Pineau is a Punk Rocker (and other unavoidable puns)

I'm not talking about Pineau de la Loire (aka, Chenin Blanc). That’s more classical, across the range. Not Menu Pineau, either. I haven’t drunk enough wines based on it to slot it into a genre – acid jazz perhaps. Pineau d’Aunis? Now you’ve got it. Punk rock all the way. Pineau d’Aunis is energetic, nervy, sometimes clumsy, usually direct and almost always a little edgy. It’s loud but not without subtlety. It wears its heart on its sleeve.

It’s also the darling of both natural winemakers and natural wine afficionados. While there are approximately 500 hectares planted to Pineau d’Aunis (aka, Chenin Noir) throughout the Anjou-Saumur and Touraine, most of it ends up blended into regional reds and rosés. Nearly all of the handful of producers who make varietal Pineau d’Aunis, though, can be counted among the top ranks of the Loire’s independent, adventurous, natural wine growers. I think it’s not too much of a stretch, too, to call it the poster child for fans of small farm, idiosyncratic Loire wines. It’s an ancient vine championed by those that strive to make the voices on the fringe be heard. Here are a couple of recent cuts from two of its more renowned producers.


Touraine Pineau d’Aunis “La Tesnière,” Thierry Puzelat 2007
$20. 12.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.
Another piece in the Puzelat…. “La Tesnière” is varietal Pineau d’Aunis, farmed organically and biodymically on clay and flint soils, aged in 600-800 liter oak demi-muids and bottled without filtration. It pours the exact color of the strawberry jam that comes in those little plasti-sealed containers served at diners and greasy spoons across America. It’s a portentous hue, as sweet strawberry jam is the first scent registered by the olfactory nerves – spiked, as so typical with Pineau d’Aunis, with an assertive streak of ground white pepper. Bright acidity dances in the far reaches of the mouth. This is uncomplicated and delicious, a wine I could drink all day. It’s quite similar in style to the Pd’A from Clos Roche Blance, just a touch gentler and simpler. Says my wife, “It smells like when you’re in France and tasting in the cellars.”

As it opened a bit in the glass, rhubarb and clove emerged, the sweet fruited aspects of the wine hit right up front but quickly shifted to drier, leaner flavors. Something about its crunchy, fresh but slightly two-dimensional character makes me wonder if this might see partial carbonic fermentation. Anyone out there know for sure? In any event, the wine lost a bit of its nerve on day two but kept every bit of its ripe, strawberry driven fruit and kicked up a notch on the peppery scale. Chilling the wine down a few degrees muted the spicier side of the wine’s aromatic profile but brought out a much more refreshing texture. Very mutable, easily enjoyable juice.

Coteaux du Loir “Rouge-Gorge,” Domaine de Bellivière (Eric Nicolas) 2006
$25. 13.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.
It might be fair to call Domaine de Bellivière the standard bearer for Pineau d’Aunis… makes sense to me at any rate. Their cuvée “Rouge-Gorge” is what got Cory started down the path of natural wine enjoyment, and it’s what kick started my own minor infatuation with Pineau d’Aunis a mere vintage back. The 2006 “Rouge-Gorge,” however, is not nearly as intense and provocative as that 2005, not is it as bright and immediate as Puzelat’s “La Tesnière” (though it should be noted that I’m comparing two different wines in three different vintages).

Muted aromas; muted on the palate, too. But this still has that signature prickly texture I associate with Pineau d’Aunis, like rolling a firm and particularly hairy strawberry around in your mouth. With coaxing, the nose did deliver some overripe strawberry, charcoal and light peppery character. 48 hours later, it actually showed much finer focus, along with more interesting scents and flavors of lime peel, dried cherries and thyme, though its fruit had begun to fade. Pleasant enough wine but really not all that compelling in the ’06 vintage, especially given the higher than average tariff on the d’Aunis scale.

The Bellivière back label talker (printed in a font so tiny and cramped that I had a damn hard time reading it) is colorful enough that I though it worthwhile to transcribe:

“Sheltered in the clay soil around the river Sarthe is the very natural red local varietal: the Pineau d’Aunis. It was introduced in the days when monasteries were common. Thanks to its uncanny similarity to its cousin the Chenin grape, it creates multi-faceted wines, showing off its richly varied aromatic palette, and its subtlety.

This is our red grape, therefore, which needs careful looking after. It produces age worthy wines in the best years, which hint at all the characteristics of the terroir. In doing this, it is a worthy addition to the list of great local gastronomic products. It makes for unexpected marriages with food, some of which can be quite exotic.”

And just in case the titular pun wasn't obvious enough....

