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2019 Savennières Moelleux
Château d'EpiréAsk anyone who has worked at KLWM for over twenty years to name their favorite wine from Kermit’s legendary cellar and you will get the same response: the 1947 Moelleux from Épiré. The aromas are too abundant to name, their beauty and intrigue unparalleled in the wine world. Here is your chance—if you can be patient—to create some of the most exciting memories of your wine life.
—Dixon Brooke
Wine Type: | white |
Vintage: | 2019 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Chenin Blanc |
Appellation: | Savennières |
Country: | France |
Region: | Loire |
Producer: | Château d'Épiré |
Winemaker: | Luc Bizard |
Vineyard: | 30-55 years, 8.5 ha |
Soil: | Schist |
Aging: | Juice rests for 24 hours before being racked into stainless steel cuves or barrel for fermentation to begin |
Farming: | Lutte Raisonnée |
Alcohol: | 13% |
More from this Producer or Region
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2020 Saumur-Champigny “Franc de Pied”
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2022 Anjou Rouge “Clos de la Cerisaie”
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2017 Jasnières “Chant de Vigne”
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2021 Saumur Blanc “L’Insolite”
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2022 Sancerre Rouge “Le Chant de l’Archet”
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About The Region
Loire
The defining feature of the Loire Valley, not surprisingly, is the Loire River. As the longest river in France, spanning more than 600 miles, this river connects seemingly disparate wine regions. Why else would Sancerre, with its Kimmeridgian limestone terroir be connected to Muscadet, an appellation that is 250 miles away?
Secondary in relevance to the historical, climatic, environmental, and cultural importance of the river are the wines and châteaux of the Jardin de la France. The kings and nobility of France built many hundreds of châteaux in the Loire but wine preceded the arrival of the noblesse and has since out-lived them as well.
Diversity abounds in the Loire. The aforementioned Kimmderidgian limestone of Sancerre is also found in Chablis. Chinon, Bourgueil, and Saumur boast the presence of tuffeau, a type of limestone unique to the Loire that has a yellowish tinge and a chalky texture. Savennières has schist, while Muscadet has volcanic, granite, and serpentinite based soils. In addition to geologic diversity, many, grape varieties are grown there too: Cabernet Franc, Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, and Melon de Bourgogne are most prevalent, but (to name a few) Pinot Gris, Grolleau, Pinot Noir, Pineau d’Aunis, and Folle Blanche are also planted. These myriad of viticultural influences leads to the high quality production of every type of wine: red, white, rosé, sparkling, and dessert.
Like the Rhône and Provence, some of Kermit’s first imports came from the Loire, most notably the wines of Charles Joguet and Château d’Epiré—two producers who are featured in Kermit’s book Adventures on the Wine Route and with whom we still work today.
More from Loire or France
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2023 Coteaux du Loir Blanc
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Vouvray Brut
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2023 Vouvray “Les Fondraux”
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2020 Bourgueil “Nuits d’Ivresse”
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2020 Saumur Champigny “Clos de l’Échelier”
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2022 Sancerre Rouge “Le Chant de l’Archet”
Daniel Chotard France | Loire
2021 Vouvray “Pierres Rousses”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2020 Chinon “Les Varennes du Grand Clos”
Charles Joguet France | Loire
2021 Val de Loire Blanc “Cirrus”
Éric Chevalier France | Loire
2023 Chinon “Les Petites Roches” Blanc
Charles Joguet France | Loire
2023 Coteaux du Loir Blanc
Pascal Janvier France | Loire
Vouvray Brut
Champalou France | Loire
2023 Vouvray “Les Fondraux”
Champalou France | Loire
2020 Bourgueil “Nuits d’Ivresse”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2022 Quincy “Vieilles Vignes”
Domaine Trotereau France | Loire
2021 Chinon Blanc “Les Charmes”
Charles Joguet France | Loire
Where the newsletter started
Where the newsletter started
Every three or four months I would send my clients a cheaply made list of my inventory, but it began to dawn on me that business did not pick up afterwards. It occurred to me that my clientele might not know what Château Grillet is, either. One month in 1974 I had an especially esoteric collection of wines arriving, so I decided to put a short explanation about each wine into my price list, to try and let my clients know what to expect when they uncorked a bottle. The day after I mailed that brochure, people showed up at the shop, and that is how these little propaganda pieces for fine wine were born.—Kermit Lynch