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2024 Loire by ombiasy Wine Tours, led by Annette Schiller, took place from Sunday, June 9 to Thursday June 20, 2024. The tour started in Nantes and ended in Sancerre.
There is a lot of focus on natural, organic, biodynamic and low-intervention winemaking in the Loire valley. See: Salons des Vins - all with a Focus on Natural, Organic, Biodynamic and Low-intervention Producers in the Loire Valley and elsewhere in France and Europe - in February in Angers and Saumur, Loire Valley, France (February 2024)
One of the leaders of this movement is Liv Vincendeau from Domäne Vincendeau in Rochefort-sur-Loire, Anjou.
Liv Vincendeau produces racy Chenin Blanc, two types of Rosé produced from a blend of traditional and autochthon grape varietals, a noble sweet Coteaux du Layon Rochefort, and spectacular Crémant de Loire. Her Crémant “Zeitlos” is raved about in every single top wine magazine.
The domaine is certified biodynamic by Demeter.
The wines of Liv Vincendeau are represented in the USA by Roni Selects.When we arrived there, Liv hopped on our bus and took us to her vineyards, where we spent some time. After that we went back home for a seated tasting in her wine cellar.
We met her twice, first at the Salon des Vins Grenier Saint Jean, a wine fair with natural wine producers at the Le Grenier Saint Jean in Angers and, second, as follow up a couple of days later at her estate in a little beautiful village called Rochefort sur Loire.
Domäne Vincendeau in Rochefort-sur-Loire, Anjou (Liv Vincendeau)
Born in Darmstadt, Germany, where I also grew up, I first went to study (Master II in chemistry) in York (UK) and Strassburg (Alsace). Arriving in Anjou in 2000 during viticulture-oenology training, I have remained faithful to this beautiful province ever since. Creating my own domain – a dream!... and then a carefully prepared project. Many winegrowers from France and elsewhere have passed on to me their know-how and their passion for this magnificent profession. I thank them wholeheartedly. 2014 is the year of implementation and since then each vintage is a new adventure.
Liv Vincendeau/ Raw Wine New York
Liv Vincendeau: I created the Domäne back in 2014 in a little beautiful village called Rochefort sur Loire. We are a 1.5 hours train ride South West of Paris.. Organic agriculture from day 1 because I grew up like that!. It is a philosophy, a way of life. Vineyards sitting on top of the hill south of the Loire, looking down on this beautiful river and receiving a wonderful climate with some ocean influence (Atlantic just 1 hour away). Very superficial and stony soil. Special Terroir, schiste, quartz, volcanic stones, ...Dry farming and 100% hand harvest. Horse power and sheep too. Mainly Chenin blanc but a bit of red grapes : Cabernet France and Grolleau Noir. We then started the biodynamic way of cultivating our land. Demeter certification followed in 2020. We are a family winery and are working with local & very motivated staff. Our credo is to make elegant, pure wines with love and a lot of attention to the detail. I am very excited to meet everyone at Raw !! From Rochefort with Love
Chambers Street Wines (Eben Lillie): Earlier this year, while researching new winemakers in the Loire, I stumbled upon some information about Domäne Vincendeau, an estate in Anjou that began producing wines in 2014. At the helm of this new estate was not the usual 30-something French guy living in his van, but instead a woman from Germany named Liv Vincendeau, who settled in Rochefort-sur-Loire with her husband in 2013. I met Liv in January and was immediately impressed with her enthusiasm and friendliness. She was excited to share her wines, and explain the decisions she made in each vintage, and though she is a relative newcomer to the region, her knowledge about the grapes and soils of the Loire Valley was on par with any second or third generation winemaker I've met. In June I had a chance to visit her in Rochefort-sur-Loire, to see the vineyards and cellar. From high up on a hill above the Loire, we could see for miles, across the river to Savennieres in the distance. It's a great spot with good soils, and it was obvious to me that Liv had already developed a love for the place and the people, and a deep connection to her vines.
Liv came to the Loire valley in the early 2000s, with the idea to study winemaking and eventually form her own domaine. In 2013, she and her husband discovered an old house for sale at the base of the Loire river in Rochefort-sur-Loire, and with a little research, Liv found a few small parcels above the town. She quickly got to work converting the vineyards to organic farming. In an effort to minimize their carbon footprint, she chose to work the soil with a horse instead of a tractor (and she even drives an electric car!).
Most of Liv's parcels are Chenin Blanc, ranging from 10-80 years old, some Cabernet Franc, Gamay, and a newly planted parcel of Grolleau that she's quite excited about. The sub-soil is mostly schist (who doesn't love Chenin on schist?!) and the vineyards are littered with pieces of green and purple schist, quartz, and other mineral deposits. Winemaking is low-intervention, always indigenous yeast, with small amounts of sulfur added typically only at bottling. The wines are new classic expressions of the Loire, and we're proud to be able to share them with you!
