Loire Valley Doubleheader: Jousset and Tue-Boeuf
7/11/26 -
We didn't plan it this way, but we're excited to share that a slew of new wines from two of our favorite Loire Valley producers have arrived in the last few days! Lise & Betrand Jousset (above left) and Clos du Tue-Boeuf (run by Thierry Puzelat - pictured above right - and his daughter Zoé) are two of the most exemplary and inspirational natural wine estates in the Loire. They fully transcend the stigma around natural wine, especially in the case of the Puzelats, who were part of what could be called the second wave of the natural wine movement in the 1990s (before there was an established term for what they were doing). The experience that comes with time, repetition, and honing one's craft, has allowed both the Joussets and the Puzelats to become masters of making wines from native yeast fermentation, and with little or no addition of sulfites, that first and foremost taste amazing and delight the palate. These are truly delicious and balanced wines that are not to be missed. Forget about everything else, these are some of the best-tasting, food-friendly and complex wines made in the Loire Valley, period.
If you like Chenin Blanc from Montlouis or Vouvray, the 2023 Premier Rendez-vous and 2022 Version Longue from the Joussets will knock your socks off, and the 2020 Premier Rendez-vous (in Magnum only) will heighten your next wine dinner or party. If you're curious about lesser-known varieties, the exquisite Brin de Chevre from Tue-Boeuf and the VDF Menu Pineau from the Joussets showcase the rare Loire grape Menu Pineau, which I personally love. If bubbles are your passion, the 100% Chenin Blanc Bubulle (available in regular and party size) and the Rose à Lies Pet-Nat from the Joussets over-deliver for the price. For reds, 2025 is a sensational vintage for Zoé and Thierry Puzelat and they have you covered with a wide range of tasty Tue-Boeuf options, from the new 2025 vintage of Vin Rouge to the all Gamay La Butte, through their flagship Cheverny bottlings, Rouillon and La Gravotte.
Last but not least is Nagori, a Chenin Blanc made in collaboration between Lise and Bertrand Jousset and their friends Catherine and Hervé Bourdon in Saint-Pierre-de-Quiberon, in Brittany... We'll let that settle in for a moment, as we did a double take when Bertrand excitedly told us he had something new for us to try and then told us the story of the Chenin in Bretagne.
As described by a local Breton wineshop, painbeurre.bzh: "Catherine and Hervé Bourdon—formerly the proprietors of the magnificent Petit Hôtel du Grand Large in Quiberon—and their winemaker friends, Lise and Bertrand Jousset, joined forces in 2021 to plant 1,500 Chenin Blanc vines across two plots in Saint-Pierre-de-Quiberon, just a stone's throw from the sea in Morbihan. The goal? To eventually produce 2,000 bottles of Breton wine imbued with the character of this unique terroir, sculpted over millennia by iodine-rich winds." Whenever you need to blind someone and really stump them (or just want a good bottle of white!), we'd recommend considering the Nagori!
-Eben Lillie
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To top things off, we've added a few extra wines to our collection that we wanted to highlight. Recommended by David Lillie are the following:
2023 Domaine Baudry Chinon "Les Grézeaux" -- One of the most pleasurable red wines of the Loire Valley, the "Les Grézeaux" always has an elegant silky texture and wonderful freshness, making it delicious as a young wine, combined with the ability to age beautifully for 20 years and more in good vintages. 2023 was a hot and rainy year, very difficult for the winemakers, but as Matthieu Baudry says "The reds are juicy, enjoyable and bursting with fruitiness, but with fewer tannins than in 2022." Our tasting with Matthieu last winter showed a superb 2023 Grézeaux, with very fresh, very pretty red fruit aromas and a lighter palate than the 2022, with gorgeous earthy red fruits, beautifully elegant and with terrific length. Keep your wonderful 2022s in the cellar and drink this lovely wine over the next ten years or more!
2025 Domaine Pinon Vouvray "Les Trois Argiles" and "Silex Noir." -- Julien Pinon's demi-sec Vouvrays are sensational in 2025, both possessing ample fresh acidity balancing the beautiful ripe fruit, and with fabulous earth and mineral flavors in the long finish - delicious now but best after 10, 20 or 30 years!!
2025 Pierre Goiset Vin de France "Grande Falaise" -- This is one of the most insanely delicious summer reds you will ever encounter! It's 100% Merlot grown on the granit soils of Chateau Thébaud near Pépière - it's light and velvety, sapid and refreshing, bursting with black fruits with hints of licorice and cocoa, seamless and beautiful in the finish - serve very cool and Enjoy!! (60 btls for the US)
