Home > Producer Profiles > Loire Profiles > Domaine de la Pépière

Domaine de la Pépière

I was late for our rendezvous - one year late, in fact - and yet the bearded Marc Ollivier of Domaine de la Pépière didn't seem to mind one bit. Hardly surprising of course; Ollivier hadn't known that he had been on my hit-list of must-taste domaines during the 2009 Salon, but that having run out of time I just couldn't pay him a visit as planned. I had opted instead to ensure a timely arrival at the railway station in Angers, in order to make it to Paris in time for my flight back to the UK. These are trivial concerns, you might think, when one has the opportunity to taste through a line-up of Marc Ollivier's latest releases, but they seemed quite important to me at the time. I hope the reader will forgive my lack of vinous judgement and poor sense of priorities, and accept my apologies for publishing my profile of Ollivier and Domaine de la Pépière one year behind schedule.

Marc Ollivier produces a broad range of wines both white and red; the existence of the latter, vin de pays cuvées largely based on Cot (Malbec) and Cabernet Franc perhaps coming as a surprise to many. After all, Ollivier's reputation is based almost purely on Muscadet. And that certainly seems understandable; whereas his red wines are certainly interesting to taste, it is the white wines that have catapulted him to the very top tier of Loire winemakers, bringing him international acclaim in the process. Much of this adoration emanates from American shores, where Ollivier exports 70% of his production, a fact which has led some of his peers to look on with green-eyed envy I think. At a dinner in Angers in February 2010 one of these peers looked at me aghast when I mentioned Ollivier; in a flash his already-green eyes turned steely and he leaned in, giving the conversation a conspiratorial air. "He makes wine for Americans" he intoned. As I wrote in my report on the top ten wines of the 2010 Salon, line me up with the Les Américains, Monsieur, these are great wines, and this is a great domaine.

Terroir and Vines

Ollivier's renown arises from the vibrancy and richness of his wines which no doubt reflects the terroir, which for many of his vineyards is granite, one of the less common terroirs for Muscadet, accounting for only 5% of the appellation as it is delimited. All told he has in excess of 20 hectares of vines; about 8 hectares lie on the granite of Clisson in the more southerly part of the appellation, another 12 hectares further north, on the granite of Château Thébaud. His reputation also rests on his vines, old vines which range from 40 to 80 years of age, many of which Ollivier inherited from family members years ago, giving him the impetus in 1984 to create Domaine de la Pépière. And of course, his fame also owes something to his attention to detail in the vineyard and from a 'hands-off' approach in the cellar.

It is noteworthy that Ollivier's vineyards are genetically rich, the vast majority of his peers having replanted single-clone vineyards long ago. But there are no clones in Ollivier's vineyards, which are increasingly tended using organic methods; the domaine is currently in conversion, Ollivier juggling his portfolio of vineyards, letting go of those with wetter soils, to ensure what he has left are all tenable as organically-farmed sites. The fruit is subsequently harvested by hand, with a pressing very soon after picking with no skin maceration, followed by fermentation using only naturally occurring yeasts. In the majority of cases this occurs in stainless steel vats (there is a little wood in use, but not much) where the wine will rest until bottling, for months or even more than a year as Ollivier deems necessary. The wines are ultimately bottled with minimal addition of sulphur dioxide and the lightest of filtrations.

The Wines of Domaine de la Pépière

There is a domaine cuvée, a Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, as well as the Moulin de la Gustaie, a cuvée from 2 hectares of vines, two-thirds 20 and one-third 40-years old, situated in the Château Thébaud region, but on gneiss rather than granite. This latter terroir also gives rise to another cuvée, from recently purchased old vines, the Granite de Château Thébaud. These vines lie close to those of Clos des Briords and will rest on the lees for two years before bottling. And of course there are those red wines, principally from Cot and the Cabernets, and tasting notes on many of these wines can be found below. But it is Muscadet that rules here, and thus it is on the Muscadets of Ollivier that I focus my attention most of all. Certainly Ollivier's most recognised cuvée is the Clos des Briords, from the clos of the same name. This is a small vineyard populated with Pépière's oldest vines, having been planted in 1930, Ollivier augmenting his ownership within the clos with 4 hectares added in 2005. The clos is located within the Château Thébaud zone, to the north of Clisson, and has soils of deeper clay and sand laid over a friable granite subsoil; this combination tends to moderate soil moisture, giving a smoother development of the vine and ripening of the fruit throughout the season. Thereafter there are eight or nine months on the lees in steel before bottling.

