Prior to our first shipments from Jacky and Jean-Philippe Blot in 2017, we had long-admired this highly-respected father and son team. The family`s wines from Domaine de la Taille aux Loups in Montlouis and Domaine de la Butte in Bourgueil are some of the Loire Valley’s most sensitively made, quality-driven examples. With Jacky having sadly passed away in May 2023, Jean-Philippe continues his legacy. As we are familiar with in Burgundy, the vineyards at both properties are subdivided into small parcels, with each cuvée being a transparent expression of the specific site, vintage and grape variety. Jacky Blot established Domaine de la Taille aux Loups in 1988. Planted 100% Chenin Blanc, the estate has grown steadily to its current 45 hectares that include two walled vineyards in Montlouis – the 3-hectare Clos Michet (bought in 2010) and the 12-hectare Clos Mosny – and just over 5 hectares planted on two exceptional sites in Vouvray. The search for quality starts in the vineyards, where organic fertilisers have been reintroduced and all treatments are limited to a minimum in a desire to run the vines as naturally as possible while still producing healthy grapes. Combined with incredibly short pruning, this keeps yields down. Picking is always by hand in successive tris, with a further grape-by-grape manual sorting prior to pressing – a double selection that helps explain the concentration and purity of the estate`s wines. This attention to detail continues in the rock-hewn cellar where fermentations are in Bordeaux barriques (10% new per year) at the naturally cool temperatures of the cellar. More recently, the family took over the prime 15-hectare vineyard and cathedralesque cellars of Domaine de la Butte in Bourgueil. Running the south-facing slopes of the property very much the same exacting way as his Chenin vineyards, the plots are separated by geological strata as they go up the hill, effectively creating the domaine`s own Cru system as each cuvée is picked, fermented and matured according to its position on the slope and the age of the vines. The wines are gorgeous. big, intense, ageworthy wines with Cabernet Franc`s natural freshness balanced with the natural sucrosité that comes from picking at full maturity.