Ladybird on some Pinot Noir@Montigny

Vines@Montigny

Road near Montigny with picking machine

Pickers on the lower slopes of the Clos de la Poussie (more detail below)

 Clos de la Poussie: dramatic erosion

On Sunday took another walk along the middle of the Clos de la Poussie to see whether this famous vineyard is on the way to recovery. The sad answer is that much of it remains a scene of desolation.

See the report on Les 5 du Vin.

Looking down from le Clos de la Poussie, owned since 1993 exclusively by Domaines Ladoucette, at the village of Bué

Sweep of the Clos de la Poussie with many patches of bare earth in the steepest part where there are a substantial number of missing vines: taken September 2007

Devastation in the central part of Le Clos: October 2008

Last early October I walked round Le Clos de la Poussie and was horrified by what I saw – I have never seen a famous French vineyard in such a parlous state. You'll find my posting following this visit here.

If you visit the section of the de Ladoucette website that covers La Poussie, you will find a rather different view: 'La Poussie, joyau du Sancerrois, vin de Sancerre voluptueux et parfumé. Parmi tous les crus qui assurent la séculaire renommée des vignobles qui dominent la Loire royale, la réputation de La Poussie a gardé toute son intégrité originelle.'

La Poussie is described as the 'jewel' of Sancerre which, of course, is what it ought to be but regrettably it is currently but a badly chipped piece of paste.

Domaines Ladoucette has recently appointed a new agent in the UK and I have asked them if they can find out what action, if any, Ladoucette is taking to try to reverse the serious erosion in Le Clos de la Poussie. I look forward to posting the measures that Baron Patrick de Ladoucette and his company are taking.

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View across the roofs of Chavignol and looking down the valley to Saint-Satur

The little village of Amigny, part of the commune of Sancerre – Chavignol is just over the other side of the finger of hill in the middle ground with the slopes of Les Monts Damnés in the distance

From the top of the Maison des Sancerres looking due south over the roofs to the vines – part of the silex section of the Sancerre vineyard

Looking south, south east up the Loire down at Ménétréol with the Loire in the distance on the left. In the middle ground is one of the bridges that carried the old railway

A possible nightmare: five Charles Sydneys for the price of one!

Now back in London having driven back up from the Loire. Plenty now to write up, especially the brief entries over the last few days. Spending the day at the Salon and then going out in the evening leaves little time for writing and posting. More pictures have been added to the Wine Bloggers trophy competition.

Time to post some photos taken at Charles and Philippa Sydney's traditional Tuesday evening event – a blend of the Loire growers, UK wine buyers and the odd journalist. Charles and Philippa are based in Chinon and have been Loire wine courtiers for over 20 years acting as a conduit between their Loire growers and the UK market.

Jérome Choblet of Domaine des Herbauges, Bouaye
– Muscadet Côtes de Grandlieu

Jean-Hubert Lebreton (Domaine des Rochelles) gave his vintage report in English

"It only rained on my neighbours' vines!" Charles is frankly

sceptical of Alexandre Monmousseau's claim

Chris Hardy, wine buyer for Majestic Wine Warehouses
"It's going to be a tough year."

I'm sure Olivier Mouraud, commercial director of Bougrier SA, would agree. In the first year of their new vendangeoir in the Pays Nantais they made just 2500 hl of Muscadet-sur-lie in a facility designed for 8000-10,000 hls. "We are close to Castel's new facility in la Chapelle Heulin," Olivier told me, "and we have benefitted as Castel have paid for all the infrastructure to be put in."

In the light of current pressure from UK buyers on French producers to lower prices to compensate for the fall of sterling against the euro, Jean-Marie Bourgeois (Henri Bourgeois) remarks that when sterling was strong UK buyers didn't press producers to put up their prices!

Marielle Henrion, Château de l'Aulée, Azay-le-Rideau

Château de l'Aulée's very good Crémant de Loire Brut Zero was served as an aperitif.

Loïc Cailbourdin (Pouilly-Fumé) and Pierre Sauvion (Château du Cléray, Muscadet)

This is always a very good opportunity to taste lots of different wines, as long as you can remember what you have poured into what glass. The growers bring along a selection to try – sometimes new wines not but often bottled wines from the last few years – often from good vintages.

Some wines I enjoyed:

Whites:

2007 Haute Culture, Muscadet de Sèvre et Maine, Château du Cléray
2008 La Grand Reserve du Moulin, Muscadet de Sèvre et Maine, Gadais Père et Fils
2007 Typique, Pouilly-Fumé, Alain Cailbourdin
From 80 year old vines on flint at Saint-Andelain. I've always found Alain's wines to be pleasant enough but not thrilling. This one caught my attention.

Florian Mollet (Saint-Satur, Sancerre)

Reds:

2005 Le K Ampelidae, VDP de la Vienne
2005 Les Varennes du Grand Clos Clos, Chinon, Charles Joguet
+ 2007 Clos de la Dioterie, Chinon, Charles Joguet
A reminder that I need to seriously review the recent vintages of this domaine after the dilute disappointments released in the late 1990s and early 200s.
2005 Quintessence, Saumur-Champigny, Château du Targe

Very concentrated and initially very impressive but I suspect one of those wines where one's enthusiasm declines rapidly because it is showy but not drinkable. of course in 5 or 6 years it may be stunning!

