Loire 2010 at Ten Years: Demi-Sec & Moelleux Wines

In this, the final instalment of my run through of the 2010 Vintage in the Loire Valley at Ten Years, I conclude with the demi-sec and moelleux cuvées. I combine these two styles (which I regard quite differently from one another) in this one report simply to keep the numbers up; even with both styles included here I have only eight wines.

In my introduction I noted that as harvest approached, the Touraine vineyards were hit by persistent rain which seems to have prompted an attack of rot, requiring a lot of work to ensure what was picked was clean. With more rain forecast, vignerons in Montlouis-sur-Loire and Vouvray rushed to finish picking; in this corner of the Loire Valley 2010 ended up a strong vintage for sparkling wines and sec cuvées, but there was very little appetite for producing anything sweeter, with only few opting to hold out for a demi-sec or moelleux cuvée, and those that did made only small quantities.

In Anjou, however, many vignerons sat out the rain, which during the ensuing days resulted in a uniform wave of botrytis across the vineyards. Thankfully the weather dried up a little, and the fruit was able to concentrate well, and much to everyone’s surprise they picked healthy, cleanly botrytised and concentrated fruit.