Appellation: Vouvray
Vouvray is the largest white wine appellation of the Anjou-Saumur-Touraine region and it produces splendid wines from dry and austere to the richest dessert wines, as well as excellent sparkling wines. Vouvray is made exclusively from Chenin Blanc, which has been grown in the region since the 4th century. The flint-clay, and limestone-clay soils lie on top of tuffeau, the limestone used to build the many châteaux of the surrounding countryside. The cool climate insures good acidity, which is balanced by the distinctly fruity character of the Chenin Blanc, and the mineral qualities imparted by the soil.
On average, 60% of each vintage is made into still wine and 40% is made sparkling. Sweet Vouvray is not usually made from grapes that have been allowed to remain on the vine until overripe and shriveled by the sun and wind, so the percentage of dry to sweet wine depends on each year’s growing conditions. In a cool year, only dryer wines are made but in years where warm weather continues into fall, harvest for sweet wines is delayed until well into November (the latest harvest in France) and there may be several pickings in order to harvest the grapes at their moment of optimum ripeness.
Vouvray can age magnificently for decades and has been known to remain in prime condition for more than a century. The wine develops richness and depth over time but will never lose its fresh and fruity character. Sparkling Vouvray shows all the qualities of the still wines but with an even more pronounced flavor of minerals. It is an excellent aperitif, but also an ideal sparkling wine to drink with a meal.
Situated just across the Loire river from Vouvray is Montlouis-sur-Loire, which also makes dry, demi-sec, sweet and sparkling wines from 100% Chenin Blanc. Where the wines of Vouvray are fruity and floral, Montlouis-sur-Loire tends to reflect some of the more earthy and mineral notes of Chenin Blanc.
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Loire365 Factoid
What's In A Name?
Long before the concept of varietals had been invented (and when the same grape often had many different names), French winegrowers and wine makers had discovered that wines from one village or vineyard were very different from wines from the neighboring village or hillside. This is why French wines (including those of the Loire Valley) are identified by “appellations” or place names rather than by the grapes from which they are made. The words Appellations d’Origine Controlee, or the letters AOC on a label indicate that a wine is made in accordance with strict regulations that allow the producer to use the appellation.
