Baudry-Dutour: Tasting & Drinking
The range of wines from Baudry-Dutour is diverse and worth experiencing. As with many domaines in Chinon, the portfolio runs from ageworthy cuvées usually associated with prestigious clay and limestone terroirs, down to more accessible wines from the alluvial terraces. The only difference here is that rather than gathering together a portfolio of vineyards under the name of a single domaine, Christophe Baudry and Jean-Martin Dutour have instead gathered together a number of distinct domaines and they preserve the identity of these estates in individual cuvées.
For any domaine it is always the more serious cuvées that draw me in, and Baudry-Dutour certainly have some well-positioned vineyards. Those at Château de Saint Louans to the west of Chinon on limestone and clay are among this number; and it is not far from here to some other noteworthy Chinon domaines, such as Château de Coulaine and Pierre & Bertrand Couly. The vines of Château de la Grille to the north of the town are also rooted into favourable terroir.
Having tasted these more upmarket cuvées it seems clear to me that there are no problems with the raw material here. Early encounters with the wines of Château de la Grille, which always look resplendent in their faux antique Champagne bottles, were on occasion problematic; I often found a heavy hand when it came to oak, the wines displaying a confected, candied, burnt-sugar, burnt-marshmallow character in their youth, all of which presumably related to the caramelisation of oaky sugars and starches during the toasting. I found similar issues with red wine of Château de Saint Louans which also tended to show a lot of dense, chocolate-infused oaky character. As the wines aged they showed rather drying tannins as a consequence. Happily in more recent vintages this has been toned down somewhat, and perhaps the improved maturity of the fruit in the increasingly warm Ligérian climate has helped in this regard. The 2020 Château de la Grille is certainly the best wine I have tasted from this estate and one I look forward to returning to as it matures.
The style of both the Saint Louans and La Grille wines is certainly rich, textural and ripe though, so perhaps not the first choice for Chinon traditionalists. Those looking for lighter textures and fresher acidities might best be served by the entry-level cuvées from the Roncée and Perrière domaines, the styles here kept in check by the more modest alluvial terroirs. The old-vine cuvées wines from these more alluvial vineyards can also show an attractive character. I still carry the memory of the 1989 Chinon Vieilles Vignes from Domaine de la Perrière, made by Jean Baudry with son Christophe at his side, long before the Baudry-Dutour union. Snaffled from the cellar of Jim Budd, and tasted alongside the 1989 Chinon Clos de la Dioterie from Charles Joguet, it was able to give this more famed cuvée a very good run for its money.
One arena in which the domaine does seem to succeed with some regularity is with its white wines. The generic 3 Coteaux cuvée can give real pleasure, while the white from Château de Saint Louans has also impressed on occasion. All in all this is certainly a domaine to be aware of, not least because the wines seem to pop up everywhere, especially in and around the Loire Valley, from restaurant lists to local supermarkets, providing easily accessible, enjoyable and reliable drinking. (16/1/18, updated 20/3/26)
