Touraine AOCGamay, Sauvignon Blanc, Romorantin, Cot58 haFounded 1921Marionnet familyWinemaker Jean-Sebastien MarionnetORGANIC CERTIFIEDVouvray
Soings-en-Sologne family estate of 58 hectares mainly Gamay and Sauvignon, with 5.5 hectares of franc-de-pied (ungrafted) plantings and the 200-year-old Provignage Romorantin vine.
Tasting: Visits and tastings at the Domaine de la Charmoise; one of the few growers with ungrafted parcels
Signature wines: marionnet-premiere-vendange, marionnet-vinifera, marionnet-provignage
Tip: Provignage is bottled from a 200-year-old plot of ungrafted pre-phylloxera Romorantin vines at Domaine de la Charmoise (one of the few documented pre-phylloxera plots in France).
Savennieres-Coulee de Serrant AOC (monopole)Chenin Blanc7 haFounded 1130Joly family (Nicolas and Virginie Joly)Winemaker Virginie JolyDemeter CertifiedDEMETERSavennieres
Monopole Savennieres-Coulee de Serrant, the seven-hectare Chenin Blanc walled vineyard biodynamic since 1984 under Nicolas Joly, France's biodynamic apostle.
Tasting: Monday-Saturday 9-12, 14-17:30; tastings without reservation; closed Sundays and French holidays
Signature wines: joly-coulee-de-serrant, joly-clos-de-la-bergerie, joly-les-vieux-clos
Tip: The wine needs 3-5 hours of aeration (or a year in bottle) to open; tasting at the domaine is the only way to see it served correctly.
Savennieres AOC, Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru AOC, Coteaux du Layon AOCChenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc40 haFounded 1634Baumard family (Florent Baumard)Winemaker Florent BaumardCoteaux du Layon
Rochefort-sur-Loire family domaine farming key plots in Savennieres (Clos du Papillon) and Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru, with bottlings going back five centuries of family history.
Tasting: Visits and tastings by appointment at the Rochefort-sur-Loire cellar
Signature wines: baumard-clos-du-papillon, baumard-quarts-de-chaume, baumard-clos-sainte-catherine
Tip: Quarts de Chaume from Baumard, drunk after 20-30 years, is honey, quince and chalk in a glass.
Savennieres AOC, Anjou AOC, Coteaux du Layon AOCChenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc65 haFounded 2007Fournier family (Philippe Fournier acquired 2007; son Julien Fournier shares winemaking)Winemaker Julien FournierBiodynamic PracticingORGANIC CERTIFIEDSavennieres
Savennieres-based estate uniting the historic Chateau de Chamboureau (former Pierre Soulez property) with Anjou holdings under Philippe Fournier, biodynamic and organic across 65 hectares.
Tasting: Visits and tastings at Chateau de Chamboureau by appointment
Signature wines: fl-savennieres-chamboureau, fl-savennieres-le-parc
Tip: Le Parc is the single-vineyard Savennieres; Chamboureau is the historic monopole anchored in the 13th-century chateau.
Coteaux du Layon AOC, Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru AOC, Savennieres AOC, Anjou AOCChenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Grolleau53 haFounded 1959Papin family (Claude and Rene Papin)Winemaker Rene PapinORGANIC CERTIFIEDCoteaux du Layon
Beaulieu-sur-Layon family estate of 53 hectares across Coteaux du Layon, Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru and Savennieres, with the Les Rouannieres moelleux as the flagship.
Tasting: Monday-Saturday 10-12, 14-16:45, closed Sundays
Signature wines: pierre-bise-les-rouannieres, pierre-bise-quarts-de-chaume, pierre-bise-clos-de-coulaine
Tip: Les Rouannieres is the estate's flagship Coteaux du Layon Beaulieu cuvée from the south-facing schist slopes above the Layon tributary.
Anjou AOC, Coteaux du Layon AOC, Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru AOCChenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc15 haFounded 1990Patrick BaudouinWinemaker Patrick BaudouinORGANIC CERTIFIEDCoteaux du Layon
Chaudefonds-sur-Layon estate centred on the schist-and-volcanic Prince site, with dry Chenin and old-vine Coteaux du Layon plus Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru.
Tasting: Visits and tastings by appointment at the Prince cellar
Signature wines: baudouin-anjou-le-cornillard, baudouin-coteaux-du-layon, baudouin-quarts-de-chaume
Tip: Patrick was one of the first growers to push Anjou's dry Chenin into grand-cru territory; the Le Cornillard parcel is the reference.
