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Muscadet: History & Appellations

The Nantais is Muscadet country. This is the westernmost stretch of Loire vineyards, accompanying the river along its last fifty or so miles before it spills into the Atlantic, and the region also marks the most north-western point of all France's vineyards. Curving around the southern edge of Nantes, the vineyards are only part of a sandy landscape which includes industry, fishing ports, tourism and the occasional nocturnal parade of Gaulish Hell's Angels.

Hell's Angels? Let me explain. My first memory of the Nantais has me driving into the region along the N160 very late one Sunday night, probably past midnight. Having taken the route nationale as far as I could, I pulled off onto some lesser roads, the final stage of my journey before finally reaching my accommodation. I found myself zipping along on a never-ending sequence of country roads, each one seemingly sunk into the sandy, grass-laden mounds that rose up on either side. Here and there swathes of dusty sand lay across the tarmac, no doubt kicked up by passing motorcycle tyres which had strayed a little too close to the edge. These roads, which criss-cross the countryside forming a network of interconnecting routes, are used by a number of local motorcycle gangs for their nocturnal 'street' races. Perhaps they weren't really 'Hell's Angels', but they looked pretty similar to my untrained eye.

It was only when I ventured out the next day along those same roads that I noticed what I had missed in the darkness of night. Running along the sandy expanses that lay either side of those country lanes there were, in fact, vineyards. These were more than motorcycle race tracks, but also access routes for the local viticulteurs, who came bobbing along in their tractors and even the occasional Citroën 2CV. My nocturnal stumblings had in fact taken me right through the vineyards of the Fiefs Vendéens, a VDQS region south of the Muscadet vignoble. The Fiefs Vendéens is one of three VDQS regions here, the others being Gros Plant du Pays Nantais, running down to the coast, and the Coteaux d'Ancenis, sandwiched between the Muscadet vineyards and those of Anjou-Saumur. The central Muscadet vineyards, however, particularly the three regional appellations of Sèvre et Maine, Coteaux de la Loire and Côtes de Grand Lieu, represent the true heart of the Nantais vineyards, and so it is on Muscadet that I will focus in this section of my guide to the Loire.

Muscadet: A  History

Muscadet is an ancient viticultural region, claiming a winemaking ancestry which stretches back to the time of Marcus Aurelius Probus, a 3rd-century Roman emperor. Whilst we may not have absolute proof of many millennia of viticulture as we do in other regions such as Burgundy - which, while we are on the matter, is the origin of Muscadet's principle variety, Melon de Bourgogne - there have nevertheless certainly been vineyards planted here for many centuries. With the Atlantic on its doorstep export by sea to waiting markets was relatively easy, and as long ago as the 12th century Dutch interlopers were commercialising and exporting the wines. And moving the wines westward by sea, rather than eastwards by river, also avoided the taxes imposed as goods passed through Ingrandes-sur-Loire, the tax check-point on the River Loire. These taxes were a major determinant of how the Loire's wines were sold; wines made upriver of Ingrandes-sur-Loire could be transported east to the most obvious market, Paris, without significant financial penalty, whereas those made downriver of this town were more likely to be exported through Nantes and via the sea if the prohibitive taxes incurred by transport east through Ingrandes were to be avoided.

These ancient wines may have looked and tasted very little like modern-day Muscadet though, as it was only in the early 18th century that Melon de Bourgogne came to dominate the region. What other varieties were planted here before this time is uncertain, but what is certain is why the change was made. In 1709 a severe frost destroyed many of the vines, just as it did more recently in Bordeaux in 1956, and when the vineyards were replanted Melon de Bourgogne - which had only arrived in the Nantais in 1635 - was the variety of choice. But the recovery was short-lived, as the region subsequently soon spiralled into the doldrums, a recurring theme with Muscadet. In this instance this decline was precipitated by the over-production of poor quality wines in association with the famine and wars that marked this century, first the battles that came under the reign of Louis XIV, much later the War of the Vendée, a local revolt associated with the Revolution in the 1790s. More viticultural troubles came in the century that followed, not least phylloxera which arrived in 1884 and - like the frost in 1709 - again laid waste to many thousands of hectares of vines.

So Muscadet has had its fair share of disasters and crises, and yet despite all that had gone before the 20th century saw some recovery, and by the 1980s the region seemed to be sitting comfortably, as sales reached new heights. But these golden days were a mere precursor to yet another crisis for the region, as the region became a victim of its own success. For many, Muscadet became a byword for a style, a brand almost, rather like Chablis. Easy to pronounce, and you knew more-or-less what you were getting. But then came disaster; quality nose-dived as poor examples of Muscadet produced from unsuitable terroirs, planted up to meet the growing demand, began to dominate the market, and Muscadet soon garnered a reputation for being dull, weak on character and strong on acid. And as a result, just as they did with the wines of Germany, and indeed I suspect any region which follows an ethos of quantity over quality, consumers soon noted the deteriorating standards, switching onto other wines and regions instead. Meanwhile, another devastating frost in 1991 did nothing to help the vignerons as they watched their sales and income decline.

