By Rose Murray Brown MW   Published in The Scotsman  19 October 2024 

 

One of the best value French wines today is one that has been shunned by wine drinkers for years – but it is time to look again at modern Muscadet.

 

Everyone has heard of Muscadet – but when did you last buy a bottle of it?  It was so popular in the 1970s and 1980s, but by the 1990s the influx of wines from the sunnier climes of Australia, Chile and beyond eclipsed poor Muscadet which often struggled to ripen grapes.  Even the French turned their back on simple little Muscadet and headed off to buy crisp dry whites elsewhere.

 

Since then there has been a sea change in the region.  Not only has the vineyard area declined nearly 40% down to 8,000 hectares (although it is still a large region – almost half the size of Alsace in its current state) – like many of Loire’s regions it is now benefitting from our warming temperatures – which means our shelves are now stocked with riper fruitier styles of Muscadet.

 

Perched close to the Atlantic, based around the city of Nantes on France’s west coast, it is certainly at mercy of the weather – and it is not just rain.  One of the major risks in Loire’s northern latitude is unpredictable severe frost (2017, 2019 and 2021 vintages) which can devastate harvests, but in other vintages rain, heatwaves and drought can cause issues too.

 

What I love about Muscadet (or rather Muscadet de Sevre et Maine) is its crisp dry crystalline fruits, its lean, green racy style with its vibrant taut natural acidity.  It certainly fits in with our current desire for fresher, minerally – and lower alcohol wines – as the alcohol level is up to 12%, which protects the typical freshness and light style of the region.  Ironically this is a level of alcohol which many vignerons around the world now dream of as temperatures rise – some in warmer countries go to great efforts to try to reduce their alcohol levels.

 

Despite a similarity of name, Muscadet has nothing to do with the Muscat grape.  The main grape of the region is the early-ripening Melon de Bourgogne grape – a cousin of Chardonnay – which can show its expression in different soils types really well and with low yields and careful winemaking can make superb complex whites.  Sadly Chardonnay has now been allowed to be used for standard Muscadet (it is not allowed in leading appellations Muscadet de Sevre et Maine, Muscadet Cotes de Grandlieu and Muscadet Coteaux de la Loire).

 

These three areas are also allowed to use ‘sur lie’ on their labels which indicates long lees ageing (keeping the wine in contact with the dead yeasts in vats or barrels after fermentation without racking or transferring).  This gives more texture, creaminess and complexity and some producers experiment with even longer ageing.  Rules state that the wine must be bottled by the end of November the year following the harvest – but now in decent vintages winemakers can apply for a month’s delay.

 

Soil types vary between Muscadet’s leading appellations.  Local gneiss is found mainly in Muscadet de Sevre et Maine giving aromatic wines with broad flavours, whilst Muscadet Coteaux de la Loire to the east is on schist and granite making lean elegant styles.  Sandier stone soils to the west in Muscadet Cotes de Grandlieu give soft supple styles.

 

There has been a move to recognise ‘communes’ and their soil types – with fuller richer Clisson (granite), taut elegant Gorges (gabbro) and fruitier Le Pallet (granite, gneiss and gabbro) where lees ageing is minimum 17 months; these three communes are the first to be promoted.

 

Our tasting focused on wines from the heart of Muscadet, the appellation ‘Muscadet de Sevre et Maine’ where about 80% of vineyards are based, in low hills around Vallet and St-Fiacre in an area named after two tributaries of the Loire, Petite Maine and Sevre Nantaise.  It is now the source of racy vibrant bone-dry whites with a price tag far below white Burgundy or Bordeaux.

 

 

 

MUSCADET DE SEVRE ET MAINE SUR LIE LES VIGNES DU BOURG 2021 Apolline & Julien Braud (12%)   ***STAR BUY***

£13.95 Corney & Barrow

Citric fruit, good palate breadth, mouthfilling rich fruits and vibrant acidity – such a well-balanced well-made wine – a high scorer & great value.

 

MUSCADET DE SEVRE ET MAINE SUR LIE 2023 Jean-Francois Baron

£13.50 Yapp Bros

Loved the pithy ripe fruit, creamy mouthfeel and light salty tang – this would be a perfect match with ‘fruits de mer’.

 

MUSCADET DE SEVRE ET MAINE SUR LIE CHEMIN DES PRIEVES 2022 Domaine Huchet  (12%)  ***STAR BUY***

£12.50 The Wine Society

Delightful combination of balanced racy acidity alongside a smooth well-rounded palate – shows Muscadet’s typical freshness and salinity with good weight in the mouth; great value.

 

MUSCADET DE SEVRE ET MAINE SUR LIE 2022 Chateau du Coing de Saint-Fiacre (12%)
£16.50/£18.50 Noble Green Wines; Fine Wine Portobello

Starts well with initial creamy texture (14 months on lees) with underlying taut green fruit, classic bone dry elegant Muscadet from schist soils – with a twist of salty bitterness to finish.

 

MUSCADET DE SEVRE ET MAINE SUR LIE ‘VIEILLES VIGNES’ 2020 Domaine Bruno Cormerais (12%)   ***STAR BUY***

£15.95/£17.95 Lea & Sandeman

Typical purity of fruit, crisp taut acidity, minerally undertones with dried herb notes and zesty green apple flavours – a high scorer.

 

 

Join Rose’s Fine Wine Dinner at Prestonfield 27 November www.rosemurraybrown.com