François Chidaine, president of the Syndicat des vins de Montlouis

Montlouis 2011
François Chidaine has announced that the harvest in Montlouis could start on Wednesday 7th September. Despite the cool July this is well in advance of normal. See report here in La Nouvelle République.


Bourgeuil 2011
I'm relieved to hear from Cathy Shore (Le Tasting Room) that the vineyards in Bourgueil seem to be OK despite the downpour last Saturday.


Note from Cathy: 

We were at Domaine de la Chevalerie with clients yesterday so difficult to get a real update however we did drive around quite a bit of the appellation and saw no particular problems in the vineyards.  Chevalerie is starting harvest in the next few days. 

We spoke to Mathieu Vallée of Chateau Yvonne in Parnay in the afternoon - he will be picking his 2 ha of Chenin today and Chateau de Parnay was bringing in Cabernet Franc from the Anjou estate (Princé).  Their new winery is looking very swish with a brand new Bucher press taking centre stage.

Lionel Gosseaume

Also from Cathy an update here on Lionel Gosseaume of Domaine de Pierre in Choussy (close to Oisly) in Touraine.

 

  

 2nd October 2009: Noël Pinguet reversing a tractor load of grapes destined to make pétillant

Les Portes Ouvertes@Domaine Huet are on Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th May and from Saturday 13th to Monday 15th May from 10.00-19.00. A good opportunity to discover the 2009 vintage.

11 Rue de la Croix Buisée

37210 Vouvray

Tel: 02.47.52.78.87

**

François Chidaine

François Chidaine: Portes Ouvertes: Saturday 13th to Monday 15th May from 10.00-19.00 with a break for lunch between 12.00-14.00.

Cave Insolite
30 Quai Albert Baillet
37270 Montlouis-sur-Loire
Tel: 02.47.45.19.14

François Chidaine: August 2008 at La Cave Insolite, Montlouis

In between late minute Christmas shopping I have managed to speak to François Audebert (Bourgueil) and to François Chidaine about Interloire's AGM in Nantes on Tuesday. Neither conversation was exactly festive – instead depressing with a palpable sense of the crisis and a growing schism between producers and the négoce. Of course having spoken to just two producers their views may not be fully representative but I suspect that their views would be echoed by a substantial number of Loire producers.
(Over the next few days I hope to add views from more producers and also from the négoce. I also, of course, welcome comments.)

François Audebert
I started by asking François what had happened at the AGM.

François A: Not a great deal. It was accepted with regret that Bourgueil would leaving Interloire at the end of 2010. The atmosphere are meeting was all rather morose. The négoce pushed through the single rate of cotisation (subscription) to Interloire, which will be 4€ per hectolitre. Previously there had been 24 different levels with appellations fixing the amount. 24 was clearly too much but I would have preferred three different levels.

Jim: Do you think there will be a chance a reaching an accommodation during 2010 that will allow Bourgueil to remain within Interloire?

François A: I think it will very difficult. There appears to be incomprehension of our position and concerns by the négoce and I'm not sure that it is possible to have meaningful discussions anymore. Bourgueil has voted to increase its cotisation by adding 3.50€ to the current rate of 1.70€ a hectolitre – a total of 5.20€. This increase will be used for our public relations activities. A number of other appellations, such as Chinon and Vouvray, have voted an increase to their cotisations with the extra going to the syndicat.

We then discussed the proposal to make the Salon des Vins de Loire biannual, which is a consequence of reducing Interloire's budget for the Salon. Although the Salon is run by Expo-Park, Angers, Interloire provides an important part of the budget.

François A: The Salon is very important for the producers. The proposal to reduce the budget and hold the Salon every two years is a direct attack by the négoce on us. The Salon is crucial for us both to meet international buyers but also people from our home market – wholesalers, agents, cavistes, restaurateurs etc. Many people come to the Salon to taste the latest vintage, so it needs to be held every year – not every two years.

