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2023 Vouvray
Champalou
Céline Champalou’s Vouvray is always a joy to drink. The wine seems so pure, as if it bubbled up out of the limestone into a cool, limpid pool tended by nymphs and satyrs who pour it into the mouths of weary souls. That’s what I feel, anyway, when I grab a bottle from the fridge.
—Dustin Soiseth
Wine Type: | white |
Vintage: | 2023 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Chenin Blanc |
Appellation: | Vouvray |
Country: | France |
Region: | Loire |
Producer: | Champalou |
Vineyard: | 35 years average, 13.5 ha |
Soil: | Clay, Limestone |
Farming: | Sustainable |
Alcohol: | 12.5% |
More from this Producer or Region

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2020 Saumur Blanc “L’Échelier”
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This dry Chenin Blanc is etched from the white limestone beneath—crystalline, pure, and chiseled.

Vouvray Brut
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From clay and limestone vineyards, they are able to obtain remarkable complexity in their Brut, while the texture shows both a creamy richness and an austere minerality.

2015 Vouvray “La Moelleuse”
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Gently sweet yet retaining the mouthwatering acidity that Chenin from the great sites of the Loire can provide.

2020 Saumur Champigny “Clos de l’Échelier”
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2021 Saumur Champigny “Terres Chaudes”
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2019 Chinon “Clos du Chêne Vert”
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2022 Bourgueil “Franc de Pied”
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2023 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie
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It fills the mouth with suspicions of honeysuckle and pulpy stone fruits, all while maintaining classic notes of iodine and sea breeze that make this the vinous equivalent of tidepooling.

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With floral aromas and fine-grained tannins, it already showcases its charms.
About The Producer
Champalou
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 Kimmeridgian 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
2022 Vin de France Rouge “Le Martray”
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2023 Saumur Mousseux “Bulles de Roche”
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2021 Saumur-Champigny “Les Mémoires”
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2020 Vin de France Rouge Grolleau/Cabernet Franc “Clandestine”
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2020 Saumur Champigny “La Marginale”
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2020 Bourgueil “Nuits d’Ivresse”
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2020 Chinon “Clos de la Dioterie”
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2023 Vouvray “Pierres Rousses”
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2023 Val de Loire Rouge Grolleau
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2019 Chinon “Clos du Chêne Vert”
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2023 Vin de France Brut Nature “Elle est pas bulle, la vie?”
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2022 Vin de France Rouge “Le Martray”
Grange Saint Sauveur France | Loire
2023 Muscadet Côtes de Grand Lieu sur lie “La Nöe”
Eric Chevalier France | Loire
2023 Saumur Mousseux “Bulles de Roche”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2021 Saumur-Champigny “Les Mémoires”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2020 Vin de France Rouge Grolleau/Cabernet Franc “Clandestine”
Grange Saint Sauveur France | Loire
2020 Saumur Champigny “La Marginale”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2020 Bourgueil “Nuits d’Ivresse”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2020 Chinon “Clos de la Dioterie”
Charles Joguet France | Loire
2023 Vouvray “Pierres Rousses”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2023 Val de Loire Rouge Grolleau
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2019 Chinon “Clos du Chêne Vert”
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2023 Vin de France Brut Nature “Elle est pas bulle, la vie?”
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Kermit once said...

Kermit once said...
Living wines have ups and downs just as people do, periods of glory and dog days, too. If wine did not remind me of real life, I would not care about it so much.