Château Yvonne, 2017 Update
I discovered Château Yvonne during the era of ‘Yvonne’ herself, Yvonne Lamunière to be precise. This was just after the turn of the century, when she and her husband Jean-François Lamunière were making the wines, with the help of Françoise Foucault, the wife of the late Charly Foucault, of Clos Rougeard. I liked the wines, but they were dark and richly built, and so they weren’t to everybody’s taste. I noticed that they often provoked mixed reactions, and Loire purists in particular seemed to dislike the more muscular style they displayed.
In 2007, after just ten years at the helm, Yvonne sold up. She had found a buyer for the domaine, one Mathieu Vallée (pictured), the younger brother of Gérard Vallée of Domaine de la Cotelleraie in Bourgueil. Matthieu has retained the name of the estate, instead choosing to focus his energies on the vineyard. The domaine was organic when under the direction of Yvonne Lamunière, but Mathieu went one step further, moving the domaine over to full biodynamics in 2012.
The Wines
Like everybody else in the Loire Valley, Mathieu Vallée has had a difficult vintage to contend with in 2013. Happily for the vignerons, and for us imbibers, we now have the 2014 and 2015 vintages coming through, both of which are top notch. This tasting featured two from 2013, the Saumur Blanc Le Gory, which actually has a very appealing style, the vintage having been far better for whites than for reds, and the 2013 Saumur-Champigny, which is also a really good result for this vintage. While its origins show through in the shape of rather grainy tannins and zippy acids, I could not help but admire the perfumed fruit and charm within.
