K&L Newsletter: The Loire's Finest Values, Hidden Gems, and World-Class Buys

Remarkable depth of rewarding selections: discover your next favorite bottle... Monday Jun 13th, 2022 [View in Browser]( [KL-emailheader.gif]( [Bordeaux News]( [Today's Newsletter]( takes us to a region lovingly known as the Garden of France. The Loire Valley is France's longest water course, and combined with the temperate continental climate along much of its route, it's a perfect milieu in which to grow incredible produce of all kinds, especially grapes. Some of the oldest winemaking families in the country call this region home, and with a dazzling array of soil types and micro-climates, the opportunities for wine exploration in the Loire are nearly endless. We start with a few personal favorites of our intrepid Loire buyer Keith Mabry, followed by an introduction to one of the great unsung heroes of the Chenin Blanc varietal in Domaine de la Taille Aux Loups. Next we dig a little deeper into the Loire's most famous region, Sancerre, by highlighting three under-the-radar stunners that provide everything Sancerre fans love about the appellation. The Loire's red wines get their due praise as Keith takes us through impeccable Cabernet Franc stunners that offer world-class appeal for simply unbeatable prices, and we round out the journey with thrilling examples of what the Loire arguably does better than anywhere else—provide exceptional wine drinking experiences for a mere song. [Millet Vineyards] --------------------------------------------------------------- Hand-Picked Loire Favorites Our first stop in today's newsletter is a trio of hand-picked favorites from K&L Loire buyer Keith Mabry. While the Loire is certainly defined by its white wines, the red and sparkling categories are well represented with thrilling and charming options that far over-perform at their price points. Chaboissière's outstanding sparkling Muscadet Hallereau is a long-time staff favorite and for good reason. With "sumptuous, Champagne-like texture and complexity," it's a stellar, sub-$20 option for bubbles fans of all stripes. Perennial K&L direct-import stalwart Franck Millet is known to our Sancerre fans for his best-selling Insolite blanc, but his Sancerre Rouge, made from 100% Pinot Noir, is also a fan-favorite in the category. As Keith notes, it "erupts with raspberry and tea aromas that pull you in, and the streak of mid-palate fruit and acidity will keep you coming back to the glass for more." Finally, one of the greatest expressions of Cabernet Franc (and one of our greatest values) can be found in the 2015 Petit Thouars Cuvée l'Amiral from the benchmark Chinon appellation. Vinous' 94-point review calls this "an impressive, savory, refined Cabernet Franc that is almost Bordeaux-like in its classicism." For under $30, you'll be hard-pressed to find a better deal in cellar-worthy Loire red. Vintage Item Name Score Retail Link NV Domaine de la Chaboissière "Hallereau" Methode Traditionnelle Brut (Disgorged 2021) $19.99 [View]( 2020 Franck Millet Sancerre Rouge $19.99 [View]( 2015 Château du Petit Thouars "Cuvée L'Amiral" Touraine Rouge 94 $29.99 [View]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Domaine de la Taille Aux Loups: Hidden-Gem Chenin Blanc Masterpieces Few white wines are more exciting to “study” than Chenin Blanc. Linear and concentrated, honeyed and floral, these are precisely the characteristics that make it such an excellent candidate for enjoying along its various (and long) stages of development. This aging potential can translate to pricey bottles, especially from top producers, but after a string of excellent vintages, 2019 included, now is the time to invest in classic Loire Valley Chenin Blanc. And what better place to start than with the 2019s from Loire maverick Jacky Blot and his Domaine de la Taille Aux Loups. These wines stand toe to toe with cult favorites such as Chidaine, Guiberteau, and Thierry Germain, and this pair of stellar new releases each garnered high praise from both Decanter and Vinous. Les Hauts de Husseau is a 95-point pure expression of limestone terroir from old vines on the highest point in Montlouis that’s sure to age at a glacial pace, while the more open and inviting Clos Mosny “gives an almost Meursault like richness and texture.” With the stuffing to age and evolve with the best white Burgundies at a fraction of their prices, these incredible Chenins are some of the best cellar buys in our entire white wine inventory. Vintage Item Name Score Retail Link 2019 Domaine de la Taille Aux Loups "Clos de Mosny" Montlouis-sur-Loire 95 $34.99 [View]( 2019 Domaine de la Taille Aux Loups "Les Hauts de Husseau" Montlouis-sur-Loire 95 $34.99 [View]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Sancerre's Under-The-Radar Rising Stars The spiritual heart of the Loire Valley, Sancerre is its most famous region and produces the majority of its most widely popular wines, as well as many of its most profound ones. This trio of K&L favorites exemplifies what makes Sancerre so universally admired. From overperforming value to ultra-classic terroir expression, Sancerre has it all. The sub-$20 Cherrier is "always one of the biggest crowd-pleasing Sauvignon Blancs from anywhere in the world," according to buyer Keith Mabry. Rising star