Loire Valley

The Loire Valley, which follows the Loire River through the center of France, from the mountains west of Burgundy to the Atlantic Ocean at Nantes, is home to vineyards growing a striking diversity of grapes planted on a wide range of soils. Generally, the wines they produce are intensely aromatic, well-balanced, and full-flavored.

Those made from the Muscadet grape, cultivated where the river nears the ocean, feature fruitiness and crispness. Sancerre wine, which is crisply dry, and the powerful Pouilly-Fumé — both which come from the Sauvignon Blanc grape — can age up to five years in the bottle. Chenin Blanc, also called Pineau de la Loire, can produce wines that may be dry, off-dry, medium-sweet, or extremely sweet (late harvest). These wines can be approachable when young, yet often improve for a decade or more with bottle age. The late-harvest wines are known to last and gain complexity for several decades.

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