Alder Yarrow

Wine Blogger Vinography

9.4

Positively epic Chenin last night with dinner at @themorris_sf with some friends. Angled towards its mineral core, this wine offered citrus pith and unripe pear flavors with herbal overtones and a hint of flowers. A sappy membrillo note crept into the finish at the end but the pith and wet chalkboard minerality dominated with shimmering subtlety. A knockout from this tiny tiny producer working their 15 acres in Saumur to make 1200 cases per year. The wines are not racked, and have no added yeasts or sulfur, and are often aged for multiple years in the bottle. This particular bottling comes from 100+ year-old vines. — 4 days ago

Jeroen Koenen

9.3

Rich, mature, nutty, floral and citrusy. Mandarin, mango, lemon oil, lots of peppery spice, resin, wet rocks, pine kernels and cheese.
True, it’s a peculiar mixture, but it works!
This is great to drink now, the sooner the better, in your garden, some roasted almonds and some old goatcheese within reach.
Fantastic QPR at 15€ @wijnvanjoop — 3 days ago

Ely Cohn

9.1

Military Chenin - first rank straight faced silver skinned Savennieres without any sense of humor - not even a smirk.

Accents of pear, lime, jasmine flowers and smoking flint. Honest and transparent.

You can taste the chalky porous rock filters feeding the vines.

Bold austere flavors of lemon and crisp pear and white pepper with a little bitter bite of white flowers just at the end. — 14 days ago

Chris MacLean

9.0

Hint of sweetness that works wonders with spicy Asian cuisine. — 6 days ago

with Sarah

S.S. Mandani

9.2

Flinty, aroma is basically nill. But also I had marinara sauce before, so maybe my senses are all outta whack.

Super elegant vouvray (autocorrect corrected vouvray to “boy rat”... which, why?)

Dry, yes, but balanced with a nicely textured creamy mouthfeel. Chewy. Lemon peel, mangoes, minerals, and even a bit of lychee.

Recommended by the friends at Frankly Wines. Great value. — 5 days ago

Kurt Schuster

9.2

Delicious thick with low acid, apples, chamoy, and almost a lambec beer style funk. Even though I used to work in banking this one reminds me of that hipster girl that might skip a few showers and overcompensate with patchouly oil but watching her smile is like the sun rising and the curves make you want to buy a Lamborghini. Bright, and round in ways that defy Euclidean geometry. Very delicious. — 9 days ago

Vanessa

9.1

Le Bouchet is an amazing value Chenin Blanc grown within the Vouvray appellation, but vinified across the river in Montlouis. It was made by Francois Chidaine with a vintage of 2014 and an ABV of 13.5%. It was $25 at @thomasliquors 🙌🙌

👁 It has a deep golden hue.

👃 On the nose, this wine has a medium(+) intensity of developing aromas, including notes of desiccated apple, bruised yellow pear, lemon curd, chalk, wet stone, dried white flowers, and honeycomb. The aromas are concentrated.

👄On the palate this wine is dry with notable residual sugar (possibly off-dry), it has medium(+) acidity, a medium(+) body due to the richness of the texture, medium alcohol, and a medium(+) intensity of flavors consistent with the nose, although with brighter citric influences. The finish is medium.

This wine has complexity; it's concentrated; it's for the cerebral type. I could see it pairing well with a variety of salads and cheeses and/or a pork roulade; we’re pairing it tonight with an herbed, grilled chicken, grilled bell peppers, and roasted asparagus.
— 17 days ago

with Deked1

Josh Morgenthau

9.1

Nose is fantastic. Orchard flowers. White peach. Orange blossom, honey, apricot. A great long finish. Just not as mineral/acid driven as the best Savennières in more classic vintages. Just slightly off dry. Has the ‘18 ripeness that I’ve found nearly overwhelming. Nothing wrong with it but the wines are less crisp and versatile. Will probably avoid purchasing more of the vintage going forward. — 4 days ago

Peter van den Besselaar

9.1

Vintage 2005 | gold colour, apricot in smell, apricot kernel bitters in taste. Fine balance but absolutely for people with acquired taste. Old Chenin Blanc that fitted excellent with Coquilles Saint Jacques, fennel and streaky bacon. At restaurant Provence in Zaltbommel. — 3 days ago

Josh Morgenthau

9.4

Pretty gold color. Peach blossom, white nectarine. Marzipan. Salty, savory long finish. Just perfect acidity. Minerals. Fabulous. Savennieres! Likely my favorite appellation for dry Chenin. Such a hidden gem. — 11 days ago