Loire Valley visit, long, very few wine notes

[jal]

We landed in France Saturday morning and rented a car at the airport heading to Amboise, on the way we stopped in Chartres to see the magnificent cathedral; absolutely stunning stained glass windows, enormous nave, very impressive. We then walked around the outdoor Saturday market where the best produce of France was displayed. I resisted the urge to buy anything.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/AkYYCogjd2Wy3noH8


On to Amboise, we stayed the first two nights at Le Manoir les Minimes: great location, five minutes walk from the town center, nice room, good shower, a bit by the numbers, not as charming as I was expecting but nothing bad to say, except the price maybe which is a bit steep.

We then moved to the Chateau de Perreux, for about 30% less but with a lot more charm, great views, nice gardens, very friendly hosts, a ten minutes drive from the town center.

In Amboise we ate dinner at Chez Bruno fun little bistro with honest but quite unimaginative food, full of American tourists. I had a mediocre steak tartare, Jill a great magret de canard all washed down with a terrific 2020 Franco de Porc Bourgueil Domaine de la Chevalerie. Dark and chewy with a good nose and excellent fruit
The next night at Le 36, a gastronomic restaurant close to the hotel, pretty setting overlooking the Loire river. Service is a brooding stuffy head waiter but young, friendly and eager staff otherwise. Food comes out so quickly, it obviously was prepared way in advance, also, I am asked how I would like my quasi de veau (which is a veal rump that is roasted) done. Baffling.
We had an excellent Sancerre the 2022 Terre de Maimbray by Nicholas et Pascal Reverdy (idk if there’s a connection to Hyppolyte). It’s focused, clean and vibrant with a smooth finish. Lovely

We then toured a bunch of Chateaux. We tried to stick to two per day
Chronologically
Clos Lucé where Leonardo da Vinci spent his last few years; fascinating exhibits with a nice park were some of the great man’s inventions are on view. A couple of cheesy exhibits do not detract from the overall feeling of awe.

Chateau Royal d’Amboise smack in the middle of the beautiful town, great view of the Loire and the surroundings, beautiful exhibit, nice gardens. That will actually be a recurring theme
https://photos.app.goo.gl/4n51VUZ2hrgTPJ5v7

Chateau de Chambord is massive, probably the biggest we’ve seen, great exhibits of François 1er’s life as a giant king (he was 1.98m tall or 6’6). Again beautiful gardens
https://photos.app.goo.gl/6y2EyLwvd9cE94iEA

Chateau de Chenonceaux is gorgeous, with pretty gardens and interesting décor. The kitchens are very interesting. The river running through it adds to the unique beauty of the place. Probably, esthetically, the most beautiful of them all
https://photos.app.goo.gl/bnhpu77d4xXWmG6s7

Chateau de Cheverny which is actually one of my favorites, it served as an inspiration to ( in the comic books of Tintin) Marlinespike Hall (Chateau de Moulinsart in the French version) with a fun Tintin exhibit. The gardens are pretty with very fragrant herbs and flowers
https://photos.app.goo.gl/vtd1hCGnbsaYFZFn7

Chateau Chaumont sur Loire is very interesting inside with a fascinating history but I was taken by the 3 huge gardens, one of them with a charming exhibit of various gardens from around the world, one with small contemporary artful pieces well integrated, and one with a fun ramble in the woods. Probably the most charming gardens of them all
https://photos.app.goo.gl/tjsTrbX32MzF6tFY9

Chateau de Villandry, while the Chateau is still lived in and beautiful, the gardens are breathtaking. Words cannot do them justice. Just check out the pics.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/YiKPWGP4oCPDeRXp8

Chateau Azay Le Rideau, absolutely charming inside and out, the one I would buy if I hit lotto. Would make for great BWE get-togethers,just need to add. A pool (or fill the moat )
https://photos.app.goo.gl/KmV3GLkMH6uLHdUc8

Chateau l’Islette claim to fame is where the two sculptors Auguste Rodin and Camille Claudel ran away from Paris for some peace, quiet, inspiration and love. Very pretty, also lived in and semi modernized.
Chateau Rigny d’Ussé also known as sleeping beauty castle, we just stopped to take a photo
Chateau de Langeais with the best historical exhibit about the secret marriage of Anne de Bretagne and Charles VIII which changed French history. Absent that, German would be spoken in all of France since then.
Chateau d’Angers just for the incredible 14th century Apocalyptic tapestry which has been restored and is absolutely awesome.
Abbaye de Fontevraud where we stayed the night in the hotel inside the abbey. We had the spooky, creepy place all to ourselves after dinner. It was very eerie and beautiful.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/2wAeW17dbmdD3EA66

