Vanessa

9.5

Let’s talk about SAVENNIÈRES!!!! 📣📣

Savennières is a small but mighty appellation (AOC), located in the Anjou subregion of the Loire Valley, France and specializes in still, dry Chenin Blanc wines. 🇫🇷

Its growing environment is apt for producing concentrated and ripe fruit, translating into wines with strong aromatic and flavor intensity and higher alcohol potential. 💪🏻 It’s no wonder this appellation is all about Chenin Blanc; Chenin has naturally higher acidity, which can help lend structure and balance to the final wine. ⚖️ 🙌🏻🙌🏻

The combination of these factors sets the stage for winemakers to produce some truly powerful and age-worthy whites that can improve, gaining complexity (and softening) with some time in the bottle. 🤔 🧐 Savennières has a reputation as a more serious, cerebral wine that is meant to be savored, especially when paired with a creamy seafood dish like Coquilles Saint-Jacques! 😋 🥘

🌿This particular wine is the Nicolas Joly, Clos de la Coulée de Serrant AOC (2019) hailing from the prized enclave of Coulée de Serrant AOC (within Savennières AOC), owned exclusively and farmed biodynamically by the renowned Nicolas Joly.

This wine is surely capable of aging for decades but tonight we opted to sip this golden wine during the golden hour with unseasonably warm, summery temperatures here in Minnesota.

🐝 🍯 In the glass, we found concentrated, layered notes of honey, beeswax, yellow apple, ripe apricot, quince, chamomile, dried & crushed white rose petals, toasted almond, hazelnut, cinnamon stick, nutmeg, acrylic paint, wet stones, salted caramel, & butterscotch.

It has texture (and finish) for days and a coating mouthfeel.

🫣 Its alcohol by volume clocks in at 15%!!! But it’s well-integrated and balanced by a crisp acidity and robust aromas and flavors. 👌 — a day ago

with Deked1

Jay Kline

9.2

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of several days. Consistent throughout. The 2018 pours a straw color with medium viscosity. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of Bartlett pear, passion fruit, lanolin, honeysuckle and minerals. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+ and soooooo wooly. These Sandlands Chenin Blancs are fun with some age. Drink now through 2033. — a month ago

Robert Weber

9.4

Classic chenin blanc. Med plus acidity, peach pear white flowers and of course lambswool. Could go for at least another 5 years. — a month ago

Brian D

9.0

Town Hearth — 3 months ago

Roberto Carli

9.6

Damn! It opened up with liquorice (sic.) and had just everything else in it. Mushrooms, turned earth, a touch of burnt honey and finally hiding just a hint of caramelized pineapple that lingers till the end. Sweetness only shows up for the grand finale in an jaw dropping show if how of how 95 g/l looks after 40 years — 4 months ago

Ray Vanderhoff

9.0

Primarily Chenin Blanc with small amounts of Semillon and Grenache Blanc blended in. Light golden color. Expensive aromas of stone fruit, white flowers, flint and honey. Flavors of cooked peaches, ripe apples, tangerine and a subtle mineral backbone. A touch of honey on the long and lingering finish. Slightly creamy/silky texture. (Lees aging?) Vibrant and zesty acidity. Rich and round with a great mouthfeel. Consistently solid vintage after vintage. Appreciate you adding this one to the tasting lineup, Chris B. I need to drink more Chenin. — 9 days ago

Austin Hohnke

9.2

Quintessential. Honey, golden apples, lanolin, and wool. There must be a few grams of RS here. Finish is as long as the day was at our shop. A well deserved reward. Drinking great, but will last and last like the classic it is. — 25 days ago

Jan A

9.4

At/near peak for my palate. If you like more developed notes, no rush... — 24 days ago

Alvaro Bustillos

9.3

Xfg @ elements princeton — a month ago

Lyn Farmer

9.5

Textbook Savennières - chiseled, crisp acidity still in evidence, lemon, apple, pear, quince, hay, peach, almond and honey. Still stunningly fresh and mouth filling. Dry but thickly textured. Glorious at nearly 30 years of age. — a month ago

Jeanette Bangs

9.4

Oysters, Sea Bream & Chenin 😋 at Noble Rot — 3 months ago

Joshua Figg

9.0

Aromas of apple, pear, mango, and peach. Soft and round on the palate with a hint of dry tartness in the finish. Very easy drinker. — 4 months ago

Samuel Sabori

8.9

Fresh, solid, textured. — 5 months ago

Dawn E.

9.2

I think this might be my favorite wine from the Loire Valley! Hailing from the Anjou region, this wine is
pale yellow in color with a slight green tinge.
I am getting stoned fruits, honey, hazelnut, cheese rind, crushed minerals, floral of some sort, great acidity, and nice salinity on the palate, I am getting a super long finish! There is a lot going on in this glass! — 16 days ago

Tom Casagrande

9.3

Now this is a Chenin Blanc I can get behind! Slightly aging brassy gold. Nose is so nice: sweet, oozing, bruised orchard fruit, a floral/tropical note. Sweat (but not stinky sweat). On the palate it’s terrific. Like fresh sweet slices of Anjou pear. A very slight oxidative note (but not enough to turn me off), and some bitter honey. Long finish. — 23 days ago

Jason Sliwa

9.2

Kermit Lynch for the win. — 5 days ago

with Vicki

Karen Prettol

9.4

Really good! — 8 days ago

romo

9.2

En mag. All mid-palate. Touch petrol on grapefruit on meringue. -at Archer — 2 months ago

Benjamin Hickey

9.3

Yum. Everything comes to together — 3 months ago

Brian Hearty

9.1

2022. Our sommelier knew that we have enjoyed several different Chenin Blanc wines with the food at The Oven and poured me a taste of this wine from an opened bottle. Beautiful aromas of apple/apple cider/blossoms. High acidity and medium body. — 5 months ago