As a consequence, today Muscadet remains largely ignored by the global community of wine drinkers; the wines are seen by label chasers as insignificant, minor white wines where 'drink youngest available' is the rule, and by the image-conscious as being rather passé I think, a wine for the 1980s. This is reflected by the current state of the market for Muscadet, which at the start of the 21st century is dominated by négociants. Most vignerons in Muscadet - 80% in fact - sell their wines to the négoce, who buy on price rather than quality, and then sell on to supermarkets, the bottles hitting the shelves at rock-bottom prices. It does nothing for the long-term viability of the appellation as it pushes the vignerons to the brink of ruin. The next generation lose hope and move away, their parents' vineyards sold off or grubbed up. Those who struggle on face destitution; between the harvest in October 2010 and the year-end over eighty Muscadet viticulteurs declared bankruptcy. It is a tragedy for the individuals concerned and for the region as a whole, although of course there is one hard-nosed upside; the wines of misunderstood and unloved wine regions are usually hugely undervalued, and Muscadet is no exception to this rule. Today, there are a handful of dedicated, quality orientated domaines turning out some amazing and yet inexpensive wines. They are vibrant, fascinating, delicious, cerebral and cellar-worthy, yet widely ignored and sold for a song. Muscadet is truly a wine region worth knowing.

Muscadet: The Appellations

The Muscadet appellations sprang into life in 1936, with the creation of Sèvre et Maine and Coteaux de la Loire that year, with the basic Muscadet appellation, which applies to wines made outside the three regional appellations and which more-or-less matches the Gros Plant vineyards, laid down in law the following year. The youngster in the gang is Cotes de Grand Lieu, which was only delimited in 1994. There are broad similarities between the four Muscadet appellations, which today give us about 13000 hectares of vines, but also some notable differences.

Muscadet de Sèvre et Maine - occasionally referred to by the drinker with a sense of humour as Muscadet Severe & Mean - is the region many drinkers will be most familiar with. It is frequently touted as the 'best' of the four appellations, although many do not realise that its 8800 hectares of vineyards, scattered across 23 communes to the south-east of Nantes around the confluence of the Sèvre and Maine rivers as they flow towards the Loire, account for the majority of the Muscadet vineyard. In fact about 70% of the vines planted in Muscadet appellations are in the Sèvre et Maine zone. This may well reflect the quality of the terroir and also the resulting wines, which can be very high; there are also a great many less interesting wines, however, so the appellation in itself is not a useful guide to quality (this criticism could of course be levied against almost all French appellations), especially when we considered that this particular appellation has the largest output of any in the Loire. Nevertheless, there are other distinguishing features that may perhaps be taken as indicating quality. One might be the presence of sur lie on the label, indicating the wine in question has spent some time on its lees, although there is a fundamental problem here too; I will expand more on that in part two of this guide.

As an alternative some local vignerons have responded by banding together and essentially creating their own superior classifications, such as the Hermine d'Or designation, used by a group of quality-minded producers led by Guy Bossard. The INAO and the Conseil Interprofessionnel des Vins de Nantes have so far failed to table a better solution to sort the good from the bad and the ugly. A focus on vineyards and terroir, identifying the most worthy sites and therefore potentially the best wines, is also ongoing, again largely brought about by the actions of interested, dedicated vignerons rather than any official body. Again, more on that in part two.

After Sèvre et Maine the other two regional appellations here are Muscadet Côtes de Grand Lieu and Muscadet Coteaux de la Loire, which account for 300 and 200 hectares respectively. The former stretches over 19 communes to the south-west of Nantes, around the lac de Grand-Lieu. Meanwhile the latter also covers 19 communes, in this case situated on both banks of the Loire upstream of Nantes around the town of Ancenis. Other than their geographical distinctions, and therefore their terroirs, there is little on paper to distinguish the three regional appellations; viticultural regulations are the same, all have a density of planting between 6500 and 7500 vines per hectares, and in each case the rendement de base - the starting point for the annual yield - is 55 hl/ha. Both can also be held It is the generic Muscadet appellation, the fourth member of the Muscadet quartet, which is different in this regard. Allowing for wines from all over the département, and accounting for approximately 3600 hectares of vineyards, the starting point here for yields is 65 hl/ha.

• Next Instalment: Nantais Part 2: Muscadet Terroir & Crus