France - Central Vineyards

Question 1

Sancerre AOP

Answer 1

• Cher Dept.
• Est. 1936
• White 100% SB
• West bank of the Loire
• La Cuesta- Sancerre’s highest point- 356 meters
• Rose/rouge 100% PN
• Rouge may not be released until 3/15 of the year following the harvest.
• Min alcohol - 10.5%
• 3 of the best sites are in Chavignol - Les Monts Damnes, Le Cul de Beaujeu, and La Grande Cote. (All on steep slopes with clay-limestone)
• Soils -
  1. Terres Blanches - calcareous clay with Kimmeridgian limestone. Soil turns white in the summer
  2. Silex - Flint
  3. Caillottes - Limestone and gravel
• (Terres blanches is relatively cool, and grapes take longer to ripen on these soils than on caillottes. Sancerre grown on Kimmeridgian marls tends to be more complex and fuller bodied, while caillottes typically produce more open, fruity wines. Silex generally yields powerful, firm, and even lightly bitter styles. It is common for producers to blend grapes from different sites to create their main white Sancerre cuvées)
• Producers - Edmond Vatan, Dmn Vacheron, Francois Cotat, Pascal Cotat, Pascal Jolivet, Vincent Pinard,
• Vine training - Cordon “arms” or single Guyot vine training

Question 2

Pouilly-Fumé AOP

Answer 2

• Est. 1937
• Eastern (right) bank of the Loire, opposite Sancerre
• Dry whites only-100% SB (Chasselas was once the main varietal)
• Min. alcohol 10.5%
• Soil-Kimmeridgian marl, Oxfordian limestone (caillottes), flint (silex), clay-siliceous soils
• Village of Saint-Andelain- home to Dagueneau’s famed Silex cuvée, the soil composition is predominantly flint-clay.
• Producers- Dmn Didier Dagueneau (Benjamin and Charlotte) Famous cuvees include: Buisson-Renard, Pur Sang (“pureblood”), Asteroïde, and Silex, Pascal Jolivet, Baron de Ladoucette
• The name Pouilly-Fumé results from Sauvignon Blanc’s historic local name, Blanc Fumé de Pouilly- “smoked white of Pouilly.” Not because of the wine’s flavor but because the berries developed a harmless, smoke-colored bloom at maturity.

Question 3

Pouilly-sur-Loire AOC

Answer 3

• 100% Chasselas
• 9.5% Min alcohol
  Producers-Michel Redde and Jonathan Pabiot

Question 4

Menetou-Salon AOP

Answer 4

• SW of Sancerre and the Loire
• Blanc: 100% SB
• Rosé: 100% PN
• Rouge: 100% PN
• Min alcohol 10.5%
• Soil-Portlandian and Kimmeridgian limestone soils, and production mirrors Sancerre in style
• Has more organic vineyards than any other appellation in the Central Vineyards

Question 5

Quincy AOP

Answer 5

• 100% SB
• Left bank of Cher
• Ancient terrace of sand-based soils with gravel, clay, and silt.
• Quincy vineyard 332 ha
• Wind turbines keep frost away

Question 6

Reuilly AOP

Answer 6

• SW of Quincy in valley of the Arnon river
• Follows the Cher River
• Whites 100% SB
• Rose PN and PG (Malvoisie)
• Rouge 100% PN
• Soil-Kimmeridgian clay-limestone with alluvial gravel and sand
• Wind turbines prevent frost

Question 7

Orleans-Clery AOP

Answer 7

Rouge: 100% Cabernet Franc
Minimum Potential Alcohol: 9.5%

Question 8

Orleans AOP

Answer 8

Both sides of the Loire around the city of Orléans. Famous for its use of Pinot Meunier.
60ha appellation makes red, white, and rosé styles, sandy-gravel soils south of the river, with a small portion on the chalky north bank. In both the rosé and red wines, Pinot Meunier must compose a majority of the blend. The whites, which are generally early drinking, are Chardonnay dominant, with a small amount of Pinot Gris permitted.