Pierre Ménard - Anjou - Clos des Mailles - White - 2023

Wine:

From a hillside parcel of schist, the 2023 White Anjou Clos des Mailles immediately captures the power and personality of its terroir, with distinctive smoky aromatics right from the first nose. The palate is sharply defined and full of tension, with layered complexity and bright, mouthwatering freshness. Aging has been handled with a very light touch — no new oak, just a subtle influence that lets the purity of the Chenin take center stage. With its length and persistence, this is a White from the Loire Valley built to age gracefully over the next decade. A standout Chenin — and a Top Pick from our Selection Committee, rated 93/100.

Vinification:

Hand harvested on the terroirs of Faye d'Anjou, schist slopes with phthane rocks stretching from the crest of the hills overlooking the Layon to the north-west mid-slope. The vines are located at the highest point of the hillside, with an average age of 25 years and some very old vines dating back a century. Gentle pneumatic pressing, fermentation and ageing in barrels of various ages and sizes, 20-litre casks and stoneware jars.

Temperature:

Serve between 10 and 12°C.

Food and wine pairing:

Appetisers, seafood, oysters and shellfish, pike-perch fillet with Nantes butter, mature goat's cheeses.

Cellar aging:

Starting today and continuing until 2033.

A rising star in the Loire Valley, Domaine Pierre Ménard has quickly become one of the region’s most exciting names. Based in Faye d'Anjou since 2013, Ménard has gained serious momentum with recent vintages, crafting exceptionally pure wines aged without new oak — wines that offer a fresh, focused take on the Loire and reflect a meticulous, almost intimate approach.

With experience at Ramos Pinto in Portugal, Disznókő in Hungary, and Château Latour in Pauillac, Pierre Ménard returned home to revive a few parcels of century-old vines. Since then, he's expanded slightly, working with Sauvignon, Chenin, and Cabernet Franc. But with just 1.5 hectares under organic and biodynamic farming, this micro-estate remains one of the Loire Valley’s best-kept secrets.