Philippe Foreau Domaine du Clos Naudin Vouvray Sec 2019
Vouvray Chenin Blanc
Regular price $52.99
2019 Foureau Vouvray Sec
(Chenin Blanc)
Domaine du Clos Naudin
Loire Valley
$52.99 SALE
When Foreau issues a “Sec” (and the decision to do so relates entirely to the vintage conditions and the composition of the grapes at harvest), the wine can carry from 1 to 2 grams of residual sugar but never more than 6 grams. Because of the vibrant acidity that accompanies these wines, the sensation one experiences is of drinking a scintillatingly dry wine, although one with considerable body and a honeyed texture. We tend to have several vintages available at all times so that our clients can have the option of enjoying the Vouvray Sec in its youth but also with several years of bottle age. - Rosenthal, Importer
Our Tasting Note
Starbright, a light golden core. The nose is pronounced and very complex, leading with notes of crushed stone and chalk minerality, sea salt, and flint, with the fruit ranging from lime and lime zest, to apple and pear, even verging into juicy, fresh white peach. Shades of white florals, mauka honey, and the classic marker of chenin blanc: lanolin. Medium bodied on the palate, the acidity is med+, while the flavor intensity is layered, refined, and elegantly pronounced. If you ever questioned what Chenin Blanc is like and what it should taste like, this wine will set the record straight!
Philippe Foreau is the third generation of the Foreau family to produce Vouvray from this fabled domaine which his grandfather purchased in 1923.
Philippe assumed the direction of the domaine in 1983 upon the retirement of his father, André. Since 2015, Philippe works alongside his son Vincent, who continues the family’s tradition of crafting some of the greatest white wines anywhere. The domaine consists of 11 1/2 hectares planted to Chenin Blanc, located in the northeast corner of Vouvray, sited mid-hill with 100% south/southeast/southwest exposures. The principal vineyards are known as “Les Perruches” and “Les Ruettes”. The estate’s cellar was dug by hand out of the zone’s classic tuffeau limestone during Philippe’s grandfather’s time. Its raw walls, lit sparingly by the occasional hanging bulb, speak viscerally of the local terroir. Barriques blackened and weathered by time—the Foreaus use them for 20 or 30 years—flank the cave’s tunnels, and one marvels that such pure wines are birthed in such humble vessels. The entire operation, in fact, is a powerful reminder that technology is not required to make great wine.
Because the Foreaus have always made their wines in the same low-key way—natural fermentation and aging in the aforementioned ancient barriques, blocked malolactic fermentation, never any chaptalization—there is a clear thread connecting current vintages to past versions. Philippe Foreau’s wines age remarkably well. Each wine exhibits an extraordinary panoply of flavors and aromas of fruit, floral and earth elements. Because we believe so strongly in these wines, we make a considerable investment in our stocks so that we maintain a series of older vintages for our clients’ pleasure.
- Rosenthal, Importer