•

François Chidaine
We talked about the AGM but also about the conflict between the producers and the négociants.

Francois C: Our level of cotisation has been cut from 5.5€ per hectolitre down to 4€. The négociants do not believe in promoting appellations. They just want to promote La Loire and to concentrate on selling low priced wine. Because of much of the former Loire négociants have been bought up by the big groups, there is no longer competition. The négociants are concerned with their margins. This means that producers supplying the négoce cannot survive commercially and some are now giving up.

Producers in Touraine do not agree with this approach – our objectives are not the same. We are in a different position in Touraine as we are not bound to the négociants as in the case for producers in Anjou and in Muscadet. Producers in Touraine are very attached to their appellations. Increasingly we will see funds from vignerons being transferred to their syndicats. The relationship between the producers and the négoce is broken.

Jim: Do you think that the relationship can be repaired?

François C: We will see but things may well have gone too far – there is a lot of bitterness. It is very unfortunate because in the current crisis we should all be working together. But for the producers to do nothing in the current situation is not an option. We have to react – we have to save viticulture for the next generation.

(NB: Other views to come.)

Autumn colours in Montlouis

Montlouis saw the visit of Marie-Madeleine Mialot, the vice-présidente of Conseil Régional du Centre. Her brief is the economy and employment. The Loire à vélo (www.loire-a-velo.fr)* cycle route leaves the Loire just east of Tours to pass through the town of Montlouis, skirting the hamlets of Huseau, Lussault and Chandon before rejoining the banks of the Loire at Amboise. The Conseil Regional provided 60% of the 340,000€ to improve producers' visitor facilities and to attract new producers into AC Montlouis. This has been particularly successful with five new producers starting here since 2005. All this has helped to make Montlouis one of the Loire’s most dynamic appellations.

François Chidaine

Mialot was in Montlouis to discuss the new programme and meet the people running the Montlouis syndicat, headed by François Chidaine, and the people running the cave co-operative. The new plan will be discussed in Orléans in April. Mialot highlighted the Sauvignon Blanc project but also said that producers in every appellation could benefit from support offered by the region whether it covered selling and marketing, improvements in quality such as a more organic approach, or for wine tourism.

Full report in today’s La Nouvelle République.

* Loire à vélo has 800 kilometres of cycling routes starting from Sancerre and ending in Saint-Brevins-les-Pins on the Atlantic Coast.

After the excruciating debate of the last few months over wine and the internet, it is great to come across a part of the French government, that recognises the role played by viticulture in France and is prepared to offer financial assistance.

Having made fish cakes with what remained with the salmon trout, we had this as a quick brunch before our celebratory meal starting in the late afternoon. Although quite rich – tendre/demi-sec – François Chidaine’s Les Tuffeaux 2004 provided a good match, especially as there was sufficient acidity to carry off the touch of sweetness.

For the aperitif I had intended to have Domaine Huet’s 1999 Pétillant but on discovering that there was only one bottle left, we had Jacky Blot’s Triple Zero instead, which naturally was no hardship.



The salad of foie gras de canard as the first course presented some problems. Initially I considered a sweet wine – something from the Layon or l’Aubance. However, I rejected this option as the foie gras was part of a salad and not being served alone. Chidaine’s Les Tuffeaux would, I suspect been ideal but we’d already opened that, so I selected Mark Angeli’s 1998 Vieilles Vignes des Blanderies. However on opening it, delicious as it was and would prove to be a couple of days later as an aperitif, I wasn’t convinced that its oxidative style would be the best match with the foie gras salad, so instead opted for a bottle of 1998 Les Cormiers Château de Villeneuve that had both the weight and vivacity to be complemented by the salad. 1998 was the least good Loire vintage, especially for reds, of the second half of the 1990s. However, both Mark Angeli's and Jean-Pierre Chevallier's 1998s showed well and both could be kept for a severalo years more.

