversity is exactly what the UK on-trade the only French gold medal at the 2014 International in that market” harvesting Crémant on September 15. He also had The five main regions that were visited have seen seems to find so appealing about the region and Wine Challenge for sparkling wines not produced in François-Régis de lower than average yields particularly for Chardonnay substantial growth in the UK in 2014. This should the wines. Champagne. and Cabernet Franc, but the quality was there. He not come as too big of a shock as sparkling wines have “It was great to see the whole spectrum and visit But the sommeliers were equally impressed across Fougeroux, said: “The quality is perfect: ripe, clean, concen- soared in the UK. Sales of sparkling wine jumped a wide variety of producers from garage productions the board by the level of the rosé wine that is produced Langlois-Chateau trated, with a good structure – in summary: a 38 October 2014 | Harpers.co.uk Harpers.co.uk | October 2014 39 Loire Valley sommelier tour “When you have this level of SPARKLING “ production everything has to LIAISONS be perfect. You The Loire’s inimitable sparkling wines make can’t have mistakes for flexible partners to a host of different when there is this dishes, as sommeliers have been discovering type of volume and he recent UK sommelier trip revealed Mike Harrison, the quality of the the array of Loire sparkling wines, consultant to Malmaison and Hotel du Vin proving a heady reminder of the “It was good to see genuinely small producers product is so remarkable diversity of styles pro- making such a variety of styles, sec, demi-sec important” duced in France’s second biggest and moelleux, plus some really modern, white sparkling wine producing region. and rosé styles from bigger producers such as What really stood out at the tastings in the tuffeau Langlois Chateau. Patrice Monmousseau, chalk cellars was the combination of quality and indi- T “Sparkling Saumur can be very good, the dry viduality offered by Crémant de Loire, Vouvray and Bouvet Ladubay styles especially so for the UK palate, and while Saumur, along with the flexible food-compatibility the demi-secs are well suited to dessert courses. that the stylistic differences that Chenin Blanc and Sparkling Vouvray is a benchmark, which Cabernet Franc-based whites and rosés respectively deserves to be better known. can bring to the table. “Chenin Blanc-based sparkling wines have Versatile, offering great value for the complexity WINES great natural acidity and complexity, so can be very good potential!” and quality, and genuinely individual, all agreed that EXPLORED very food friendly, with shellfish and a lot of Thomas Ragot, of Monmousseau, also agreed that the Loire’s sparkling wines deserve to be better known. Producer, Where to find seafood, including fuller dishes like fish with despite the lower yields, he was pleased with this Domaine de Brizé, creamy sauces. The Cabernet Franc-based year’s quality. “2014 is a harvest with fairly low CRÉMANT DE LOIRE AND BEYOND Enotria volumes, around 20% lower than average, but with Crémant de Loire represents the cornerstone of qual- rosés, especially those showing varietal red a really excellent quality.” ity for Loire sparkling wines, produced by the Domaine du Landreau, berry fruit, also pair with classic Loire seafood Pierre Charon, winemaker at Ackerman, said: “In traditional method from the best vineyards across Humble Grapes like oysters and mussels, but can also work well August we had a bit of rot on our Chardonnay.
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