A mature Chenin Blanc from Chinon that, with its pear and quince notes, cool structure and savoury-bitter finish, reflects the exceptional clay-limestone terroir of Anché.
Pears and quinces, windfall fruit and cellar apple, alongside apple tart, a hint of wax and fine flinty notes.
Palate
Cooler and leaner than expected, with a warm core of ripe pome fruit, burnt sugar, wet stone, lively acidity and a savoury-bitter finale with grapefruit zest.
Character
A wine with mature aromatics and a cool, taut structure – Chenin Blanc in its mineral-elegant form, deserving time and attention.
Pairing
Pairs well with pan-fried fish with herb butter, white poultry in cream sauce or mature hard cheese.
Notes
The slow fermentation in cool tuffeau cellars and the maturation in 225-litre casks with regular lees contact bring out the aromas and structure of the Chenin with particular clarity.
Tasting note
Colour & appearance
Ripe straw yellow with golden reflections, already heralding the evolution of the vintage.
Nose
A bouquet of pears and quinces, accompanied by windfall fruit and cellar apples. Notes of apple tart, a touch of beeswax and a hint of flint intertwine to form a mature, complex aromatic profile.
Palate
Cooler and more slender than the nose suggests, with a warm core of ripe pome fruit. Burnt sugar and crushed stone meet a vibrant acidity that lends the wine structure and length.
Finish
Piquantly bitter with hints of grapefruit zest – a finale that maintains tension and invites contemplation.
Terroir & origin
Les Charmes is situated on the left bank of the Vienne, on the heights of Anché, the neighbouring commune to Sazilly. The clay-limestone terroir is unusual for Chenin Blanc in this region. Charles Joguet, who took over the estate in 1957, was the first in Chinon to vinify each parcel separately – a method he adopted from Burgundy. Since 2016, the domaine has been organically certified.
Grape variety & vinification
Chenin Blanc from a vineyard yielding an average of 35 hl/ha or less. Harvesting takes place in multiple passes, according to ripeness. Following pneumatic pressing, the wine ferments in 225-litre barrels (one third new) at cool temperatures between 5 and 13 °C. Regular bâtonnage nourishes the wine on its fine lees. After three months of fermentation and four to six months of maturation, it is blended in stainless steel.
Food pairings
The combination of ripe pome fruit, vibrant acidity and mineral structure makes this Chenin the ideal partner for goat’s cheese tart with honey, poached pike with beurre blanc or roast chicken with lemon and thyme. It also shows itself at its best alongside smoked trout fillet or risotto with green asparagus.
Special features
A Chenin Blanc that masters the rare union of ripeness and freshness. The cool, slow fermentation in one of the domaine’s hand-hewn tuffeau cellars – where the temperature fluctuates by less than half a degree throughout the year – preserves aromatic clarity. Cellar master Kevin Fontaine continues the legacy of Charles Joguet: wines that express their terroir, not the winemaker.