1998 Les Cormiers Saumur Blanc Château de Villeneuve

Traditional turkey and ham partnered by two red Burgundies – not Loire I know but they do use the same grape variety as Sancerre. First up a 1986 Nuits-St-Georges 1er Cru from Léonce de Valleroy – some charm but now needing to be drunk. Then a 1996 Nuits St-Georges 1er Cru Les Boudots from Maurice Chevallier, showing more concentration and which could be kept a while longer.



We finished with a 1960 Vintage Port from Croft, which on Christmas Day was quite spirity but when finished off on 27th had mellowed with the spirit properly integrated. Interesting that, despite the diversity of Loire wines, there has never been a tradition of fortifying them. Fortified wines I guess tend to come from hotter climes, producing more potential alcohol and therefore better adapted to stopping the fermentation, as in Port and Vins Doux Naturels.

(16th August 2008: Montlouis and the last day of visits with The Wine Detective)

François Chidaine: 16th August 2008

We met at La Cave Insolite, François’ wine shop in Montlouis in the middle of the Quai Albert Baillet that runs along the south side of the Loire. La Cave Insolite stocks the Chidaine wines as well as other like-minded Loire producers. François’ wine making cellar is in the small hamlet of Husseau along with a number of other Montlouis producers like Jacky Blot and Franz Salmon.

In 1989 François Chidaine started working with his father, Yves, on the family vineyards, which then totalled five hectares. Now he has 14 hectares in Montlouis, 10 ha in Vouvray including the historic Clos Baudoin, which he and his partners acquired from Prince Philippe Poniatowski. A long drawn out process that started in 2002 and was finally completed in 2007 with the Prince moving out of his long-time home in early 2008. François also has six hectares in Touraine including 1.5ha in the village of Chissay in the Cher Valley.

The estate has been biodynamic since 1999 and François is now established as one of Montlouis leading producers. In Vouvray he has a big job re-establish the Clos Baudouin as one of the top vineyards in Vouvray after many years of neglect for unfortunately the vines in the Clos are in a very poor state and it is going to take 15 years to put them right. “The Prince was badly advised,” says François. “The wrong clones were planted and the vineyard was not properly looked after. It takes years to rescue a vineyard and put things right. We are not working for us but for the generation to come.” says François.


I remember a visit to Poniatowski a little while before François became involved. It was at the time when Nicolas Renard, who had produced amazing wines in Jasnières, was briefly in charge. It was apparent that the two men had very different views on how to look after vineyards and make wine. Nicolas Renard wanting to reduce yields as he had successfully done previously in Jasnières until Nicolas was forced out through a dispute with the owner of the vineyards he was renting that went to court. It was also apparent that the Prince had huge stock of wines from vintages stretching back at least well into the 1980s. I remember a very substantial stack of 1984, one of the worst vintages of the 1980s.

(See an account by David McDuff on a visit in 2004 to the Poniatowski estate:
http://mcduffwine.blogspot.com/2007/11/last-vouvrays-of-philippe-poniatowski.html)

François looks for purity and minerality in his wines and has a preference for those years like 2002, 2004 and 2007 when his Chenin does not become super-ripe. Like Philippe Alliet in Chinon he is not a great fan of the super rich vintage of 2003. Although he does make some good and delicate sweet wines when climatic conditions insist, François' real interest is in the drier styles of Montlouis and Vouvray. “I prefer difficult vintages that show the Loire’s true personality.” Unlike the majority of the producers in both Vouvray and Montlouis François concentrates on still wines. “90% of my wines are still,” he says, “while between 60%-70% of the overall production of the two appellations is sparkling.”

Vouvray: La Vallée Chartier road destroyed by
the storm of 31st May 2008. Taken on 2nd June.

“2008 has been difficult,” François explained. “Like last year we have had problems with mildew. The big storm in Vouvray on 31st May meant that we couldn’t get into the vineyards for three weeks to treat the vines.”

