Gadais Père et Fils, 2020 Update
The name of Gadais is well-known in Muscadet circles. The domaine really got going during the early 20th-century when Louis Gadais began bottling and exporting his wines to the USA, working with the American importer Frank Schoonmaker. From him the domaine came to his sons and then his grandson, Christophe Gadais. While Christophe has been the face of the domaine for many years, in recent times I have become used tasting with the fourth generation of the family, Pierre-Henri Gadais.
On this occasion, however, it was Christophe (pictured) who greeted me, Pierre-Henri being preoccupied with his newborn baby, a new arrival for this winemaking family. And a future fifth-generation winemaker perhaps?
The Wines
Christophe Gadais and I tasted our way through the domaine’s current releases, starting with the two most recent vintages from Domaine de la Tourmaline. This domaine, which was acquired by the Gadais family some years ago now, comprises a large number of small parcels with soils mostly of gneiss and mica. The 2018 Domaine de la Tourmaline shows the sweet fruit of the vintage, and I suspect will be best drunk sooner rather than late. The 2019 Domaine de la Tourmaline, meanwhile, still resting in cuve, promises equally enticing fruit, perhaps with a slightly fresher style and a little more acid lift as well.