The story of Ollivier's Cuvée Eden and also Les Gras Moutons are intertwined. Ollivier has been producing a Cuvée Eden since the 2005 vintage, always including some fruit sourced from the lieu-dit Les Gras Moutons, which has a gneiss terroir, an origin that has set this wine apart from the rest of the Ollivier portfolio, which is largely dominated by cuvées from granite terroirs (the only other gneiss wine being Moulin de la Gustaie). From the 2008 vintage, however, Ollivier has access to sufficient vines - 2 hectares in fact - in Les Gras Moutons for it to be the sole source for the cuvée in question, so we can now regard this cuvée as Ollivier's supreme interpretation of gneiss. In earlier vintages, however, it included fruit from just 0.5 hectares of Gras Mouton vines and from another 0.5 hectares in a separate lieu-dit, vines which he has since relinquished having acquired the additional 1.5 hectares of Gras Mouton. Moving on, the Clos Cormerais is perhaps Ollivier's most unusual cuvée, this being a barrel-fermented, barrel-aged cuvée; the wood is 50% oak aged between 3 and 6 years and 50% acacia aged between 1 and 3 years. Made from vines planted in 1927, the character of this wine is certainly heavily influenced by the wood; it is not, for me, a cuvée I would seek out ahead of the many other choices offered by Ollivier.

Troisième et Trois

Ollivier's Granite de Clisson is a very special wine as it represents an effort not just by Ollivier but by a number of leading viticulteurs to take Melon de Bourgogne and thus the wines of Muscadet beyond what they are currently commonly perceived to be capable of. This loose grouping of wines and estates has been labelled the Troisième Niveau, meaning "third level", with I would assume non sur-lie Muscadet appellations and then the sur lie wines to be the first and second levels respectively. There are a number of familiar names involved alongside Marc Ollivier and his Granite de Clisson; Pierre Luneau-Papin and his Excelsior cuvée is one. Although there is no uniformity in terms of labelling or naming these troisième niveau cuvées there is curiously a uniformity in the bottle, heavy-weight affairs moulded with the fleur de lys on the neck. More important than any aspects of packaging, however, are the nuances of viticulture and vinification (as well as the taste of course!) that distinguish this wine from a myriad of other Muscadet cuvées. Ollivier's example is sourced from vines planted on granite, as already discussed one of the appellation's less common terroirs.

For others terroir is also important, as I have already extolled in my profile of Luneau-Papin, who harvests vines planted on the Schistes de Goulaine for his cuvée. Yields are controlled and must not exceed 47 hl/ha, and in the cellar the wines must rest on their lees for at least 18 months. This last stipulation has the curious side effect of generating wines which can not legally by labelled sur lie. This is because the appellation regulations stipulate that the sur lie designation can only be applied to wines that, to quote the regulations verbatim, doivent n'avoir passé qu'un hiver en cuve ou en fût, so the wines can spend only one winter in vat or barrel before bottling. The period for bottling is between March 1st and November 30th in the year following the vintage, but Ollivier keeps his Granite de Clisson en cuve for two years. And with his new cuvée, Trois, another Clisson-granite cuvée, the wine rests on the lees for three years! None of these wines, therefore, can be declared as sur lie, despite having spent several years being just that, sur lie. Regardless of classification, Granite de Clisson, for which the first vintage was only 2005, is a great wine. I know for many the cream of the crop here is the Clos de Briords, but personally I can't get enough of this cuvée above all others from the Ollivier portfolio.

There is another new cuvée in the pipeline for the 2009 vintage, the Granite de Château Thébaud, another granite-based cuvée (obviously!) sourced from a plot of vines planted near the Clos des Briords, on a terroir where the oligatory granite is flecked with quartz. I look forward to tasting it, as I have not yet had the opportunity. In the meantime, however, I am more than content with the other choices available here. As I have already made plain, my opinion is that these are great wines. Buy and drink with confidence! (15/6/10)

Contact details:
Address: 44690 Maisdon-sur-Sèvre
Telephone: +33 (0) 2 40 06 62 58
Fax: +33 (0) 2 40 06 66 35
Internet: www.domainedelapepiere.com & domainedelapepiere.blogspot.com

Domaine de la Pépière - Tasting Notes

Click to locate stockists.

