Region · Loire, France
Loire Valley
LWAHR
France's longest cellar
From Muscadet on the Atlantic to Sancerre and Pouilly in the east, with Chenin in the middle. The Loire is not one wine. It is a river of them.
- citrus
- chalk
- quince
- gooseberry
- wet stone
Muscadet (Melon de Bourgogne) is the oyster wine: lees-aged, saline, cheap when it shouldn't be. Anjou and Touraine are Chenin country — Vouvray, Savennières, Saumur. The central vineyards are Sauvignon: Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé, Menetou-Salon.
Reds exist and are underrated: Cabernet Franc from Chinon, Bourgueil, and Saumur-Champigny — pencil shavings, red fruit, a chill recommended. Rosé from Anjou is serious more often than not.
If you want to learn French wine without a second mortgage, start here.
At the table
Service
Whites 46–50 °F (8–10 °C); Cabernet Franc 54–57 °F (12–14 °C).
