Domaine de la Noblaie, 2023 Update
The vineyards of Chinon are extensive, multifaceted and reward exploration. Their names ooze ecclesiastical and viticultural history, from the Clos des Capucins and Clos de l’Echo, which are huddled around the town’s royal fortress, to the famed vineyards of Coteau de Noiré and La Croix Boissée, close to Cravant-les-Coteaux, further upstream on the Vienne.
Thirsty visitors to the region should not, however, limit themselves only to the right bank of the river, where these aforementioned vineyards of renown are to be found. Cross the bridge at Chinon – or further upstream at L’Île Bouchard if you have been a-wandering – and a new viticultural landscape awaits you. Here the slopes are predominantly north-facing, looking down onto the Vienne, although a few souls are making use of the south-facing slopes just over the crest, where there is a gentle south-facing incline which then broadens out into the frost-prone plains around the ancient ‘new town’ of Richelieu.
Along the right bank there are one or two small valleys perpendicular to the course of the Vienne scratched into the limestone plateau, and a handful of vignerons take advantage of the more complex arrangements of slopes and inclines they offer. The Vau Breton (the Breton Valley, in old French), is one such valley, and it is planted with the vines of Domaine de la Noblaie. This long-established domaine is run with precision by Jérôme (pictured above, in the cellars) and Elodie Billard, and along with Charles Joguet it is one of the must-visit domaines on this side of the river.
This is one of (at least) two reports concerning Domaine de la Noblaie which will see the light of day on these pages during the course of 2023. In this ‘instalment’ I present some detail on recent vintages, together with new tasting notes on a variety of cuvées, scribbled during a sequence of meetings and tastings with Jérôme during the past 15 months, from March 2022 through to May 2023. As for the second report, which I will publish before too long, I will provide more detail at the end of this introduction.
First up, some words on recent vintages.