Sylvain Miniot (oenologist, Cave de Saint-Pourçain) Olivier Mouraud (Bougrier SA) and Sophie Merlin-Cherrier (Bué, Sancerre)

Sweet wines
2007 Les Onnis, Chaume, Domaine des Forges
2007 Chaume, Domaine Cady
Two good sweet wines from the very attractive, vibrant and well-balanced 2007 vintage. The Cady has a little more concentration. Unfortunately it looks like the Branchereaus (Domaine des Forges) have gone for a catastrophic label redesign. The new label just looks naff and cheap undermining the quality in the bottle.

Chris Hardy (Majestic Wine) and Christophe Gadais (Gadais Père et Fils, Saint-Fiacre, Muscadet)

Table including Philippe Vatan (Château de Hureau, Saumur), Nick Room (Waitrose), Jérome Choblet and Stéphane Branchereau

Stéphane Branchereau (Domaine des Forges, Saint-Aubin)

Alain Cailbourdin (Pouilly-Fumé) wonders whether Alexandre Monmousseau (Château Gaudrelle) has fallen asleep in mid-sentence

With several growers from Sancerre and Pouilly present, the lamentable state of the Clos de la Poussie (Bué, Sancerre), owned by Baron Patrick de Ladoucette came up. They expressed anger and frustration that one of the finest sites in the area is now in such as ruinous state – contrasting this with the Baron Patrick's well-groomed vines around Château du Nozet in Pouilly.

The Clos de la Poussie showing many missing vines

Detail of one of the vines in the Clos de la Poussie

More on Baron Patrick de Ladoucette's Clos de la Poussie here.

Clos de la Poussie: the ‘jewel’ of Sancerre

Clos de la Poussie: the ‘jewel’ of Sancerre

The Clos de la Poussie forms an arc of vines just to the north of Bué and is perhaps the village’s most famous vineyard, though Chêne Marchand is also well known. La Poussie is a monopole and is now owned by Patrick Ladoucette, who bought it from Cordier, its previous owners.

Clos de la Poussie: the ‘jewel’ of Sancerre

Clos de la Poussie: the ‘jewel’ of Sancerre

The Clos de la Poussie is limestone with very little soil and the upper part is extremely steep. Technically I suppose Poussie shouldn’t be called a Clos as there are no walls that enclose it but it is a fine amphitheatre that dominates Bué, which nestles beneath. Morgan’s Wine Merchants Ltd of Dublin, who sell the Clos de la Poussie wines in Ireland, have no doubt of its pedigree: ‘La Poussie is considered a jewel of the Sancerre Vineyards; this Domaine has a long history of making wine. The freshness and the elegance of these wines are revered by those who taste it. Thanks to the high quality of the pinot noir grape, La Poussie is proud to produce one of the appellation’s finest Sancerre Rosé and Sancerre Rouge. In white wine production the Noble Sauvignon Blanc Grape produces a voluptuous and elegant white wine.’

Clos de la Poussie: the ‘jewel’ of Sancerre

Clos de la Poussie: the ‘jewel’ of Sancerre

Clos de la Poussie: the ‘jewel’ of Sancerre

Sadly the reality is that parts of the Clos de la Poussie are in a lamentable state and the vineyard very far from being the ‘jewel’ of Sancerre. Erosion is clearly a very serious problem here – hardly surprising given the very steep slopes. However, much of the vineyard appears to have been neglected and abandoned to the elements with little ravines cut by water rushing down the slopes. In places vines have been washed away or left with their roots exposed. I've rarely seen a French vineyard in such a sorry state. All in all it’s a sad and shocking sight that does little to enhance the reputation of Baron Patrick de Ladoucette or his wines.

Clos de la Poussie: the ‘jewel’ of Sancerre

Ladoucette's sales window in Sancerre

A rather different, glossier view from the Clos de la Poussie site, part of the de Ladoucette website. Curiously there do not appear to be any close up pictures of vines on the steeper parts of the Clos.

'Voici notre histoire
La Poussie, joyau du Sancerrois, vin de Sancerre voluptueux et parfumé. Parmi tous les crus qui assurent la séculaire renommée des vignobles qui dominent la Loire royale, la réputation de La Poussie a gardé toute son intégrité originelle. Ses origines remontent au moins à l’époque capétienne comme en fait foi un document daté des environs de 1040. Plus près de nous, Honoré de Balzac écrit sur ces vignobles du Sancerrois « le pays possède plusieurs crus de vins généreux assez semblables aux produits de la Bourgogne et qui trouvent dans les cabarets parisiens une rapide consommation ». La Poussie produit un vin blanc de Sauvignon, léger, fruité, sec et nerveux, imprégné de son terrain argilo-calcaire. Avec ses parcelles de Pinot Noir, La Poussie élabore un Sancerre rosé suave et enchanteur, réservant ses raisins de Pinot Noir les plus choisis pour produire un sancerre rouge au goût subtil et délicat. Ces trois vins sont depuis 1993 la propriété du Baron Patrick de Ladoucette qui perpétue la très haute qualité de ces vins.'