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Soap, Bug Spray and Cracked Pepper

Some who don’t like it have found its flavors soapy. Some who do have likened its aromas to bug spray. One could easily go through life as a wine connoisseur and never encounter it. Yet after centuries of declining in favor it seems to be on the comeback trail, at least within a smallish circle of artisanal wine growers in France’s Loire Valley. It’s Pineau d’Aunis, also known as Chenin Noir.

Pineau d'Aunis on the vine.
(Photo by Danièle & Remi Loisel - Studio Amarante, courtesy of Domaine de Bellivière.)
It’s a vine the wines from which I’ve come to know only in the last couple of years. And it’s one for which I’ve developed a particular fondness, even if it’s not always easy to come to terms with the wines. As a variety, it’s grown in smatterings throughout the Anjou and Touraine and is sanctioned, primarily as a blending agent, in many of the region’s more flexible AOCs. If Pineau d’Aunis has found a particular niche, though, it’s in the relatively obscure AOC of Coteaux du Loir, situated alongside Jasnières on the banks of Le Loir (a tributary of La Loire) a few klicks north of Tours.

There’s something about Pineau d’Aunis that just screams out, “I’m from the Loire and I’m proud of it!” Lively, fresh and full of flavor though rarely heavy on its feet, it’s food-friendly, idiosyncratic and definitely not for everyone. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that it reminds me in many ways of a cross between Cabernet Franc and Gamay, two of the Loire’s more widespread varieties. Some of the peppery and herbal characteristics of Cabernet Franc are almost always in evidence, along with the bright colors and lively, red-fruited personality so typical of Gamay. Yet it’s all its own. When I think of wines made from Pineau d’Aunis, I think immediately of the scents of roasted strawberries and of freshly ground pepper. I think, too, of an aroma that some describe as pine forest yet that always reminds me somehow of fresh string beans – one of those strong, scent-driven memories the actual origin of which I’ve long forgotten. Even its texture seems unique, with a raspy delivery across the tongue that seems to stem not from tannins so much as from some latent energy captured and harnessed by the vine, delivered by the wine.

Following are notes on a pair of Pineau d’Aunis based wines I’ve recently explored (and here are thoughts from a few in the past). Let me know if you have any other favorites (or even less-than-favorites).


Coteaux du Loir "You Are So Beautiful," Nana, Vins et Cie (Nathalie & Christian Chaussard – Domaine Briseau) 2006 $15. 12.5% alcohol. Nomacorc. Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.
After a somewhat hit-or-miss experience with the Nana, Vins et Cie lineup at the recent Louis/Dressner 20th Anniversary tasting, I wanted to take a more comfortable sit-down with one of their wines. Goofy label aside, this was compelling wine. Medium-garnet color, even a little murky, in appearance. Strawberry and black raspberry preserves on the nose, with a definite streak of pepper and a smoky edge that faded with aeration. It's a touch animal in character, no doubt the influence of Malbec (Côt) in the blend. That raspy trademark of Pineau d’Aunis I mentioned above was out in force, making the wine bristle throughout my mouth. A revisit on day-two yielded a more soft spoken wine, with rounder, gentler fruit and slightly softer texture, but with correspondingly less vigorous aromas. Not my favorite, if only for a slight clumsiness, yet still a wine I’d happily revisit, especially given its $15 price point.

Touraine "L'Arpent Rouge," Clos Roche Blanche (Catherine Roussel and Didier Barrouillet) 2007 $17. 12.5% alcohol. Nomacorc. Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.
This one… this one I loved. I’ve heard tell of bottle variation, always a risk with minimally sulfured wines such as those from Clos Roche Blanche, but this bottle was definitely singing. Much lighter in color than “Beautiful” but no less flavorful for its paler hue, this was just redolent of wild strawberries and black pepper. Very energetic in feel, this too had the rasp but was more graceful in its attack. Like a barber, proud of his trade, scraping your tongue clean with a freshly honed straight razor. My taste buds couldn’t help but stand up and take notice. Invigorating, refreshing and a joy at the table, it really came alive when paired with the Lindenhof Farm turkey pot pie I’d picked up earlier in the day at my local farmers market.

