Domaine de la Taille Aux Loups Montlouis Brut Tradition (Jacky & JP Blot) 750ml

Montlouis is a Chenin Blanc-centric appellation in the Loire valley, specifically in Touraine, and more specifically, directly across the river from Vouvray, the most famous place for Chenin on the planet. Montlouis (or, the commune of Montlouis-sur-Loire) like Vouvray, makes still, sparkling, dry, and sweet wines based on the Chenin grape, known locally as Pineau de la Loire.

Jacky Blot purchased eight hectares of old Chenin Blanc vines in Montlouis in the late 1980s. Until he passed away in May of 2023, he and his son Jean-Philippe organically farmed the domaine and made wines without battonage, without malo, and with minimal filtration. Jean-Philippe will carry on his fathers legacy.

John Bonné says this of Jacky and his wines: They’re bone-dry, less fruity than complex and austere. He believes sugar blurs chenin’s ability to transparently reveal its best qualities, which is why his winemaking is almost fanatically Burgundian, although he prefers to describe it as “the school of Montlouis.” He ferments all his whites in barrels. And rather than a cold, quick fermentation meant to highlight aromas, he borrows from Burgundy’s elite cadre, winemakers like Jean-François Coche (of Coche-Dury) and Jean-Marc Roulot (of Domaine Roulot): he exposes the grape must to oxygen before a long, slow fermentation and leaves the finished wine in steel tanks for months before bottling, which firms up the texture.”