Guide
to the Loire regions
Val du
Loir
Producer
profiles - Jasnières and Coteaux du
Loir
Renaud
Guettier (2004)

Renaud Guettier
Renaud
Guettier comes across as a very serious young man. He is a native of Vendôme
and studied at agricultural college in Dijon, which is where he developed his love of wine. The decision to make wine
in the Coteaux du Loir was a function of his wife’s family having a farm
outside Bueil-en-Touraine, one of the 22 villages included within the
appellation. The estate was offered to them on condition they would also
take charge of the 86 hectares of cereals and the cattle that they raise
for market. In order to gain some winemaking experience, he worked with
Eric Nicolas for six months during 2004.
Wine
Overview:
They started
the venture in 2004, but the farm came with no vines, so one hectare was
bought and a further four hectares were leased from four small ancien
paysan farmers across seventeen parcels
in four different communes; Bueil-en-Touraine, Dissay, Saint-Pierre and
Epigné. With the exception of some particuliers who vinify for domestic
consumption, Guettier is the only grower based in the Indre-et-Loire département.
To date he has 2.20 hectares of Chenin and 2.00 hectares of Pineau
d’Aunis and a token amount of Grolleau, Côt and Gamay. Everything is
farmed to organic principles and all is harvested by hand. Yields are
tiny; 25 hl/ha, a function of the old vines.
The cellar is apart from the farm and is in a cave
a few kilometres away. All the wines are raised in old François Frères
barrels. There are two different cuvées of white, Le
Pressoir de Saint Pierre (which is sourced primarily from the village
of the same name) for the sec,
and Druillas for the demi-sec, along with the occasional release of Dorrées, a moëlleux.
There are also two different bottlings of red: Adonis is the basic cuvée for the Coteaux du Loir, and a second Le
Gravot, named after the confluence of the rivers Long and Escolias
just before they join the
Loir
, is a blend of Gamay, Côt, Grolleau and Pineau d’Aunis.
The Wines:
A grower to
watch, although my initial thoughts are that both he and his wines will
need time to find their respective ways, and his wines are going to need
bottle ageing. The wines below are all from the 2005 vintage when it was
hard to go wrong, but they are very individual and won’t be to
everyone’s liking. I did taste the 2006s but he has elected for various
reasons, most legal, to declassify to Vin de Table. At this stage I felt
they were less successful and so I am reserving judgment on these.
2005
Coteaux du Loir Blanc ‘Druillas’
Deep orange/bronze. Not bright (unfiltered). Oxidative style with a dry, orange
rind like nose. Concentrated, and not dissimilar to an old style white
Rioja. The palate is also oxidative, but shows greater minerality and is
serious and concentrated. Good potential. Individual. (12/08)
2005 Coteaux du Loir Blanc ‘Dorrées’
Dark orange appearance. The nose is ripe and tropical with hints of
tangerine. Austere to the palate. Taut and mineral with an intense, chalky
finish. Good potential, but still unknit. Again, a very individual style.
(12/08)
2005 Coteaux du Loir Rouge ‘Adonis’
From 100%
Pineau d’Aunis. Bright. Mid-depth and youthful appearance. Tight,
mineral nose. Taut, with juicy flesh on the palate. Light bodied, with the
length carried by the acidity. Flavours of bitter cherries. Soft and
supple tannins. Very good length. Drinking now, but would benefit with
ageing. Cedarwood and spice to the finish. (12/08)
La
Grapperie
Renaud Guettier
La Soudairie
Bueil-en-Touraine
T: + 33 2 47 24 48 06
renaudguettier@lagrapperie.com
www.lagrapperie.com
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