Wine Focus July 2022: Chenin Blanc (and Shiraz)

[David M. Bueker]

So we are playing a little catch up and rehash at the same time this month. Chenin Blanc has its day in June, but we were already doing Rosé (which also has its day in June), and that seemed like to much on one side of the vinous spectrum. So we punted the grape of Vouvray & Montlouis to July. Shiraz also has its wine day in July, but we did Syrah earlier in the year. Oh heck, let’s do both.

Chenin Blanc is one of those grapes that would be a star if not for…

Shiraz would be a star if not for the 1990s.

Chenin is making inroads outside of the Loire, as more and more new world producers try to capture the magic of producers like Huet.

Shiraz is making a (small) comeback, because many winemakers are eschewing the turbocharged styles of the RP-driven 1990s style for a more balanced approach.

There are 31 days in July, so more than enough time to sample a few wines and contribute to the discussion.

Interesting combination. All delicious, but any particular logic behind the pairing?

[David M. Bueker]

Shiraz day is in July, but as we did Syrah (for Syrah day) earlier in the year it needed to get second billing.

Chenin got shorted in June as we did Rosé, so I moved it to July. Didn't make sense to pair Chenin and Rosé.

These are the juggling acts that I do every year for Wine Focus.

[Robin Garr]

These are the juggling acts that I do every year for Wine Focus.

Well juggled, too!

I love Chenin from Anjou and Touraine and detest nearly all Shiraz (notable exception Clonakilla Shiraz/Viognier).

I have plenty of the former in my cellar but I would really like to test the contention that top class Chenin can come from elsewhere, notably South Africa. There is a certain amount of Chenin elsewhere in France, e.g. at Limoux in Languedoc, but I have not been very convinced by those which have come my way (OTOH Chardonnay from Limoux can be very good). Fat chance of my finding a South African one from a reputable producer outside Paris!

[David M. Bueker]

FWIW, and understanding that I am a Chenin skeptic, but I have not found anything outside the Loire that really hits the spot. Every so often I read about a U.S. producer making "fantastic Chenin Blanc" and get sucked in. I am invariably disappointed. I have also been less likely to buy Huet, but that was after being burned by too many premoxed 2002s. I have a few Chenins hanging around the cellar, and will open a few this month. Also have a few Shiraz, and will probably grab one.

And for everybody - regular Syrah is OK too.

[Jenise]

Somewhat in your boat, David. Lots of producers trying it up here but at best it's just a decent-to-good white wine vs. being a Chenin Blanc that stands up to comparison with Loire versions. I do happen to have a Mulderbosch from South Africa that we'll try, though.

[Jenise]

Two syrahs in the past week:

2010 Va Piano Vineyards Syrah Estate Walla Walla Valley
Unlike the last reviewer, our bottle has aged very well. Rich and sturdy as befits the vintage, it has classic Washington syrah flavors--old world funk, new world sweet finish.

2014 Wind Gap Wines Syrah Nellessen Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Once upon a time I lived in California and hated syrah. Then I moved to Washington. Now I love syrah. But if all syrahs were like this one, I'd have to go back to hating syrah. The nose is less about tar than burnt charcoal, and the fruit borders on candied. Pass.

[David M. Bueker]

Digging into my (thankfully) dwindling supply of Chenin Blanc for:

2014 François Chidaine Montlouis-sur-Loire Franc de Pied Les Bournais - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Montlouis-sur-Loire (7/1/2022)
Going on three years since my last bottle, and this is even more intensely lemony. It’s almost too intense. It feels like the lemons have been reduced to a nuclear fuel, making for an extremely puckery experience. Once I get used to it some other elements emerge, but that lemon thing is just so overpowering. Oof.

[Jenise]

Don't think I've ever had a Chenin anything quite like that (though I've had Chidaines). Are you generally intolerant of lemony-ness?

[David M. Bueker]

Don't think I've ever had a Chenin anything quite like that (though I've had Chidaines). Are you generally intolerant of lemony-ness?

I don’t have any issue with lemon, but this was almost painfully intense. Totally weird. You know that lemony element in the Ramey Fort Ross Seaview Chardonnay - imagine if it was reduced to the point of a white dwarf star.

Pity to miss CB but away for the month..BC and Washington.

[Robin Garr]

It feels like the lemons have been reduced to a nuclear fuel, making for an extremely puckery experience. Once I get used to it some other elements emerge, but that lemon thing is just so overpowering. Oof.

Did having it with food make any difference? Not that I'm sure what would pair with that ...

[David M. Bueker]

It feels like the lemons have been reduced to a nuclear fuel, making for an extremely puckery experience. Once I get used to it some other elements emerge, but that lemon thing is just so overpowering. Oof.