On the afternoon of the 31st May Vouvray was hit by torrential rain that flooded houses and washed away some of the steep roads that lead down the steep coteaux. The storm got marooned over Vouvray – no rain fell in Husseau just to the east of the town of Montlouis and little in Rochecorbon just to the west of Vouvray.

Vouvray: small van crushed by trees brought downby the torrent of
water on 31st May 2008. The van's owner, who was just
about to get in when it was engulfed had a lucky escape.

Before we start tasting the 2007s François explains the overall differences between Montlouis and Vouvray. The soil at Vouvray is predominantly argile-calcaire (clay and limestone) while Montlouis is mainly argile-silex (clay and flint), which gives Vouvray more power and finesse than Montlouis. The wines are aged in demi-muids (600 litre) barrels of which 10% are new as François is not a fan of new oak.

François in his cellar at Husseau: late January 2008

We start with a couple of 2007 Vouvrays – Les Argiles and Le Clos Baudouin. Les Argiles is very clean and straight, quite ripe with a hint of honey – typically 2007. In contrast Le Clos Baudouin was tight, closed and a little rustic, although the nose was richer. It needs three or four years to come round. Then across the Loire to the powerful 2007 Clos du Breuil, Montlouis – grapefruit flavours and a lot of finesse from 35 year-old vines.

Next up Les Bournais that comes from a 2.5 ha parcel on argile-calcaire in Husseau that was cleared of scrub during the 1990s and planted in 1998-1999 using massale selection. The resulting wine is powerful, pure, long and honeyed. “The vineyard is well ventilated. At the beginning I didn’t know the potential of Les Bournais,” François admits. The rich, powerful and honeyed 2007 Choiselles has four grams of residual. All of the 2007s so far have around 13% alcohol.

The Clos Habert with 15 gms of residual is from the argile-silex plateau comes from 25 year old vines and is all understated finesse and purity as is the Clos du Breuil. The quite rich, softly honeyed but also mineral Les Tuffeaux has 17 gms rs and comes from a second passage through the vines picking over-ripe Chenin. “Liquroice and smoky,” comments François.

Le Bouchet (Vouvray) ended the 2007 Montlouis and Vouvrays. “An extraordinary terroir on the premiers côtes,” enthuses François, “classic Vouvrays – minerals and truffles. You really need to be on the premiers côtes as the vines behind the côtes produce more rustic wines with less finesse.” Le Bouchet is rich and honeyed with passion fruit, a touch orange rind and other citrus flavours. This should have a considerable life ahead of it. Similarly the other 2007s should age well.

Then we tasted a couple of sparkling wines – a Montlouis méthode traditionelle 2005 and a Vouvray Pétillant 2004. Both wines have no additional dosage. The Vouvray was honeyed, yeasty and a little rustic, while the Montlouis was ripe, quite delicate and easy to drink. However on the evidence of this small sample, it is clear that François' still wines are the ones that stand out.


Time before we left to have a quick look at François’ Touraine wines. At Chissay he has Sauvignon Blanc, Côt and Pineau d’Aunis – with Eric Nicolas of Jasnières and Coteaux du Loir as the ‘reference’. First the crisp, grassy and nettley 2007 Sauvignon picked between the 13th and 17th September. “This year we may be picking a week later – around 20th-25th September. The 2007 Rosé de Touraine is two-thirds Grolleau and one-third Pinot Noir has attractive freshness and length. We ended with the rich, spicy and powerful 2006 Pineau d’Aunis (17%)/Côt (83%), which is aged a year in barrel. "Fabulous variety," said François. Obviously too young it will be interesting to taste this gain in a couple of years – unfortunately only 4000 bottles are produced so this may well not happen.

La Cave Insolite – Chidaine, 30 Quai Albert Baillet - 37270 Montlouis-sur-Loire.

Tel: 02 47 45 19 14
Email: francois.chidaine@wanadoo.fr
Web: www.cave-insolite-chidaine.com