Loirebound in October seeks advice

originally posted by Thor:
I think you should oblige your noblesse and go see Rougeard. I mean, if you had the opportunity in the applicable region, would you blow off Chave? DRC? Giacosa? Huet? ZH/Trimbach? Mller-Catoir? It's at least worth exploring whether or not you think this winery deserves that company.

Here's something that someone wrote to me about a much lesser, but reputationally-analogous, producer, many years ago:

Yeah, the wines aren't that good anymore. Maybe they never were. But they defined a genre and made the entire market for this wine. They haven't changed, it's just that the rest of the region has passed them by. You haven't visited. Don't be a fuckhead. Go visit. It will only help you think about everything else you taste.
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This was not the Loire, but I took it to heart, and I'm happy I did.

Go.
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I am not hitting Muller-Catoir, and I have never been, yet they were instrumental in me learning about German wine. But my trip is mostly for business, so I need to visit people I can work with. Just haven't had the MC sparks since 2001. In passing here and there but these days the wines....bore me. The pedestrian sites just don't get "there"for me like they used to with Hans Gunter. That is what I loved most about MC 2001 and older. These lesser sites were the source of some of the greatest Pfalz experiences I have ever had. Not Kirchenstuck. Not Pechstein. Not Kastanienbuch. But Schlossel and Eselshaut.
 
Based on that I would try to visit Evelyne de Pontbriand at Closel, who was so very gracious and showed great patience with me and my questions.
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I would second that. I was very taken with the current wines from Ch. de la Genaiserie in the Layon at a tasting earlier this year, and the proprietor (M. Julia? I can't find his card right now) was very friendly.
 
have dinner one night at l'herbe rouge in valaire. plan on maybe passing out and sleeping upstairs... fois gras covered in reduced balsamic vinegar, calamari fried in sesame oil (like the best thing you've had in hong kong, but in the touraine), and whatever else cecile brings out for you. don't drink anything you can see through...

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It's going to be interesting no matter where you end up.

Why not broaden the view of each appellation by pairing a top estate with a lesser-known eclectic one?
 
I'd be curious as to what your thoughts are on La Grapperie. There was a previous thread here about their wines. Seem very hit or miss. I definitely had a miss the one time I had a glass, but who knows how they'd be at the source. If you want to go weird this may be one to check out.

Also, there was a wine bar that I really wanted to go to (on our abandoned trip) that seemed great Le Cercle Rouge. It's in Angers, I think Cory went, maybe he can add more.
 
Do not miss Le Cercle Rouge if you are near Angers. It turned out to be my favorite wine bar in all of France. Good list, prices, atmosphere, vibe, scene, whatever. Just don't ask them if they have Overnoy.
 
Naiz Euskara to you,
Naiz Euskara to you,
Naiz Euskara, MLipton,
Naiz Euskara to you!

You may now return to your regular thread drift.
 
Great, this has been very useful. Baudry, Closel and Belliviere/Nicolas are already on my original list. Will add CRB and Rougeard to the top echelon. Visits to Courtois usually include son & nephew, since the property is only divided into three for tax reasons. Cercle Rouge and l'Herbe Rouge will be visited and the latter perhaps slept in. Who is Jacqueline Friedrich, Yixin?
 
she wrote "the wine and food guide to the loire". i don't know if its been updated but it is considered one of the best guides to the loire. definetly worth reading before heading there even if it hasn't been updated.

she has a website: http://jacquelinefriedrich.com/

eta: if you do visit chidaine his wife runs a small but interestingly stocked wine shop in montlouis.
 
originally posted by Lyle Fass:


Just haven't had the MC sparks since 2001. In passing here and there but these days the wines....bore me. The pedestrian sites just don't get "there"for me like they used to with Hans Gunter. That is what I loved most about MC 2001 and older. These lesser sites were the source of some of the greatest Pfalz experiences I have ever had. Not Kirchenstuck. Not Pechstein. Not Kastanienbuch. But Schlossel and Eselshaut.
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What he said.
 
So if one were to try and plan a trip to the Loire say, some time next year, what are the best times of year to visit wineries (i.e not during harvest, not during bottling, etc.)?
 
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