Blog

The weather has been dire over the past week with huge quantities of rain making vineyards practically inaccessible. This is worrying as the damp, humid conditions lead to mildew (downy and powdery) which requires treating on a regular basis, especially if you are working organically.

Both the Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc are flowering here at Le Tasting Room. Here in Anjou we are always a little behind the vineyards further east where many vines have finished flowering and the fruit has set.

As it’s been warm enough to eat outside this week we enjoyed a simple dinner of home made burgers, roasted garlicky plum tomatoes and a fresh green salad. L’Envolée from Gérald Vallée was our wine of choice.

At this time of year growers make a second pass through the vineyard to remove excess buds or shoots from the vines. This process is called ébourgeonnage in French and consists of removing excess shoots from the growing vines.

We have a really soft spot for the appellation of Savennières. Home to fine white Chenin Blanc wines, full of character and minerality from impossibly shallow top soils sitting above the schist and slate of the Massif Amoricain.  

For two nights in August, the centre of Saumur becomes the biggest restaurant in the world as thousands gather for the annual celebration of Saumur Champigny and its wines over a delightful open air dinner on the banks of the river Loire.

Growers have been under time pressure to tie down the vines that were left upright in many appellations in an attempt to avoid frost. Normally this is done by mid April but no chances were taken this year.

Well, it seems like we made it past the frost saints (11th, 12th and 13th May) so growers are beginning to relax as we approach the second half of May. We had one or two nights in the past couple of weeks when temperatures dropped dangerously close to zero but it seems that we are out of the major danger zone.

Yesterday was the perfect day for the Fete du Thoureil, an annual celebration of life on the river Loire, its boats, people and traditions. Le Thoureil is our nearest riverside village and is a beautiful tranquil place that comes alive with events such as this.

From the 1st May until the 31st October 2018 Chateau des Vaults (Domaine du Closel) is open every day, 7 days a week for visits to the park, vineyard and tasting room. 
In the centre of the pretty village of Savennières, Chateau des Vaults makes fine white wines from the Chenin Blanc grape. 

It’s the annual Fête du Thoureil this weekend, the 5th and 6th May. The forecast is for 23°C on Saturday and 27°C on Sunday, sunny and bright so fantastic news for the organisers of this lovely local event on the river Loire. 

If you like to run and are in the Loire this September, the Foulées du Saumur Champigny is a lovely event amongst the vines. Runs of 9km, 17km and a troglo trail of 29km as well as 2 Nordic walking trails and much more.