The wine village of Bué on a better day.

(Trip to Sancerre and Pouilly – continued: 12 August 2008)
Overnight the rain poured down incessantly and it was still raining steadily when we set off to Bué and our early appointment with François Crochet. François is already established as one of Sancerre’s brightest young vignerons. I first visited him in June 2006 when researching my Sincerely Sancerre article for Decanter (www.decanter.com/archive/109889.html). The purity of expression and the precise minerality of François’ wines impressed me then and they still do.

François has vines in Bué, Crézancy, Sancerre and Thauvenay – often in small parcels. There is just under 11 ha in total – one third Pinot Noir and two thirds Sauvignon Blanc. 70% of the vines are on the caillottes (often pure limestone), 20% on terres blanches (clay-limestone) and 10% silex (flint). François picks by hand and with his fragmented vineyards this presents problems. The customary quality option is to pick into cageots (small crates) but having lots of small parcels this is logistically nightmarish. Instead he uses small vibrating bins, which he is very pleased with as they keep the fruit whole with very little juice in the bottom of the bin.


François lamented the poor state of the Clos de la Poussie, Bué’s famous amphitheatre-shaped vineyard just to the north of the village. “It was cleared of scrub during the Second World War and replanted.” (* I assume that it was planted with vines before phylloxera and then abandoned afterwards. Les Monts Damnés at Chavignol were largely abandoned after phylloxera.) “The Clos was split between a number of owners until during the 1990s it was bought by Ladoucette.” (The Baron is Pouilly’s largest individual grower). Unfortunately the use of tractors on the steeply sloping vineyards has apparently caused some severe erosion as the ground has become compacted thus accelerating water run off. Parts of the vineyard are now so badly affected that the tractors can no longer be used. Next time I’m in Sancerre I’ll have to make a point of having a look at the Clos de la Poussie – certainly in September 2007 parts were badly affected by mildew – but then so were many vineyards as 2007 was the ‘best year’ for mildew for a long time.

Le Clos de la Poussie

However, it is disappointing if part of the area’s patrimoine hasn’t been looked after properly. François was clearly angry at what he saw as neglect – probably doesn’t help that the Baron L is from over the water (La Loire) so is un étranger in these parts. (Although Sancerre and Pouilly are near neighbours – around 16 km distance by road – they are separated by both the Loire and administratively – Sancerre is part of the Loire, while Pouilly is part of Burgundy. It can be a tense relationship – of which more later.)

Mildew affected vines and grapes in the Clos de la Poussie: Sept 2007

Where the vineyards are on steep slopes François uses grass to limit erosion, on the more gentle slopes the ground is tilled. “As a paysan you have to observe what works,” François explained, “and adapt accordingly. If you get very heavy storms you can’t avoid erosion but you can take steps to limit the damage as far as you can.”

We started our tasting with 2006 Sancerre Rouge ‘Tradition’, which comes from vines that average 25 years old grown on the terres blanches. François uses a cold soak for four or five days before fermentation begins. He doesn’t use pigeage (plunging). “It extracts rustic tannins that I don’t want.” The rich, concentrated and black fruited Maricigoué 2006 Sancerre Rouge is from limestone vineyards. It spends 12 months in 500 litre barrels with a total élévage of 18 to 20 months. This year the 2008 Tradition will be aged in conical wooden vats of 40 hls, with the barrels reserved for the Maricigoué.

The Maricigoué 2006 is another example of the red revolution that is gathering pace in Sancerre as an ever-increasing number of producers look to make more ‘serious’ red Sancerre rather than a light, easy quaffer. There ought, however, to be a place for the more traditional style – ready young and enjoyable chilled on warm, sunny days – as well as the ‘serious’ stuff.

As expected the whites were wonderfully pure and mineral. Once again the 2007s showed here what wonderfully razor-sharp flavours this vintage has in the dry whites.

“I’m looking for purity and precision,” explained François. “I’m sometimes reproached for not weight and volume in my wine. The Chêne Marchand vineyardon caillottes has a tendency to get over-ripe. The maturation is slow but then there is only a very short window to pick at the optimum moment before the grapes become too ripe. I think the Chêne Marchand 2007 is better than 2005 when the grapes were a little too mature, while in 2006 they lacked acidity.” I really liked both the grapefruit and saline 2007 Les Amoureuses (argile-calcere) and the 2007 Chêne-Marchand but the latter edged it with its concentration and extra racy minerality.

Before leaving we admired the foundations of François’ new winery that he is having built behind his house. To be ready for the 2009 vintage.

François Crochet, Marcigoué, 18300 Bué-en-Sancerre. Tel: 02.48.58.21.77