Notify me
2024 Pouilly-Fumé “Vieilles Vignes”
Régis Minet
For Americans, Pouilly-Fumé is probably most famous for inspiring Robert Mondavi to call his Sauvignon blanc Fumé Blanc. It is a lovely name. But as usual here at KLWM, we invite you to look back to what launched such a masterly marketing idea. Fumé means smoky, and Pouilly-sur-Loire is the neat little town on the banks of the Loire where the stony vineyard soil bestows upon the Sauvignon a smoky or gunflint aspect.
The Loire there is broad and quite shallow, full of islands and constantly shifting sandbars and channels. Motorboats were useless in that stretch of the river until our winemaker, motorcyclist Régis Minet, built himself a flat-bottomed craft with a barely submerged propeller. Only it and pole-propelled skiffs can navigate the Loire there. When I visit to taste each year, he insists on taking me for a ride, so to speak. We zoom along, scraping over the sandbars, veering sharply to avoid sunken tree trunks and wine buyers, ducking to avoid hanging vines and branches, while I act cool, smiling blissfully, hanging on with whitened knuckles and pounding heart, thinking that if I told you, my clients, that I was risking life and limb to get a decent Pouilly-Fumé into your glasses, you would not take me seriously.
What I find unusual and remarkable about Minet’s old-vines cuvée is its class. I know what today’s Sancerres and Pouilly-Fumés taste like. One will perhaps be more or less aromatic, another grassier, another lighter or heavier, higher or lower in acidity . . . But how many have the class and exquisite harmony of Minet’s? Everything is in balance, there are no rough or sharp edges, nothing to set your teeth gnashing in frustration. Don’t you just love class? This is just pure, delicious, classic, definitive Pouilly-Fumé.
** In 2021, Régis handed the reigns of the domaine to his stepdaughter, Lucia Mineur-Billet. Régis and Lucia are both ready and excited for this new chapter in the estate’s history! **
—Kermit Lynch
Wine Type: | white |
Vintage: | 2024 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Sauvignon Blanc |
Appellation: | Pouilly Fumé |
Country: | France |
Region: | Loire |
Producer: | Régis Minet |
Winemaker: | Régis Minet |
Vineyard: | 25 - 30 years, 10 ha |
Soil: | Clay, Marl, Kimmeridgian Limestone |
Aging: | Wine ages for 6 months on fine lees in stainless steel. Depending on the vintage, the lees are stirred two to three times during this time |
Farming: | Lutte Raisonnée |
Alcohol: | 12.5% |
More from this Producer or Region

Vouvray Brut “La Dilettante”
France | Loire
Dry Champagne-method sparkler that delivers tremendous value.

2023 Reuilly Pinot Gris Rosé
France | Loire
Citrusy aromatics, bracing salinity, and a mineral backbone make it a mouthwatering match for tangy, fresh-herb-laden soups like tom kha gai or pho.

2024 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.

2024 Val de Loire Sauvignon Blanc “Unique”
France | Loire
Lime blossoms delivered via a lightning bolt of minerally refreshment.

2016 Chinon “Les Petites Roches” MAGNUM
France | Loire
Given light treatment in the cellar, this wine shows off Cabernet in its most delicate, charming form.

2024 Val de Loire Rouge Grolleau
France | Loire
This wine in the Breton book is a pure old-vine Grolleau from soils of clay and silex.

2019 Vouvray “Bois Guyon”
France | Loire
Unique in its combination of honeyed richness and flinty verve. Hard to resist on its own, but you might also try serving it with salty-sweet yakitori or buffalo chicken wings.

2021 Chinon “Le Clos Guillot”
France | Loire
Even though all of the wines hail from Chinon, the soil, elevation, and exposition all combine to make Le Clos Guillot their cuvée with the most finesse.

2022 Jasnières “Cuvée Sainte Narcisse”
France | Loire
It might be the most unusual and most delicious top-quality sweet wine you have ever tried.

2020 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Clisson “La Molette”
France | Loire
A subtly floral nose and textured mouthfeel seal the deal. This is off-the-charts Muscadet.
About The Producer
Régis Minet
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
2024 Vouvray
Champalou France | Loire
2020 Saumur Champigny “Clos de l’Échelier”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2018 Saumur Blanc “L’Échelier”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2024 Val de Loire Sauvignon Blanc “Unique”
Domaine du Salvard France | Loire
2020 Saumur Champigny “La Marginale”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2021 Saumur Blanc “Terres”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2023 Bourgueil “Trinch!”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2024 Jasnières
Pascal Janvier France | Loire
2021 Chinon “Clos de la Dioterie”
Charles Joguet France | Loire
2024 Jasnières “Cuvée du Silex”
Pascal Janvier France | Loire
2020 Saumur Blanc “L’Échelier”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2021 Saumur-Champigny “Les Mémoires”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2024 Vouvray
Champalou France | Loire
2020 Saumur Champigny “Clos de l’Échelier”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2018 Saumur Blanc “L’Échelier”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2024 Val de Loire Sauvignon Blanc “Unique”
Domaine du Salvard France | Loire
2020 Saumur Champigny “La Marginale”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2021 Saumur Blanc “Terres”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2023 Bourgueil “Trinch!”
Catherine & Pierre Breton France | Loire
2024 Jasnières
Pascal Janvier France | Loire
2021 Chinon “Clos de la Dioterie”
Charles Joguet France | Loire
2024 Jasnières “Cuvée du Silex”
Pascal Janvier France | Loire
2020 Saumur Blanc “L’Échelier”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
2021 Saumur-Champigny “Les Mémoires”
Thierry Germain France | Loire
Kermit once said...

Kermit once said...
When buying red Burgundy, I think we should remember:
1. Big wines do not age better than light wine.
2. A so-called great vintage at the outset does not guarantee a great vintage for the duration.
3. A so-called off vintage at the outset does not mean the wines do not have a brilliant future ahead of them.
4. Red Burgundy should not taste like Guigal Côte-Rôtie, even if most wine writers wish it would.
5. Don’t follow leaders; watch yer parking meters.
Inspiring Thirst, page 174