François Chidaine Moelleux 2016

Name: François Chidaine Moelleux 2016 | Bine & Vine
Brand: Chenin Blanc
Price: 49.99 USD
Availability: InStock

$49.99

Manuela Chidaine described 2016 as a “vintage from hell”. Stemming from the severe frost that blanketed the central Loire on 27th April, this domaine lost an astonishing 90% of its forthcoming crop. By harvest time, this translated to an average yield of 5 hl/ha. As such, the domaine could only realise four cuvées from their Montlouis/Vouvray vineyards. This delicious moelleux is one wine that made the cut.

The wine is a blend of strictly sorted, late-harvested and botrytised grapes culled from parcels in Montlouis and Vouvray (hence the Vin de France appellation). It was raised for 11 months in used 600-litre barrels and bottled unfiltered.

Ending up with just 35 g/L residual sugar, it is a glorious riot of quince, citrus oils and roasted pineapple bound by scintillating freshness and fabulous length of flavour. There’s also some serious complexity on the crunchy finish by way of grapefruit, smoke and spice nuances.

It’s a wine to excite a top Mosel producer!

In stock

Categories: Wine, Dessert, Other Dessert, Region, France, Loire, White, Chenin Blanc Tags: Biodynamic Farming, Certified Biodynamic, Chenin Blanc, Dessert Wine, France, François Chidaine, French, Loire Valley, Natural Wine, Organic, Organic Farming, Sweet Wine

François Chidaine Moelleux 2016

2016 was an vintage of extremes, beginning with a catastrophic series of freezing nights in April. The ensuing frost damage resulted in a crop of 10% the normal size scattered throughout the many parcels that Chidaine farms in Montlouis and Vouvray.

This is a blend of late-harvest grapes culled from the vineyards of both villages, thus its Vin de France denomination.
Firmly supported by great acidity, this wine shows ripe quince, pineapple and lots of minerals.

Grape variety
Chenin Blanc (Pineau de Loire)

Vine cultivation
The vineyard is managed biodynamically. No chemical pesticides are used. The soil is tilled. Honey-producing and nematicidal plants are sown between the rows. The preparations used are derived solely from processed plant, animal, and mineral matter.

Floors
The soil is composed of deep clays and white chalk, exclusively of a clay-limestone nature. The subsoil consists of Tuffeau, a soft, white limestone rock through which roots can penetrate.

Reviews

Wine Advocate: “Flamboyant and lively, Chidaine’s 2016 Vin de France Moelleux is showing superbly today, evoking aromas of almonds, saffron, baked pear and ripe orchard fruits. Full-bodied, dense and concentrated, it’s structured and perfectly balanced, with bright acids and a lively mid-palate that culminates in an endless, mineral and subtle finish. Kudos!” (95 Pts)