At Domaine des Roches Neuves in Varrains, Anjou, we were received by Agathe and Louis Germain. Louis is the "next generation" winemaker of Domaine des Roches Neuves, who joined the domaine 4 years ago, together with his wife Agathe. Agathe led the tasting. Louis showed us the winemaking facilities and spent some time with us in the vineyard.
Domaine des Roches Neuves is represented in the USA by Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant.
Annette Schiller: Domaine des Roches Neuves in Varrains, Anjou
Owner of this domaine of 70 acres is Thierry Germain. I quote our friend and importer of fine wines Heiner Lobenberg: “Thierry Germain can, without exaggeration, be counted among the greatest winemakers in the Loire. He masters the diversity of the Loire like only a few others.”
Thierry comes from a family of winemakers from Bordeaux. In 1991 he decided to leave Bordeaux since he felt at that time that Bordeaux was boring for him and he started working in the Loire. In 1991 he bought the Domaine des Roches Neuves which was then a tiny winery and built it up to 70 acres.
Thierry Germain is passionate about terroir and nature and immediately started to convert to organic viticulture. The domaine is certified biodynamic by Demeter since 2000. I recently had the 2016 Les Mémoires, Cabernet Franc, AOP Saumur-Champigny: just the right tannins, moderate alcohol level, incredibly beautiful floral character. Since then I fell in love with the Saumur- Champigny Cabernet-Franc.
Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant
Thierry Germain is one of the Loire Valley’s most pensive and ever-experimenting vignerons. Whereas some winemakers who can be described this way produce eccentric cuvées, Thierry’s Cabernet Franc bottlings are incredibly pure, pretty, and refined. They demonstrate how Saumur Champigny is among the world’s very best terroirs, alongside Chinon and Bourgueil, when discussing red wines made from this grape variety.
Thierry has honed his craft over decades to get to this point. After moving from his native Saint-Émilion to Saumur in the 1990s, he trained with the legendary Foucault brothers of Clos Rougeard. Then he set off on his own, spending years tweaking his farming approach and earning the respect of the locals, who were initially skeptical of an outsider from Bordeaux. He has pursued organic and biodynamic viticulture for more than a decade, and it shows in the freshness and purity of his wines. —Tom Wolf
Domaine des Roches Neuves
(1) Thierry and Marie
In 1991, Marie and Thierry fell in love with the Domaine des Roches Neuves.
Thierry had already spent his entire life in the wine world. Originally from Bordeaux, he is in the sixth generation of winemakers in his family.
Marie and Thierry’s journey is filled with memorable encounters with wine personalities who inspired them and led them to build their own viticulture vision and wine style.
Their philosophy very clearly focuses on the living, which inspires them to create inseparable ties with the grapevine, its soil, and even animals.
(2) Louis
Louis, the eldest son, has accumulated a wide range of experience in the wine business.
He started by working in marketing for prestigious Champagne producers in France’s Bordeaux and Loire regions.
His desire to get closer to the land motivated him to continue his studies in viticulture and oenology, before heading off to New Zealand to work at an organic biodynamic estate.
He joined Domaine des Roches Neuves with his companion Agathe in 2020.
(3) Jeanne
Inheriting the family passion for horses, Jeanne has – since 2018 – held the reins for Ben and Comptesse, working the vineyard’s 4 hectares with animal traction tools.
Jeanne took her first steps as a winemaker in 2019 with her La Foulée vintage. Other vintages followed.
Selfie with Louis and Agathe
Group Picture
Tasting with Agathe
In the Cellar with Louis
In the Vineyard with Louis
Horses - Jeanne
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