Chateaux du Breuil et de la Roche "Savenniéres" Loire Valley, France 2019

FROM DE MAISON

THE WINE:  Châteaux du Breuil has a magnificent two-hectare parcel of chenin blanc on the Savennières Plateau, called ‘L’Enclos’ at 180 meters, near the neighboring vineyards of Nicolas Joly, Domaine Roche Aux Moines, and Belargus. The region’s famous schist soils are clearly evident at the surface of the vineyard. ‘L’Enclos’ routinely produces world-class wines that are the perfect combination of power, elegance, and grace, with an everlasting finish.

Vinification – The philosophy in the cellar is to protect and retain the purity of the fruit with as minimal intervention as possible. They use only the coeur du cuvée, the heart of the first pressing, for their estate wines. At harvest, each vineyard is monitored carefully for the desired balance, as they are always looking for the utmost elegance. Whole bunches are sorted first in the vineyard into small crates and then brought to the winery, where they are carefully washed to avoid the introduction of Brettanomyces (a necessary step to preserve fruit and vineyard character) and then sorted again by hand. Only the healthiest, best bunches make it into the fermentation tank. After crushing, alcoholic and malolactic fermentation take place in 228 liter French barrels. The wine is then aged in the same barrels for 10 months, followed by six months in stainless steel. Only the minimum amount of sulfur dioxide possible is used during élevage and at bottling.

THE PRODUCER: In France’s majestic Loire Valley lies Châteaux du Breuil et de la Roche, situated on the right bank of the Layon river near the village of Beaulieu-sur-Layon, 20 minutes south of Angers. Built in 1822, Le Breuil’s vineyards are located on prime L’Anjou Noir vineyards: south-facing slopes of the Coteaux du Layon, resting on a bed of schist just above a seam of spilite that runs between the towns of Beaulieu-sur-Layon and Rochefort-sur-Loire. The winery also owns a prime vineyard across the Loire river, in the heart of Savennières.

The foundation of the winery lies in their superlative regenerative, certified-organic farming methods. The team has been working without the use of herbicides, pesticides or chemical fertilizers since 2007, receiving their organic certification from Ecocert in 2015. The Breuil team also utilizes native hedges, trees, and low stone walls as natural windbreaks and as pathways for wildlife to enter the vineyards from the forest. The resulting soil health is remarkable—turning over the soil in the Breuil vineyard reveals a rich network of mycelia (fungal organisms), earthworms, insects, and native ground cover, such as wild onion, garlic, and clover, among many others.