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How to identify Sauvignon Blanc from Loire Valley in a blind wine tasting?
About Sauvignon Blanc from Loire Valley The Loire Valley in France encompasses approximately 60,000 ha of vines. We specifically focus here on the appellations featuring Sauvignon Blanc as a main variety e.g. Sancerre (~3.000 ha) Pouilly-Fumé (~1.400 ha) Menetou-Salon (~650ha) (Source: Vins-centre-loire.com, 2023). In this article, we are going to focus on the aroma and…
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How to identify dry or off dry Chenin Blanc from Loire Valley in a blind wine tasting?
The European stronghold of Chenin Blanc is the Loire Valley in France with 10,362 hectares – (Harding et al., 2023). Outside of its ancestral home it is widely planted in South Africa with 17,147 hectares, where it is grown all over the Western Cape in various different styles. Praised for its naturally high acidity it…
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How to identify Melon de Bourgogne from Loire Valley in a blind wine tasting?
For me, Melon de Bourgogne (aka Muscadet) from Loire Valley is not always the easiest and most expressive grape variety to identify in a blind wine tasting. In this article, we are going to dive into the characteristics of Muscadet based on classic examples, following a structure commonly used by wine institutions like Court of…