White Wines

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine 2009: This is a brut de cuvee sample from standard vines. A very pale wine here, with a lovely mineral tinge on the nose. It is fresh and pure, loaded with elements of volcanic rock, sea salt and aromatic thyme. The palate continues in a similar vein, lively and acidic at first, with a fatter midpalate. Good style here, open and fresh, perhaps rather straightforward but still very good. Perhaps not nervous enough it style for some, but I certainly like it. 15.5+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine 2009: Same vintage, same level, but this brut de cuve sample is from vines undergoing conversion to organic viticulture, the third of four vintages required for certification. A supple palate here, a touch rounder, softer and fleshier at the beginning. But then lots of vigorous acidity which has a greater impact than the former sample. It perhaps lacks some focus, but this wine still edges it for me. 16+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie Clos des Briords 2009: As In the glass this wine has a pale yet shimmering hue, and aromatically this is an absolute classic, and immediately puts to bed any notion that this vintage - despite any concerns I may have raised in my Loire 2009 report - might yield only atypical, undrinkable, soft and fuzzy wines. There is salt-brushed fruit, quite rich yet still so evocatively Muscadet, bright and minerally, with scents of lemon, lime and green herbs. There is a similar purity on the palate, which has an immediate confidence, bright and increasingly defined and incisive with subsequent mouthfuls. The acidity has a forthright and crunchy style, with great minerality; it keeps a wonderfully pure and focused style, despite it showing richness and a fine weight in keeping with the warmer vintage, although it is by no means fleshy or over-the-top, and it all culminates in a delectably bitter finish. This is brilliant wine - I love it! For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 18/20 (August 2011)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie Clos des Briords 2009: From old vines, at least 80 years of age, in a 3-hectare plot with a granite terroir. The nose here is very open and expressive, the palate attractive with plenty of good fruit and a fresh and vigorous style. Nicely balanced. Hugely superior to the two domaine wine samples tasted above. 17.5+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre & Maine sur lie Les Gras Moutons Cuvée Eden 2009: The fruit for this wine was hand-harvested, not common in the Muscadet appellations, fermented by wild yeasts at a cool temperature, before resting en cuve until bottling the following year after approximately seven months on the lees. The finished wine has a pale hue and, initially at least, a very clean and bright aromatic character. But then with a little more time in the glass it starts to show more evocative elements, notes of peach juice and sherbet, along with a very floral streak over a more stony base. On the palate a fresh and sappy style, full, quite juicy, broad and pervasive. Lots of lovely tingly minerality reflecting that sherbetty element found on the nose, with an appealingly bitter, lemon zest twist to it as well. Full of life despite the slightly fleshy, peachy character it possesses, especially into the finish which has a good, stony punch. This is delicious stuff - it will be difficult to keep my hands off my remaining bottles! For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 17.5/20 (March 2011)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie Les Gras Moutons Cuvée Eden 2009: The second vintage of Cuvée Eden sourced entirely from Les Gras Moutons; Ollivier has about 2 hectares of vines here in a number of different parcels. An attractive nose, very clean in style, and on the palate a very vigorous impact. The sensation on the palate is one of slightly softer acidity than the Clos des Briords, but there is still plenty of vivacity here. Very good. 17+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Clisson 2009: A pale hue - nothing unusual about that considering the cool-climate origins - and yet this belies the hugely expressive nose which is minerally and sherbetty, stuffed with crushed rocks and sliced lemon citrus zest, with just a little hint of creamy substance in the background perhaps denoting the richness of the vintage. It doesn't have the profound intensity of Andre-Michel Brégeon's 2004 Gorges, but it comes close, despite the fact that Brégeon's wine spent about double the amount of time on the lees that this one has. The start of the palate is fresh and sappy, and yet laden down with substance and breadth. Through the middle it shows this weight more clearly, although this comes with a fine, precise, very linear acid backbone which persists through to the finish. It is lively and substantial, with a very long, sappy, citrus-infused finish. There are beautiful tones of stone fruit and white pepper swirling around in the centre of the wine, which has quite savoury tones. Deliciously complex, this is an exciting, vigorous, beautifully composed wine which is a delight to drink now, despite my occasional twinge of infanticide-related guilt as I think this will go for many, many years in the cellar. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 18.5/20 (December 2011)

