no
220
Muscadet Sèvre et Maine
Melon de Bourgogne
Typical white wine to go with fish, Sur Lie, by Château de Rochefort
France, Loire, Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, AC, Sur Lie, Château de Rochefort, 2015
Introduction
Traditionally this wine is nearly always served with eating fish, especially oysters. The dryness and freshness are key in this. ‘Sur Lie’ achieves this, as a traditional way of wine making, by bottling straight from the fermentation vat, unracked. ‘Ageing on the Lees’ (ageing of wine on dead yeast, bringing additional flavoursome characteristics to the wine) has to be done for a minimum of 6 months to be called ‘Sur Lie’.
The Chateau is based in La Haye-Fouassière, owned by Baron de Saint Sauveur, ca. 10 km to the west of the town of Nantes and within in the AOC boundaries of Pays Nantais. Muscadet is the name of the wine, made from the grape Melon de Bourgogne. There are 3 main Muscadet regions; Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, to the west of Nantes and the largest with 69% of the vineyards, Muscadet Coteaux de la Loire (north west of Nantes and much smaller) and Muscadet Côtes de Grandlieu (to the south of Nantes, slightly larger than Coteaux).
Introduction
Traditionally this wine is nearly always served with eating fish, especially oysters. The dryness and freshness are key in this. ‘Sur Lie’ achieves this, as a traditional way of wine making, by bottling straight from the fermentation vat, unracked. ‘Ageing on the Lees’ (ageing of wine on dead yeast, bringing additional flavoursome characteristics to the wine) has to be done for a minimum of 6 months to be called ‘Sur Lie’.
The Chateau is based in La Haye-Fouassière, owned by Baron de Saint Sauveur, ca. 10 km to the west of the town of Nantes and within in the AOC boundaries of Pays Nantais. Muscadet is the name of the wine, made from the grape Melon de Bourgogne. There are 3 main Muscadet regions; Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, to the west of Nantes and the largest with 69% of the vineyards, Muscadet Coteaux de la Loire (north west of Nantes and much smaller) and Muscadet Côtes de Grandlieu (to the south of Nantes, slightly larger than Coteaux).
Year:
2015
Approx:
£ 5.00
Best Served:
12-14 °C
Vol:
12.0 %
Review Date:
12 . 12 . 2018
Origin:
France, Loire, Muscadet Sèvre et Maine
Ready to drink. Fresh, dry, hints of lemon, citrus. Serving fish dishes, fish starters, salads, aperitif. Obtained in France, available in the UK. Typical Muscadet green flûte bottle, embossed with ‘Sur Lie’. Drawing of the Chateau on the label. Cork.
Insights:
This wine has been bottled at the Château by Drouet Frères from the nearby village of La Chapelle-Heulin. In their own right they represent now for four generations since 1880 regional wine making, producing and trading. Muscadet is the most produced Loire wine and the region is the gateway to many others further down the long Loire River. The AOC is since 1937 and the name of Muscadet is more of a description of the characteristics of the wine (‘musk-like’) and not e.g. the grape. There is much experimenting going on among producers, so far small scale, moving away from the traditional wine, such as longer on the lees and oak aging.
Review Date:
12 . 12 . 2018
