Domaine de la Bergerie, 2023 Update
A stalwart of the Anjou region, with parcels in all the most significant Anjou appellations, Domaine de la Bergerie remains an important address in the region. For many years the driving force behind the domaine, Yves Guégniard is now enjoying his retirement, having passed his responsibilities on to his two daughters, Anne and Marie. Of these it is the elder of the two sisters, Anne Guégniard, who fills the role of winemaker and who now seems to be the public face of the domaine.
Earlier this year I met up with Anne in order to taste through the current portfolio of wines. As is often the case, the dry wines were all in the latest vintages and new to this particular palate, while the sweet wines – which are naturally slower to move through the system and are not made every year – provided a mix of new vintages and opportunities to revisit previously tasted wines. I report here on a dozen wines in total, from the simplicity of the dry entry-level cuvée Sous la Tonnelle, up to the grandeur of Quarts de Chaume.
The Wines
Looking to the dry whites first, the warmer nature of recent vintages comes across in the style of a number of the wines, not least the soft apple- and mint-infused 2022 Anjou Sous la Tonnelle, the powdery 2020 Anjou Les Pierres Girard and the rather grippy 2018 Savennières La Croix Picot.
There are some wines which achieve a greater sense of balance though. My choice among these dry Chenins would be either the 2019 Anjou Zerzilles, sourced from vines planted on the prestigious schist and sandstone terroirs of the Butte de Chaume, which impresses with a fine sense of drive and energy, or the 2018 Savennières Clos le Grand Beaupréau which displays a remarkable sense of freshness for what was a very warm vintage, complemented by a touch of reduction.