Red Wines

Domaine de la Pépière Cépage Cabernet (VdP de Val de Loire) 2009: This is 100% Cabernet Franc. The wine has a pale but clean and bright appearance, and the nose has some bright, sweet but stony fruit. Light, very pretty, with vibrant acidity, this is certainly interesting wine but I have to admit it is sitting somewhat on the ripeness/textural edge for me. 14-15+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine de la Pépière Cuvée La Pépiè Cot (VdP du Jardin de la France) 2009: This comes from 5-10 year-old vines. It has a good glossy hue, transparent appearance though, with bright fruit on the nose. A clean and similarly glossy style on the palate, nicely textured, freshness and balance here. This is an attractive wine. 15.5+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine de la Pépière Cuvée Granit (VdP de Loire-Atlantique) 2009: This wine has a really lovely hue, still incredibly youthful, with a blue-crimson rim. It is still deeply coloured at the core, but not opaque. On the nose there follows a great aromatic profile, full of stony fruit character, all black cherry and blackcurrant rubbed over stone, with a very light touch of steel, and a bright, floral, Cabernet Franc perfume. It is certainly less warm and better focused than it seemed one year ago. In fact it now has a rather more precise feel, with a sharp, knapped-flint edge cutting cross the palate. The fruit is supple and lightly applied, very gently textured, with the acidity most prominent here. Overall it is fresh, lively and lifted, really pure, flinty, with a light grip behind the fresh fruit and acids, which all comes through onto the finish. It is short, admittedly, but it is just so fresh and composed on the palate this doesn't seem to matter. A really good wine. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 15.5/20 (February 2011)

Domaine de la Pépière Cuvée Granit (VdP de Loire-Atlantique) 2009: This cuvée is a blend of Cabernet Franc in the main, then Cot and Merlot, with a smaller amount of Cabernet Sauvignon. Fresh, with warm fruit and warm stones on the nose. Quite soft on the palate, nicely fleshy. It lacks focus somewhat, with a rather bitter note to the midpalate, carried through by the acidity. The fruit has a tinge of confiture to it, certainly some sweetness, and some grippy tannin too. 14-15+/20 (February 2010)

White Wines

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie Les Gras Moutons Cuvée Eden 2008: Marc Ollivier has been producing a Cuvée Eden since the 2005 vintage, always including some fruit sourced from Les Gras Moutons, which has a gneiss terroir. This is the first vintage in which he had enough vines in Les Gras Moutons for it to be the sole source for the cuvée in question. Perhaps not so expressive as the 2009 on the nose, but a lovely style on the palate, very flashy and rich, well focused and with good acidity. Nice minerality. Not quite the vibrant combination of mineral fullness and acidic cut I crave here, but still very good wine. 17+/20 (February 2010)

White Wines

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie 2007: A synthetic closure here. A pale hue, but a bright and aromatic nose, with nuances of lemon and salt-rubbed thyme. Fresh and a little minerally I think. Well defined on entry, crisp, lean but fleshing out very nicely in the palate, brisk and bright, but also flavoursome and textured. Notes of greengage and yellow plum over the delicious acidity. Good clean, sappy and juicy finish. This is an appealing wine. 16/20 (June 2009)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Granite de Clisson 2007: This cuvée was harvested at 45 hl/ha, and has spent two years (with bâtonnage) on its lees which is outside the stipulated limit laid down in appellation regulations for placing the terms sur lie on the label. Madness! A lovely expression on the nose, and on the palate a fine but deep character, beautifully composed, broad and very mineral. The texture is impressive for the appellations, nicely balanced out by plenty of vivacious acidity. This is the business! 18.5+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie Clos des Briords 2007: A lovely nose, creamed thyme, liquid rocks, soapstone and pumice, topped off with notes of yellow pepper and yellow plum skin. Remarkable minerality! Fleshy but sappy, well defined, full of very tangible substance, broad and very mouth-filling, with all that yellow fruit coming through onto the palate too. Great style, purity and rich, fresh depth. Very fine indeed, delicious now, but a wine that will also repay keeping. 18+/20 (June 2009)

White Wines

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie Clos des Briords 2006: A limpid pale golden hue. The nose is reticent at first, before slowly unfurling to reveal the aromas of green-golden fruits with notes of rock salt, laid over a plump minerality. It has an appealing freshness on the palate, but there is a weighty almost ponderous style to it, with rather subtle although persistent acidity. A nice minerally core to it, chalky but bright, but overall the wine's character is one of bold substance and power rather than delicacy, vibrancy or nervosity. And the midpalate concentration seems a little lacking. Nevertheless a worthy wine which may do rather well in the cellar, but not really showing its best now I feel. 16+?/20 (June 2010)

