Loire 2024: First Taste
Below I present my first set of tasting notes on the wines of the 2024 vintage in the Loire Valley. As always, because Loire vignerons tend to show what they will be bottling and selling soon, rather than showing huge swathes of en primeur samples which might be years from seeing the inside of a bottle as they do in Bordeaux, the wines featured tend to be early-drinking styles and less consequential styles.
This means lighter IGP and Vin de France cuvées, various cuvées of Muscadet of course, a number of early-drinking Sauvignon Blancs from a variety of Touraine and Central Vineyard appellations, and a handful of rosé wines. But there are still some notable names in the line-up, including Famille Lieubeau, Domaine du Haut Bourg, Henri Bourgeois, Jacques Rouzé and more.
In addition there are a few brut de cuve samples from vignerons in Anjou, Saumur and Touraine who are willing to provide an early snapshot of how their Chenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Côt and the like also fared in this vintage. So we have early glimpses of the vintage through the wines of Domaine Cady, Domaine de la Noblaie, Charles Joguet, Château de Minière, Bernard Baudry and more.
All in all, I present notes on a little over 75 wines.