Anthony Girard, the fourth generation to farm his family's eponymous estate, also makes a superb expression from his own small parcel of vines on classic limestone soils. The 2020 Clef du Récit is classic Sancerre in that while the heavy limestone content helps the fruit to retain bright acidity, a portion of the vineyard is planted in flintier grounds, adding the quintessential minerality to the finish that Sancerre lovers so crave. From arguably Sancerre's greatest vineyard site comes a spectacular terroir expression made by the scion of one of its most famous families. Vintage Item Name Score Retail Link 2020 Domaine Cherrier Père & Fils Sancerre $18.99 [View]( 2020 Domaine la Clef du Récit (Anthony Girard) Sancerre 90 $24.99 [View]( 2019 Dominique & Janine Crochet "Le Chêne Marchand" Sancerre 94 $34.99 [View]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Ode to Cabernet Franc One of the oldest grape varietals on earth, Cabernet Franc has been a foundational piece of the world's wine history as we know it, and nowhere does it reach its most authentic expression more than in the Loire Valley. Gone are the days of rustic, sometimes vegetal specimens that only a Loire native could love. Today's Cabernet Franc producers are firing on all cylinders and making wines of true terroir and expert refinement. Best of all, you can almost always find this world-class character at an absolute steal relative to other categories. The late, great master of Loire Cab Franc, Joël Taluau was famed for making some of the longest-lived examples of Cabernet Franc anywhere. Indeed, we've recently had vintages as old as the mid-'80s in our inventory and they showed beautifully still. His daughter and son-in-law carry on his legacy with admirable craftsmanship, and their entry-level Expression is a perfect introduction to this domaine's impeccable terroir in the tiny St-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil appellation. The neighboring Bourgueil region is full of hidden-gem domaines, two of our favorites being Yannick Amirault and Domaine les Pins. The latter produces both stellar everyday value, as found in the Les Rochettes, as well as sturdy, long-term stunners like the Nos Père Hiers, both of which far outpace their price points in term of quality. Vintage Item Name Score Retail Link 2019 Joël Taluau "Expression" St-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil $13.99 [View]( 2019 Domaine les Pins "Les Rochettes" Bourgueil 91 $13.99 [View]( 2019 Yannick Amirault "Cote 50" Bourgueil 91 $19.99 [View]( 2020 Domaine Dozon "Clos du Saut au Loup" Chinon $19.99 [View]( 2018 Domaine les Pins "Nos Pere Hiers" Bourgueil $29.99 [View]( --------------------------------------------------------------- France's Greatest Hotbed of Value Stunners No other region in France serves up such a dizzying array of value gems as the Loire. Red, white, or rosé—whatever your occasion calls for, you can impress your guests or yourself on a more than friendly budget. One of favorite Sancerre producers, Nicolas Idiart gives us a Sancerre-quality drinking experience in his under-$10 Sauvignon Blanc that anyone and everyone should have on hand all summer for impromptu evenings on the patio or afternoons by the pool. Arguably the greatest pound-for-pound values in white wine come from the Muscadet appellation, and the Bedouet Clos des Grands Primos shows exactly why. A sterling, single-vineyard terroir expression for under $13 is nearly unheard-of, but Muscadet more than delivers it in this gem. Malbec lovers will find everything they're looking for in direct-import standout Vieil Orme's Touraine Côt (as Malbec is known in the Loire). At $14.99, it's every bit the worthy rival to outstanding Malbec values from Argentina and Cahors. Finally, Chenin Blanc once again proves its mettle in the exceptional Coulée d'Aunis Saumur Blanc from our long-time friend Jean-Noël Millon at La Source du Ruault. "Transcending its price point by double at least, this complex Chenin Blanc possesses weight, tension, and depth of fruit," notes buyer Keith Mabry, and it's a perfect example of why this varietal should be on the shortlist of any avid collector of cellar-worthy white wines. Vintage Item Name Score Retail Link 2020 Nicolas Idiart Sauvignon Blanc Val de Loire $9.99 [View]( 2020 Bedouet "Clos des Grands Primos" Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie 90 $12.99 [View]( 2020 Domaine du Vieil Orme Côt Touraine Rouge $14.99 [View]( 2021 J. Mourat "Collection" Val de Loire Rosé $14.99 [View]( 2018 La Source du Ruault "La Coulee d'Aunis" Saumur Blanc (Previously $30) $19.99 [View]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [New Feed]( [Auction]( [Local]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [On the Trail (K&L Blog)]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Instagram]( [YouTube]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [BORDEAUX]( | [NAPA]( | [BURGUNDY]( | [CHAMPAGNE]( | [ITALY]( | [RHÔNE]( | [SPIRITS]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [My Account]( | [Wine Clubs]( | [Events]( |[Gift Cards]( | [Accessories]( | [Delivery]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Missed an offer? Check out recent opportunities at our [Email Archive]( page. 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