All organic and natural wines
Chenin Blanc is a Grape variety native ofAnjou. The poor, shallow soils, with a hard mother rock (limestone, tufa, schist), and especially well drained, are the most adapted to it. The Grape variety chenin blanc gives Loire wines with a beautiful yellow color in its youth, a nice acidity and concentration.
Find, below, our selection of organic and natural wines made with chenin. Wines from the Loire Valley but also from the South-West.
Everything you need to know about Chenin Blanc
A Grape variety native of the Loire Valley
Chenin Blanc is said to have originated inAnjou, where it was cultivated by the monks of the Abbey of Saint-Maur, located between Angers and Saumur, as early as the 6th century. It is said to be made from a selection of Pineau d'Aunis or Chenin Noir. It would draw its current name from the Chenin mount in Touraine. The mildness of the Anjou region is favorable to it, as it allows a good sanitary state of the berries and a frequent development of botrytis for the sweet wines. Poor, shallow soils, with a hard mother rock (limestone, tufa, schist), and especially well drained are the most suitable.
Dry, semi-dry, sweet and even syrupy wines!
Chenin is cultivated in Anjou and Touraine to produce a wide range of white wines with diverse expressions, from the driest(Jasnières, Anjou blanc, Saumur blanc...) to the semi-dry(Savennières, Coulée de Serrant) and to the sweetest(Coteaux-du-Layon), or even syrupy(Quart-de-Chaume, Bonnezeaux...), as well as sparkling wines(Saumur mousseux, Crémant de Loire, Vouvray...)!
Wines characterized by a good acidity
The Grape variety chenin blanc gives Loire wines with a beautiful yellow color in its youth, a nice acidity and concentration. On the nose and on the palate, Chenin Blanc reveals aromas of citrus (lemon) and green fruit (apple, pear). Some wines even have more subtle notes (peaches) or sweet (pineapple, acacia, even quince and honey).
The noble rot of Botrytis Cinerea
Chenin is easily affected by noble rot, a fungus called Botrytis cinerea. Under its action, the berries wither and concentrate in sugars (it is not necessarily pretty to see, but it is delicious!). During the harvest, the winemakers make several passes through the vineyards to select and harvest these precious grapes that will allow them to produce sweet wines. This is what is called in the wine jargon "successive selections". The sweet and syrupy wines present a beautiful aromatic intensity, with notes of acacia honey, quince and candied fruits. Their color varies from a yellow with green reflections (anjou-coteaux-de-la-loire) to a deep golden yellow (coteaux-du-layon).
Great white wines for aging
The drier white wines are lively and ample in the mouth. Among them, the Savennières are distinguished by their great aromatic complexity: a bouquet of white flowers, acacia or lime blossom, notes of honey and apples, underlined by a deep minerality which ends, in the mouth, by beautiful bitters. With its high acidity, the Grape variety Chenin produces wines with good ageing potential. The best sweet wines can be kept for almost 40 years, if not more!