Damien Laureau: Tasting & Drinking
The style here is firmly in the modern camp; Damien may only have limited use of wood, focused on Le Bel Ouvrage and even then for one year only (the wine going into fibreglass for the remaining time before bottling), but early on in my encounters with Damien’s wines its presence is undeniable. Nevertheless, it tended towards a silvery, smoky, weathered-teak sensation rather than the less harmonious notes of honey and wood-tannin that might first come to mind when thinking of oak in this appellation. Having said that, wood seems much less apparent in more recent vintages, and I am not at all sure these comments still apply.
In addition, Damien Laureau was one of the early advocates of malolactic fermentation within the appellation, another feature of his winemaking that puts him in the modern camp. Perhaps more important than any attempt to pigeonhole Damien, however, is an awareness that here we have on of the greatest domaines of the appellation, one that is well worth seeking out. I find Damien Laureau’s wines adorable, especially the brilliant Savennières Roche-aux-Moines cuvée, and will certainly be returning to them to taste and drink in the future. (21/6/11, updated 26/8/12, 12/11/15, 3/4/21)
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