We also visited Brehemont, a lovely town on the river Cher, Montsoreau with a nice Chateau but a ridiculously pretentious contemporary art exhibit and La Saut aux Loups, a mushroom cave that just happened to be on the way and offered an interesting exhibit about mushroom cultivation and a place to cool off (avoid if you, like me, still have nightmares from The Last of Us)

While touring we stayed at the next few places:
Ibis Chinon, worst hotel of the trip, nice people at the reception, but the room stank of cigarettes. We left after one night even though I booked for two
Domaine de Mestré, old, antique and charming, with a nice outdoor dinner area, live fun jazz duo while we ate (first Thursday of every month), a soap factory next door makes soap the old fashioned way, I had to buy a couple of perfumed bars.

We visited two wineries
Huet where Johan took us on a very informative tour, we tasted some of their new releases (not Constance) and visited their cellars. Sarah the owner/winemaker greeted us there as well. Huet is very consistent from year to year, there is no point in describing the wines.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/obxrBC4XY9JizimYA

Baudry where we tasted the following:
2020 Les Grézeaux, very tannic and closed, but with good depth and balance.
2021 Le Domaine, perfumed and easy drinking. I wouldn't age it
2020 Les Mollières, a new wine that had crunchy red fruit and a good balance, and was in the sweet spot right now. I bought a bottle and we drank it in the Abbaye de Fontevraud with a delicious picnic basket that the hotel sells. It was delicious.
2010 La Croix Boissée was easily the best of the tasting. Deep, perfumed, structured, focused with great finish.
We also tasted the 2022 Rosé and the Chinon Blanc. Both as expected. Clean vibrant and focused
Baudry doesn't disappoint. Their wines only get better with time.
A couple of women were in the tasting and left with a dozen assorted cases BTW. They were big fans.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/L7xVR2V8qaVzrLmc6

To sum up, we loved the area, it was charming, beautiful and welcoming. Not overrun with tourists and very easy to navigate. Food as almost everywhere in France is good to great. We tried to stay with bistro fare and not go overboard on wine. We are in stunning Brittany now and will be in Provence the next two weeks and maybe then we will indulge.

[JCNorthway]

Sounds like great travels, Jacques. We were in the Loire last fall doing a self guided bike tour that visited a few of the chateaux you saw. We also visited Clos Lucé on a free morning and found it fascinating. I'm envious of your upcoming 2 weeks in Provence.

[stefan]

It is such fun to visit the castles in the Loire, Sounds like you guys are having a great time in preparation for your celebration.

[AlexR]

Hi Jacques,

Thanks for the travelogue.

You were in the real heartland of France, where it is said that the purest French is spoken.
I lived in a town called Doué La Fontaine near Saumur for a year and a half. In fact, my family and I lived here: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%C3%A2t ... de-Varenne
Our rooms were on the right hand side. There was a moat, a small drawbridge, a well in the kitchen (!), a dumbwaiter, and an ancient wooden banqueting table that could seat 20 people. Quite an abode… My job didn’t work out so I left that region of France.

Veal: as a white meat, you would think that the degree to which it should be cooked is a given, but it is frequent in France for certain cuts (especially chops) to ask people how they want it done. Most gastronomes would say “rosé”, same as for magret, which is just shy of medium-rare.

Cigarettes: You may have the impression that the French smoke an awful lot, but consumption is only slightly higher than in the US: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tobacco_c ... by_country
I’m sorry that you ran into a hotel room that stank of cigarette smoke. Honestly, this is pretty rare in my experience. Did you complain? Did they try to make you pay for cancelling the next night?

Baudry: This producer has a good reputation, but like many wines of Chinon, the ones I’ve had showed some brett on the nose. I bought a case of 2009 Croix de Boissée and have 3 bottles left. I haven’t had one in a long time. I must open one up soon to see if the brett aromas are still there.
I’d be interested to hear how you found the cost of living compared to America. Inflation here is galloping…

France is the largest tourist destination in the world (meaning visitors from another country), but the sector is suffering from a lack of manpower. Immigration is all but stopped and since covid people decided that split shifts six days a week with low wages is not for them.

