Chenin Blanc

In 1998 Bruno Rochard took over the reigns from his parents at Domaine de Mirebeau, situated in Anjou close to the town of Rablay sur Layon. Before Bruno took over, the domaine was farming grapes and making wine conventionally, so Bruno undertook the task of converting the 6 ha to organic production. The vines consist of 50% Chenin Blanc, 27% Cabernet Franc and 33% Grolleau, the latter of which Rochard champions as a perfect grape for red wine production, particularly with soils of clay and pebbles which keep the vines neither too hot nor too cold.

Situated on famous clay limestone of the hill of Puy Notre Dame in Saumur are the 13ha of vineyards of Manoir de la Tête Rouge. The domaine was established long ago in 1649 and current vigneron Guillaume Reynouard took over the estate in 1995. A few years later, in 1998, he began the transition of turning the vineyards organic, and they have been certified biodynamic since 2010. Today Guilaume makes a wide range of honest wines with the intention of expressing the terroir of Saumur in a most honest and accessible way.

François Chidaine has acheived a lot in his career as a vigneron, not only for himself but for the whole appelation of Montlouis. He started making wine with his father Yves, who at the time was working on 4ha of rented vines. A series of smart contracts allowed François to buy some brilliant parcels of his own, some of which the potential was yet to be discovered. Pretty quickly François had become a serious player in the Loire, with parcels in all the best spots in Montlouis, an area that was once seen as inferior to Vouvray.