It's no exaggeration to say that François Chidaine is revered in France for his pristine Chenin Blanc from Montlouis and Vouvray. For a fraction of the price of those wines, here we get a touch of Chidaine magic with a Sauvignon cropped from vines in Chissay-en-Touraine and Saint-Julien-de-Chédon, less than 10km from Montlouis. The viticulture here is strictly organic and biodynamic and the fruit is naturally fermented with a high degree of solids before maturation on its lees until bottling. As always with Chidaine, you get terroir first and the varietal second--we think you would be hard-pressed to pick this as a Sauvignon if offered the wine blind.
The 2018 is a brilliant vintage for this cuvée, giving us a clue as to what else the Loire may offer from this exciting year. At wine-fridge temperature it's layered and pulpy and seductive but at standard fridge temp (much colder) it tightens up and becomes spicier. Regardless it's packed with nectarine, nettle and lemon rind fruit. The depth of flavour is impressive, as is the bright, driven finish. As you might expect from this illustrious producer, this is impressive for the price.