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Notes from a Sunday

Sunday’s seem to be ideal for getting together with friends to relax, cook a good meal and sit back and taste. Our host for the most recent edition of Sunday Evening Tasting was eager to prepare various cuts of the half a lamb he’d procured from a local farm (already “processed,” mind you) and equally ready and willing to sample some bottles he’d recently ordered from Chambers Street Wines. I countered with a few things from my cellar, just to make sure it wouldn’t be a one-importer night. The proceedings:

Champagne “Les Vignes de Vrigny” Premier Cru Brut, Egly-Ouriet NV
“Issu de Vignes de Pinot Meunier situées sur le Terroir de Vrigny”
This one was calling my name from its place on the shelf during my last visit to Chambers Street. I’ve long dug the Champagnes of Egly-Ouriet but I’d never come across a bottle of this, a cuvée made from 100% Pinot Meunier – the decided underdog in the Champagne triptych. Aromas of peach and brioche were carried by a brisk, fine mousse. Fresh apricot, clover blossoms, hay and a hint of orange oil unfurled in the mouth. ‘Twas fruit forward and round, with perfect balance and a long finish. Though not the most elegant Champagne out there, this was damn tasty and represents a solid QPR.

Egly-Ouriet is to be saluted for noting the lees-time and disgorgement date (respectively 36 months and July 2006 for our bottle) on the back of every one of their wines. If only every house would follow suit, especially with their basic NV bottlings. But then everyone would know how much stale bubbly is floating around the market….
$42. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Michael Skurnik Imports.

Cour-Cheverny “Cuvée Renaissance,” Le Petit Chambord (François Cazin) 2004
I had just read about the 2002 vintage of this wine on Brooklynguy’s blog, so I was pleasantly surprised when the 2004 showed up in our line-up for the evening. “Cuvée Renaissance” is Cazin’s demi-sec bottling, produced only in vintages which give adequate ripeness, helped along by either botrytis or passerillage. The wine’s sweetness is both forward and graceful, delivering guava, limestone and lemon curd, all cut through by bright acidity. A little whiff of lavender emerged as the wine’s aromas curled up through the sinuses. This is not terribly complex at the moment but is still showing very youthful structure. It should be interesting to revisit in another three to five years.
$18. 13% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Cour-Cheverny, Le Petit Chambord (François Cazin) 2006
I’ll be more than happy to make due with Cazin’s regular Cour-Cheverny while waiting for the “Renaissance” to come into its own. The sec cuvée is nervier in feel and more subtly perfumed than its semi-sticky brother. Bananas, golden delicious apples, honeysuckle and acacia all emerged on the nose, supplemented by distinct and racy minerality on the palate.
$15. 14% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Coteaux du Loir “Rouge Gorge,” Domaine de Bellivière 2005
Pinot what? That’s Pineau d’Aunis, baby! This is idiosyncratic juice; varietal Pinot d’Aunis from the northern Touraine AOC of Coteaux du Loir, where Eric Nicolas’ Domaine de Bellivière occupies nine hectares of the tiny CdL and Jasnières vignobles. Black pepper – unmistakably – jumps from the glass, along with what strikes me as the scent of fresh haricots verts. One of my companions also noted a certain air of the auto shop; I couldn’t argue. Rustic, oddball and absolutely delicious. I’m usually pretty tuned in to alcoholic strength, but the 15% this was packing snuck right by, a virtue perhaps of its slightly cool serving temperature.
$23. 15% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Coteaux du Loir “Hommage à Louis Derré,” Domaine de Bellivière 2005
“Hommage à Louis Derré” is Bellivière’s more ambitious bottling of Coteaux du Loir, again a varietal expression of Pineau d’Aunis. It has a more tannic structure, bolstered by a bit of oak that lends aromas of baking spices. The black pepper and string beans still come out to play, joined by thyme and black cherries. There’s a bit more nuance, along with deeper concentration, but the alcohol, even though labeled as lower than the “Rouge Gorge,” displays some heat on the finish. Wide-knit tannins provide a seriously mouth wakening charge.
$33. 14.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Graves, Château du Grand Bos 1997
I’ve noticed bottle variation with the ’97 Graves from Grand Bos in the past; this bottle fell on the down side of the curve, I’m afraid. I kept thinking there was a background whiff of cork taint but nope, it just wasn’t showing well. Red cassis and a leathery, herbaceous character were all wrapped up in a damp, clay-like sense. I’d hoped this would be a great match with our final course of pan-grilled lamb chops, as a bottle on the up side of the curve should have been. No such luck. But hey, it led us on to a good red Burg which might otherwise have gone unopened.
$23. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Wine Traditions.

Chassagne-Montrachet Premier Cru “Les Macherelles” (Rouge), Jean-Marc Pillot 2000
I picked this up during a visit to Rosenthal Wine Merchants back in the spring. I was taken by surprise by this bottle, not because it didn’t show Chassagne typicity but because it wasn’t nearly as rich and forward in style as earlier vintages of the same wine from Pillot. The 2000 was lively and tight, with dried sour cherry and pronounced sous-bois aromas. Still very solid, even a bit shut down at the moment.
$40. 13.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchant.

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