White Wines

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Granite de Clisson 2005: There is great clarity here on the nose which is full of vibrant fruit, with elements of stone fruit in particular, especially white peach, with citrus fruit too, and also more exotic elements such as guava and honey, sprinkled with white pepper. Little tinges of smoke and stone too; this has just fabulous complexity! It is still very impressive on the palate too, showing a fabulous ball of fruit-rich acidity, bright and defined, which just bounces around the palate, going on and on. Overall a superbly composed wine which exhibits an elegant texture and yet also displays real substance and punch. 18+/20 (June 2010)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Granite de Clisson 2005: An impressive wine aromatically, with purity on the nose, citrus fruits combined with minerality. There are richer overtones, honey and cream, but the texture and substance is always bright and alert, with wisps of smoke and pepper. Fresh, pure and defined on the palate, beautifully composed, perfectly balance, with notes of wet stone and elderflower, lime and tarragon, this is an exotically styled wine with great substance and depth. Finely delineated in the finish, I believe it would cellar well too. That is perhaps hardly surprising, as one of the aims of the Troisième Niveau group is to demonstrate Melon's potential, particularly in terms of gravity and ageing potential, when handled in the same fashion as other noble varieties. This certainly has plenty of promise. An excellent wine. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 18+/20 (October 2009)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie Clos Cormerais 2005: Another old-vines cuvée here, fermented half in oak and half in acacia, where the wine rests for six months before bottling. The nose isn't particularly open, showing just some oak-related elements. The texture on the palate is lovely, as is the composition, and most importantly the oak isn't too domineering, but it is certainly tangible. It has a broad and solid texture on the palate, with lots of substance and acid to it. This is good but it needs time in my opinion, because Muscadet and oak don't make good bedfellows. Given time it may fade, in which case there is promise here; in the meantime, caution! 16-17+?/20 (February 2010)

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Trois 2005: This is a sample of a small volume (unnamed when I tasted it) vieilles vignes cuvée which has spent three years on its lees (so it can't be labelled sur lie, but this does explain why it has been christened Trois). It is only just about to become commercially available. Residual sugar 2.5 g/l. This has a lovely character; the nose is vibrant and smoky, the palate showing the same style sprinkled with minerality, very much with a quartz-like crystalline backbone. Rich, mouth-filling and fine, this is a very good wine indeed. 17.5+/20 (February 2010)

White Wines

Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie Clos des Briords 1992: Sadly the first bottle was musty, initially suggestive of rot or something else very dirty - it wasn't simple cork taint, but in truth I'm not sure what. There were, however, some appealing aromas and flavours swirled around this disconcerting character. Nevertheless I moved on; the second bottle, thankfully, showed a much cleaner character, although it also seemed tighter and less giving than the first. In the glass the wine has a lemon gold, vibrant appearance, with just a hint of green. The nose has a complex array of aromas, starting off with just a little liquorice. It soon morphs into a captivating style with elements of iced melon, rosemary, and stone fruit. Fresh, richly acidic, fairly weighty and yet still very fresh on the palate, this has a very good, food-friendly, crisply defined style. Slightly bitter, with punchy grapefruit character, supple flesh beneath and a dry finish, this is a wine that certainly has some challenging aspects, although I enjoy it all the more for that. And I suspect there is still a lot of development to come here. On the whole, a very good wine. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 17+/20 (August 2009)

Tasting notes are ordered by date of tasting, most recent first. I have tried to indicate whether it is a tasting of a new release, or of a wine I have cellared.

White Wines

Domaine de la Pépière Pépies Bulles NV: New release. This wine has a pale, straw-gold hue in the glass, reassuringly warm in appearance, with a very fine pétillance, enough to provide the wine with a very fine central stream of tiny bubbles. The nose is certainly charismatic, with fleeting nuances. The overall impression is fruit-dominated, golden and autumnal in style, but still bright and fresh. There is a sweet, ripe green apple and white grape character to it, the sweetness for brief moments giving the aromatic profile something of a resemblance to toffee apples. There are hints of more savoury nuances as well, though, ripe Maillard-like autolytic nuances from the dead and dying yeast, but these are subtle components. Gentle and refined at the start, this quickly fills out on the midpalate, helped by a generous helping of residual sugar. There is 20 g/l here, although tasted blind I would have put it a little lower. It does not bring an overt sweetness to the palate, but a rounded, fleshy feel. The pétillance is finely inscribed, but still gentle and soft, settling out though the middle to give it a creamy feel. In the end it picks itself up, showing a sappy detachment. The finish is not exactly intense or long, but it has an appealing sappy-sour character. This is very appealing, and with just 9% alcohol it would make a lovely summer sparkler. There's a really good balance here between the incisive acidity of the fruit which is kept nicely in check by the residual sugar, and there is some appealing substance to the wine to add further interest. Overall, pretty good stuff! For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 16/20 (November 2011)