Landron, Jo 2017 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Le Fief du Breil

(Arrives 7/13) Jo Landron's Fief du Breil is from a beautiful walled vineyard sloping towards the Sèvre, with clay, sand and quartz stones over a bedrock of orthogneiss. The vines average 40 to 50 years of age, the vineyard is certified organic and biodynamic and gives very low yields. In the dense and well-strctured 2017 vintage the wine was aged 30 months sur-lie. This beautiful Muscadet needs aeration or decanting, then shows aromas of grapefruit skin, pear, lime-flower, candied citrus and almond. The palate is perfectly balanced and intensely mineral - showing ripe white fruits, almond, anise and stone flavors with firm acidity and pronounced flavors of stone and saline mineral. This is a bit more forward than the granite and gabbro-based based wines - really superb as a young wine served with shellfish, grilled fish and white meats. As usual with great Muscadet it will age beautifully and pair with monkfish, lobster and aged goat cheeses. 2017 is a great vintage for this superb Muscadet - don't miss it!  David Lillie

Luneau-Papin 2020 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Terre de Pierre

This fascinating wine is from a parcel of 50 year-old vines on La Butte de la Roche,  a dramatic dome of igneous rock with quartz stones and serpentine minerals overlooking the marshes of Goulaine. Pierre-Marie Luneau is in charge here and is doing great organic /biodynamic vineyard work, reclaiming this wonderful site with vines planted in 1974. The serpentine rock creates a very poor soil, giving wines that are normally somewhat austere and marked by intense minerality.  The 2020 "Terre de Pierre" is bright and crystalline with citrus aromas and hints of stone and dried herbs. The palate is elegant and crisp with firm saline acidity, with pear, almond and citrus flavors, and the terroir kicks in nicely with intense mineral notes and firm acidity that tingles the palate. The finish is long and scintillating with subtle white fruits and minerals. Serve this lovely Muscadet now with shellfish, cod and sole, seared scallops, or cellar for 10 to 15 years.  David Lillie

Landron, Jo 2020 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Amphibolite

Amphibolite - a metamorphic stone generally formed from gabbro or basalt, with a high concentration of iron and magnesium, prevalent in the vineyard, over a bedrock of gneiss. The wine from this vineyard is low in alcohol  (11.2%) and high in acidity and mineral salts. Bottled after 4 months sur-lie aging and retaining a bit of CO2 from the fermentation, the Cuvée Amphibolite is refreshing, stimulating and a perfect complement to shellfish and light seafood dishes. In 2020 the wine is lovely, with subtle aromas of ripe citrus confit, almond, pear and granny smith; the palate is bone dry but round and refeshing with stone and white fruits, showing a bit more density and alcohol than normal. Enjoy over the next 12 months with some Wellfleet oysters or any mildly flavored fish, even roast chicken. David Lillie

Landron, Jo 2020 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Les Houx

 The 2020 "les Houx" is a great Muscadet by Jo Landron coming from an organic/biodynamic vineyard on clay and sand over a sub-soil of gneiss, rich in iron and quartz and quite high in acidity. Kept on the lees for 12 months. In the glass, this white is a clear lemon in color. Aromatically defined by bright mineral stoniness, softened by smells of flowers and herbs. A richer, more concentrated core of yellow stone fruit develops as the wine gets some air. On the palate, mild flavors of cured lemon and apricot are accented by a hit of salinity, all culminating in a simple, precise finish of anise and flint. Lovely acid and a tender mouthfeel drives the structure.  This will drink well young, with grilled  or steamed fish and shellfish but also with crab, langoustines and lobster, especially after a few years of aging. For those who like some minerals in their Muscadet...

Landron, Jo 2019 Vin de France Melonix

 Melonix is a 'vin de table' from  30+ year old organically tended Melon de Bourgogne vines. Jo Landron and his team harvest by hand, ferment with indigenous yeast, and produce this wine without filtration or added sulfur during vinificatiion. (A small dosage is added before bottling)  Lovely aromatics, with subtle mineral notes and Chablis-like, dense stone fruit. This is definitely a bit fatter than some of Landron's other wines, expressing some creamy lemon character, but maintaining a clean mineral finish. It's a real joy to drink and remarkably pure for a wine with minimal sulfur.

Landron, Jo NV (2019) Vin Mousseux de Qualité Brut Atmosphères (Dis 10/21)

Jo Landron's crystalline "Atmospheres" is made with roughly equal amounts of organic Folle Blanche, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, hand harvested and fermented with wild yeasts. It's a Methode Traditionelle (Champagne method) that's very dry , refreshing and ethereal.  Delicate aromas of citrus, pears and sea spray. The palate is vibrant and fresh with flavors of  citrus and wet rocks and sea spray. It's a delicious aperitif  and will pair well with oysters, salmon, crudites and charcuterie. (2019 vintage, disgorged October 1, 2021.) GH

Luneau-Papin 2019 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Vera Cruz

Vera Cruz is a new cuvée from Luneau-Papin, from 45 year-old vines on a terroir of schistes and gneiss "a deux micas" in Vallet, farmed with certified organic and biodynamic methods.  A wine of terroir rather than fruit, even in the ripe 2019 vintage, the wine shows elegant aromas of pear, grilled almond, stone and citrus. The palate is dense and very mineral, showing more flavor of earth than fruit, with a lovely finish of stone, minerals and white fruit that coats the palate - really a superb combination of density and minerality.  Perfect now with fine oysters, grilled dorade, sole, cod and seared scallops. Or cellar - this wine should be very interesting in 5 to 10 years. Label inspired by Mondrian and the varied terroirs of Muscadet. DL

Pépière 2020 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Les Gras Moutons CASE

(Late March arrival) This lovely wine clearly illustrates the difference between the granite and gneiss terroirs in Muscadet. Gras Moutons is a great parcel on gneiss, in layers that permit a deep penetration by the vines, with sandy clay and amphibolite stones. The vines are at the top of a hill and on the south-facing slope overlooking the Maine. (The name, by the way, does not refer to fat sheep, but rather in local dialect, to the hilltop vineyard site.) This terroir produces lovely, classic Muscadet to drink over the next 5 to 8 years, it has a more herbal and floral bouquet than the granite-based wines and the palate, although refreshing and bright, is softer and more open.

Pépière 2017 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Cru Château Thébaud

The Domaine de la Pépière Cru Communal Château Thébaud comes from old vines in vineyards with great terroir on slopes overlooking the river Maine. The granite here (Granite de Château Thébaud, oddly enough) is fissured and permeable by the vine roots which have access to water during dry spells and absorb micro-nutrients along the way.  2009, 2010, 2012 and 2014 here were among the best of the vintage in Muscadet and the 2017 will stand out as well due to the combination of density and minerality with the very firm acidity of this very good vintage year for Muscadet - those of you lucky enough to have the 2014 in your cellar understand just what a special wine  this is. Notes from Remi Branger: "For the Château Thébaud 2017 - we harvested on the 2nd of September and did a longer elevage - 3 and 1/2 years sur lie, and we bottled it in the spring of 2021. We had thought to do a 4 year elevage but we realized that the exchange between the lies and the wine was occuring faster than usual. We have a beautiful Château Thébaud with aromas of white flowers and a touch of white peach; on the palate the density and power arrive in the finish which is less structured than the 2014 but is more structured and brighter than the 2015."  The 2014 Château Thébaud is one of my favorite Muscadet, though it needs 5 more years to really open up, and the 2017 is not far behind - perhaps a bit more precocious, thus beautiful to drink now or to age for 20 years. David Lillie