Notify me
Vouvray Brut
Champalou
The Champalou family—Catherine, Didier, and their daughter, Céline—are Chenin Blanc specialists: from the vineyards around their home in the heart of the Vouvray appellation, they make wines in every style from the noble Pineau de la Loire, as the grape is also known. Their Vouvray pétillant is crafted in the méthode traditionelle: the secondary fermentation takes place in bottle, and then the wine is aged extensively on its lees—in this case, two years—before being disgorged and recorked. 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. For this reason, this wine makes a great bargain alternative to Champagne, but it is important not to overlook the fact that it comes from a terroir and grape variety of its own. The Champalous like to serve it at the end of a meal, but this dry sparkler works well from the apéritif all the way through dessert.
—Anthony Lynch
Wine Type: | sparkling |
Vintage: | NV |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Chenin Blanc |
Appellation: | Vouvray |
Country: | France |
Region: | Loire |
Producer: | Champalou |
Winemaker: | Catherine & Didier Champalou |
Vineyard: | 20 years average, 3.5 ha |
Soil: | Clay, Limestone |
Farming: | Sustainable |
Alcohol: | 13% |
More from this Producer or Region

2020 Saumur-Champigny “Les Mémoires”
France | Loire
Sourced from 110+ year-old vines, this is hands-down one of the best Cab Francs being made in the Loire Valley today.

2023 Vouvray “Les Fondraux”
France | Loire
The contrast of ripe, succulent Chenin Blanc fruit with a spike of flinty minerality is like licking honey off an arrowhead.

2023 Coteaux du Loir Blanc
France | Loire
Exotically perfumed with hints of guava, musk, and clove, it finishes dry and quite flinty.

2023 Jasnières
France | Loire
Racy, slightly honeyed, exotically perfumed, and loaded with minerality, this wine is an excellent representation of how Chenin reacts to the local conditions.

2022 Quincy “Vieilles Vignes”
France | Loire
Pierre’s old-vine Quincy has a mouth-coating texture and charming notes of tangerine that are certain to earn this great appellation the following it deserves.

Vouvray Brut
France | Loire
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.

2023 Anjou Rouge “Clos de la Cerisaie”
France | Loire
It is a lively, brisk wine, showcasing pristine red fruit and a hint of herbs over a firm foundation of stony acidity.

2023 Bourgueil “Cuvée Alouettes”
France | Loire
Vinified with a gentle, terroir-focused touch—few reds will slake your thirst with the ease and finesse of Cuvée Alouettes.

2023 Vouvray
France | Loire
Gentle and refreshing on the palate, it boasts a delightful balance of stony minerality with luscious, almost honeyed fruit and flowery notes.
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 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
2021 Bourgueil “Clos Sénéchal”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2021 Chinon “Les Petites Roches”
Charles Joguet France | Loire
2021 Chinon “La Croix Boissée”
Bernard Baudry France | Loire
2018 Saumur Blanc “Le Clos du Moulin”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2022 Sancerre Rouge “Le Chant de l’Archet”
Daniel Chotard France | Loire
2020 Sancerre Rouge "Champs d’Alligny"
Daniel Chotard France | Loire
2024 Bourgueil Rosé “La Ritournelle”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
Vouvray Brut “La Dilettante”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2023 Chinon Rosé
Bernard Baudry France | Loire
2023 Jasnières
Pascal Janvier France | Loire
Vouvray Brut
Champalou France | Loire
2015 Vouvray “La Moelleuse”
Champalou France | Loire
2021 Bourgueil “Clos Sénéchal”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2021 Chinon “Les Petites Roches”
Charles Joguet France | Loire
2021 Chinon “La Croix Boissée”
Bernard Baudry France | Loire
2018 Saumur Blanc “Le Clos du Moulin”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2022 Sancerre Rouge “Le Chant de l’Archet”
Daniel Chotard France | Loire
2020 Sancerre Rouge "Champs d’Alligny"
Daniel Chotard France | Loire
2024 Bourgueil Rosé “La Ritournelle”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
Vouvray Brut “La Dilettante”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2023 Chinon Rosé
Bernard Baudry France | Loire
2023 Jasnières
Pascal Janvier France | Loire
Vouvray Brut
Champalou France | Loire
2015 Vouvray “La Moelleuse”
Champalou France | Loire
Kermit once said...

Kermit once said...
I want you to realize once and for all: Even the winemaker does not know what aging is going to do to a new vintage; Robert Parker does not know; I do not know. We all make educated (hopefully) guesses about what the future will bring, but guesses they are. And one of the pleasures of a wine cellar is the opportunity it provides for you to witness the evolution of your various selections. 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.
Inspiring Thirst, page 171