Thibaud Boudignon: Tasting & Drinking
When encountering any new domaine, the first taste is always a step into the unknown. Regardless what you might have heard about a particular winemaker, how sound his or her philosophies might appear to be, or how stunning the wines appear to somebody else, the proof of the pudding is always in the eating. Some people can talk the talk, but when I taste their wines I have suddenly realised that they can’t walk the walk. This seems more true here in Savennières than in many other Loire Valley appellations I think (naming no names). Happily, though, such concerns do not apply to Thibaud Boudignon.
One taste of Thibaud’s wines and I immediately realised that here we have a new star in Anjou. The wines taste like Anjou (by which I mean the region not just the appellation, so I include Savennières in this) Chenin Blanc, but they have a framework of acidity and minerality that gives them a very fine tension and energy, something that used to be rather rare in this region (although with the new focus on this variety, in a dry rather than sweet style, more wines are emerging). There are plenty of wines that show energy and vigour, but few that combine this purity and energy with the enviable substance and texture that I have also found in Thibaud’s wines.
It is not all plain sailing though. Is it ever? One issue is the evident oak on the domaine cuvée. It is a good wine, and I enjoyed drinking the 2011 on my first visit here, but the 35% new oak added an external influence which to me detracts slightly from the fabulous minerally vigour that Thibaud manages to extract from his fruit. Happily this is less of an issue with more recent vintages, as I had originally hoped. On that first visit I found the Anjou Blanc Françoise(e) and Savennières Les Fougeraies to be immensely superior; indeed, in the 2013 vintage, these wines showed lovely potential.
In more recent years, of course, Thibaud has added the Clos de Frémine, Clos de la Hutte and La Vigne Cendrée cuvées to his repertoire. Not only are these wines of top quality, but they also indicate anew Thibaud’s position in the premier league in Savennières. It is one thing making great wines; it is quite another to see someone rebuild an appellation, parcel by parcel. The 2020 Franc de Pied is stunning, the 2020 Clos de La Hutte a masterpiece, and the range looks good in the more challenging 2021 vintage too. This is a domaine I have enjoyed watching evolve in recent years, and I shall hopefully be able to continue to do that. Maybe Thibaud will pour from one of the bottles he wishes to hold back; he has plans to build a new bottle store so he can hold onto 10% of his production for later release. This sounds great, but the only issue will I suspect be the price, as those electric frost-protection systems don’t come for free. (15/8/14, updated 3/3/21, 17/8/24)