Roni Selects: Liv Vincendeau came to the Loire in 2000 with the idea of studying winemaking and eventually having her own domain. She moved from Germany and eventually settled in Rochefort sur Loire when she and her husband found an old farmhouse for sale. Quickly she found a small parcel at the top of the town and immediately started the work of converting the vineyard to organic. Most of Liv’s parcels are Chenin Blanc, ranging from 10-80 year old vines. There is some Cabernet Franc, Gamay and Grolleau. The soil is mostly schist with mineral deposits scattered all over the vineyard. Liv believes in low-interventionist winemaking using naturally occurring yeast and minimal sulphur.
Domäne Vincendeau
Arriving
Vineyard Tour by Bus
Coming Back
Seated Tasting
Bye-bye
Dinner at L'Océanide (Bib Gourmand Michelin) in Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at L'Instinct Gourmand in Nantes, with Owner/ Chef Sylvain le Bras - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Tour of Old Town Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Iconic Brasserie La Cigale in Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tour, Tasting and Light Lunch at Vignobles Günther Chéreau, Château du Coing, in Saint Fiacre-sur-Maine, with Owner Véronique Günther-Chéreau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Two Domaines under one Roof: Visit at Domaine Gadais Père et Fils and Domaine de la Combe/ Pierre-Henri Gadais in Saint Fiacre-sur-Maine, Muscadet Sévre et Maine, Pays Nantais, with Owner/ Winemaker Christoph Gadais - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Restaurant Les Petits Près of Chef Samuel Albert (Top Chef France 2019) in Angers - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Château d’Épiré, AOP Savennières, Anjou, with Owner/ Winemaker Paul Bizard - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard Tour, Barrel Tasting and Salon Tasting at Château des Vaults, Domaine du Closel in Savennière, Anjou, with Owner/ winemaker Evelyne de Pontbriand - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Domäne Vincendeau in Rochefort-sur-Loire, Anjou, with Owner/ Winemaker Liv Vincendeau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Wine Tasting with a Light Lunch at Domaine de la Soucherie in Beaulieu-sur-Layon, Anjou - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting and Cellar Tour at Clotilde Legrand, Domaine
Legrand, in Varrains, Anjou, with Clotilde Legrand - Loire Valley 2024
by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Restaurant L’Essentiel in Saumur - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Visit of L’ Abbey Royale de Fontevraud in Fontevraud - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at L’Orangerie Saumur in the Courtyard of the Château de Saumur - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting,
Cellar Tour and Vineyard Tour at Domaine des Roches Neuves in Varrains,
Anjou, with Next Generation Owner/ Winemaker Louis Germain and Agathe
Germain - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tour and Tasting at Maison Bouvet-Ladubay in Saumur, with Owner Juliette Monmousseau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Cave M. Plouzeau in Chinon, Touraine, with Owner/ Winemaker Marc Plouzeau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Domaine de la Haut Olive in Chinon, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Le Bistrot du Marché in Chinon - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard
Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine François Gazin, Le Petit
Chambord, in Cheverney, Touraine, with François Gazin - Loire Valley
2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Restaurant Brut Maison de
Cuisine in Blois, with Owner/ Chef Adrien Delafoy and Owner/ Chef Thomas
Gaudard - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard Tour by Car and Tasting at Domaine Brazilier in Thoré-la-Rochette, CôteauxVendômois, Touraine, with Owner/ Winemaker Benoît Braziliery - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Le Moulin du Loir in Vendôme - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Visit of Château Chambord - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Tour of Château Royal de Blois - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Sunday Lunch at Restaurant La Croix Blanche (Bib Gourmand Michelin), with Owner/ Chef Jean-François Beauduin - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Visit of Château du Clos Lucé and the Leonardo-da-Vinci Park in Amboise - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner, Overnight-stay and Breakfast at Château de Pray in Amboise - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours.
Visit at Denis Meunier in Vernou-sur-Brenne, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Visit at Domaine des Aubuisières, Bernard Fouquet, in Vouvray, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Visit of Château Chenonceau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner and Overnight-stay at Auberge du Bon Laboureur in Chenonceau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard
Walk, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Pellé in Morogues,
Menetou-Salon, with the Export Manager Pauline Guillot - Loire Valley
2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Restaurant Fluteau in Morogues - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar
Tour and Extensive Tasting at at Domaine Alphons Mellot in Sancerre,
with Alphons Mellot - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar
Tour and Tasting at Domaine de Vrillères, SCEA in Sury-en-Vaux,
Sancerre, with Kevin Lauverjat - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar
Tour and Tasting at Domaine Tinel-Blondelet in Pouilly-sur-Loire, with
Marlène and Annick Tinel - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Restaurant/ Affineur Romain Dubois in Chavignol, with Gilles Dubois - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar Tour, Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Domaine Henri Bourgeois in Chavignol - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Wine-pairing Dinner at Le Clos du Maréchal with the Wines of Vignobles Berthier, with the Owner/ Winemaker Clément Berthier and the Chef/ Owner Nathanael Fromant - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Last Meal of the Tour: At La Coupole in Paris - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
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