Did having it with food make any difference? Not that I'm sure what would pair with that ...

Not really, no. It was like a lemon laser, cutting through everything.

I have one bottle left of Chidaine's Les Bournais 2014 but not Franc de Pied. I very much liked the previous bottles, the last of which I opened about two years ago with no note of excessively citrus flavours.
I'll be curious to see how the last bottle shows. I don't think Chidaine's wines age as well as those of Huet and Foreau.

[Jenise]

2018 Mulderbosch Chenin Blanc Single Vineyard Block A
A different bottle design than other Muldies, with their trademark 'M' sandblasted above the label to indicate a special bottling. Here, rich flavors of pear, lemongrass and dry honey with that beeswax texture common in the Loire but rare anywhere else (in my limited experience). Impressive weight and mouthfeel. Took it to my brother's for pizza night and there were ooh's and ah's all around.

[David M. Bueker]

2013 Sandlands Chenin Blanc Amador County - USA, California, Sierra Foothills, Amador County (7/3/2022)
Never really thought much of this when I had in younger, but at least now it has some Chenin-typical waxy character, and even a bit of wool. What’s odd is that it still has a reductive matchstick note. I would have thought that after nine years it would be gone. There’s some sort of fruit lurking under there as well, but it never fully emerges from the sulphurous funk.

• 2005 Domaine Huet Vouvray Demi-Sec Le Mont - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray (2022-07-14)
  This was a pop and pour, which was a mistake, as this improved with air (and warming up a bit). A classic Vouvray nose, with waxy and wooly notes along with apples and honey. More of the same on the medium, pure, complex, beautifully integrated palate. This is now in between a sec and demi sec in style, given it is 17 years old now. I think it will last a while yet. No rush, but quite lovely now. (A-)

We are in a heat wave at present (up to 40°C - over 100F - possible today and tomorrow ). It was too warm to dine yesterday evening on the sunny side of the house, so we set up the table on the shady side. The main dish was lotte and Madagascar prawns with a lightly curried sauce and I chose this young Savennières to go with it. It does not yet have the complexity of mature Vouvray or Montlouis from Huet, Foreau, Blot... or of close by Coulée de Serrant, but it is already very good.

BTW other tasters talk of wool aromas in Chenin; I don't get it. Perhaps I should sniff more wool to see if I get aromas of Chenin.

2019 Vignobles Alain Chateau Savennières Château de Varennes - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Savennières (17/07/2022)
This is a reliable estate whose Savennières is regularly available at a reasonable price (c.€14) round here. The 2019 is more sharply focussed than the 2018 at a similar stage though my later bottles of that were progressively improving. Like most Savennières it is not bone dry but is nevertheless very refreshing and a good pairing for sea food in sauce. It is precisely focussed with citrus and apple fruit, typical notes of wax, fine minerality, lively mouth-watering acidity and backbone together with a burnished underlying roundness as I found also in the 2016. Very good.
Posted from CellarTracker

[David M. Bueker]

Hope the heat breaks soon Tim.

Chenin almost always reminds me of my old wool skiing sweaters.

Enjoyed as an aperitif on Sunday and another glass on Monday and looking forward to another tonight

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N.V. Bouvet-Ladubay Brut (France, Saumur)

This traditional method fizz is made from Chenin Blanc, so has a fullness that young Champagne doesn’t. I think Chenin makes a super fizz.

[David M. Bueker]

Chenin sparklers are very nice indeed. Haven't had one in a while. I should address that!

[Jenise]

Last night with green chile cheeseburgers, I served this syrah from Washington state:

2017 Kerloo Cellars Syrah Upland Vineyard Yakima Valley Snipes Mountain
Not a winery I have much familiarity with. I recall buying a red that I didn't like many years back, and last year I loved their sauvignon blanc. Last year I loved this winery's sauvignon blanc so I approached this syrah with renewed hope. A fairly concentrated wine (but not overly dense) with rich, warm dark fruits, bacon and tar. Excellent with green chile cheeseburgers.

2017 Ventisquero Syrah Kalfu Sumpai (Chile, San Antonio Valley, Leyda Valley)

20220720_Kalfu-2017-small.jpg

I'm afraid I have nothing much to say about this. Very drinkable red wine but I wouldn't say I'd guess it was Syrah. This could be a plus - or a minus. I used to real like Syrah/Shiraz but then the pepperiness became oppressive and I don't buy varietal versions any more. I now prefer Syrah/Shiraz as a component in a blend, such as with Grenache and Mourvèdre.

I won this in a raffle......