Loire 1997 at Twenty Years
I write this retrospective analysis of the 1997 vintage in the Loire Valley from a point that is distant in time, twenty years on from the vintage. The number of bottles from the 1997 vintage in my cellar is now in a terminal decline, but I am nevertheless relaxed about this. While the 1990s threw a few good vintages our way, in particular 1996 and 1997, the years since have given me many more fine options for buying, cellaring and drinking. Indeed, it could be argued that we are in a golden era for the Loire Valley. While the 2013 vintage was nothing to write home about, other than a few decent sweet wines, the 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 vintages all had their quality hotspots. And then came 2014, 2015 and 2016 which, while the latter of this trio was frostbitten, promise us some of the greatest wines the Loire Valley has produced for many decades.
Returning to focus on the 1997 vintage, twenty years on my cellar can only yield three dry wines, one white and two red, although as the 1997 Chinon Clos de l’Echo Crescendo was corked that immediately slashed my haul to just two. Stepping down to the 1997 Chinon Clos de l’Echo from Couly-Dutheil, this was not the most convincing wine in the tasting. While I found much to enjoy in this vintage perhaps ten years ago, as the wine has thinned out in recent times it has tended to show a somewhat greener and leaner style. While the 1997 vintage was certainly a very good one, I am not always so sure that it was that special when it came to the red wines. The 1997 Vouvray Cuvée Tradition from François Pinon is a much more high-class affair, one which seems to show more confidence and character each time I return to it.
All the other wines that feature in this tasting report are, perhaps unsurprisingly, suitably rich in residual sugar. And they represent all the mainstream sweet appellations of the Loire Valley (I have to say ‘mainstream’, before I am challenged on the lack of sweeter Cour-Cheverny, or late-harvest Sancerre), from the Coteaux du Layon and its famous crus, through to Vouvray and Montlouis-sur-Loire. Having written fairly explicit and detailed tasting notes there is perhaps little point in exploring the character and quality of these wines here; suffice to say that with domaines such as Château de la Genaiserie, Château Bellerive, Domaine Huet and Domaine de la Taille aux Loups involved, the quality here was generally of a very high standard. In some cases these were my final bottles, in others I have yet more tucked away, and I am glad that this is true of the wines of Domaine Huet and Domaine de la Taille aux Loups, as these showed very well, testament to the work of Noël Pinguet and Jacky Blot, two of the most talented and dedicated winemakers the region has ever seen.