All the best,
Alex

[jal]

Hi Alex. Thank you for your comments
Quasi de veau we had many times. That was the first and only time we were asked how we wanted it cooked. And yes we did answer rosé . The headwaiter was still annoyingly stuffy, I guess he didn't approve of pairing it with a white Sancerre

We didn't complain at the hotel. It was full and there was no.point as there were no other rooms. We cancelled the second day the evening before departure so we were not charged. I agree this is rare, and didn't mean it as a criticism of the French. I've had stinky hotel rooms in the US as well.

Restaurant prices were very reasonable compared to NY and FL but much higher than on our last visit to France a year ago. Probably by about 30-40% more.

And last, as you said, we have encountered some closures due to manque de personnel.

[greatbxfreak]

jal,

My only encounter with Loire was in 1998 when my friend and I went to Angers after tasting wines in Bordeaux for one week.

It was a fabulously maleric ride from Angers in the west along Loire Valley, and we ended in the eastern part, Pouilly Fume, while visiting Didier Dauguneau and tasting his fabulous wines made from Sauvignon Blanc. We stayed at his relais overnight and had abrupted our sleep at 4 am by "noise" from an army of huskies. Didier Dauguneau was at that time a world champion in riding sleds with huskies. During the dinner at a local restaurant, he pointed out his favorite red wine from Loire. It was Domaine de Villeneuve Les Clos Saumur Champigny. It was 1995, and I later bought in Denmark. Fabulous Cabernet Franc!

I still wonder why you chose white wine for your veal dish instead of trying Saumur Champigny.

Before reaching Pouilly Fume, we visited Philippe Delesvaux, the "king" of Coteau de Layon, with fantastic sweet wines. He and his wife are now retired, and the name of the Domaine changed to Domaine Drost.

For sure it's been one of the highlights of my wine trips.

[jal]

Ah, good question
But my lovely wife had the fish and I had the veal. We didn't want two glasses of different wines and preferred a whole bottle.
Sancerre was a good compromise

[Blanquito]

Great travelogue, Jacques. Thanks for the write-up. Neat photos too.

[JimHow]

What a great travel journal entry, I definitely want to go there.

[dstgolf]

Jacques,

Thanks for the walk down memory lane. It's been years but the photos brought back some great vivid memories of our travels there which mimicked most of your stops. Not sure why but we picked up a bottle of Chambord at the chateau and it still sits adorning our bar in the basement. Nice bottle but not a fan of what's inside! Enjoy the rest of your trip.

[DavidG]

Fun read Jacques, sounds like a great time. One of our favorite trips was a week driving through the Loire.

[AKR]

Wow those gardens at Villandry are remarkable, even if the pictures only capture a sliver of their splendor.

I guess I should try the whole Baudry/Chinon/Bourgieul concept again. I have not had any in a long time, and no matter how enthusiasts would suggest that I ought to like them, I was generally lukewarm at best.

Great trip report and thanks for sharing.

[jal]

Thanks for the comments guys. Hopefully these notes will in the future be of some help to BWEers

[Blanquito]

I’ve never been a Baudry fan. In fact, I usually dislike, despite liking other Loire reds.

[jckba]

I’ve never been a Baudry fan. In fact, I usually dislike, despite liking other Loire reds.

Quelle horreur but different strokes for different folks.

[Blanquito]

I’ve never been a Baudry fan. In fact, I usually dislike, despite liking other Loire reds.

Quelle horreur but different strokes for different folks.

I know, it makes little sense. Given everyone’s palate who likes Baudry, it should be right in my wheelhouse.

[jal]

I have had Beaudry a few times and always liked the wines. I do think they need to age. Maybe le Domaine and Les Mollieres are to be drunk on the young side, I can't tell.
What I noticed in the area wines was that unless you are familiar with the producer, there are a lot of mediocre harsh wines. i decided that ordering the organic wine on the list usually is a safer bet, especially when as was usually the case, I am not familiar with any of the wines.

[AlexR]

My wife and i shared a bottle of 2009 La Croix Boissée on Friday.

Thankfully, it did not display the bretty notes I have found in Baudry in the past, as in many Chinons.

The wine was very evolved with marked pencil shaving aromas.

It was fully resolved, in fact, past its prime from my point of view.

How would I rate it? Worthwhile, subtle, but tired.

Alex R.