The Loire and Alsace Wines

Loire
The River Loire is six hundred miles long and produces a great variety of wines made from different grapes on different soils and with different micro-climates. Muscadet, Sauvignon de Touraine, Pouilly Fumé and Sancerre all come from the Loire and remain benchmarks for crisp, fruity, refreshing dry white wines with flavours that provide attractive drinking on their own or with anything remotely fishy, with chicken or with soft cheeses. Having said that, they are different with Sancerre and Pouilly being only eighty miles from Burgundy and Muscadet having some of the minerality and forcefulness of Chablis.

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CHÉREAU CARRÉ
We at H.B. Clark are very proud to be the Northern wholesaler for the Loire wine house, Chéreau Carré. Their wine-making prowess was recently recognised by the pre-eminent American wine guru, Robert Parker. His review of the Muscadet area singled out Chéreau Carré for their wines based on the traditional virtues of hand-harvesting and low yields.

All their wines show freshness and minerality but he went further. The Muscadet Comte Leloup, made from vines more than 100 years old, was described as ‘being able to age for over ten years...... it also represents one of the most remarkable wine values available on the planet.... readers should rush out and buy it’. The concentration and intensity of flavour are quite remarkable but the wine remains delicious. Bernard Chéreau is another of our master winemakers who extracts the very best from his properties and never compromises on quality. The plain Muscadet Cuvée Chéreau is a very
different kettle of fish to most entry level Muscadets and shows the difference a class winemaker makes even with his most modest wine.

LOIRE SAUVIGNON BLANC
Given the success of New Zealand and Chile, we should not forget French Sauvignon Blanc. From the Sauvignon de Touraine and Moulin de Montarels at just above entry level up to the top wines of Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé and Sauvignon St. Bris, French Sauvignon Blanc provides everything a wine drinker might be looking for. Beware of one thing both here and New Zealand, the rosé is very rarely worth the price. Having said which, the Pinot Noir is delicious in both areas if better value in New Zealand.

Alsace
Alsace is the region which can justifiably call itself the food and wine capital of Europe. The wines are still not as popular in this region as they deserve to be. They provide a number of grape varieties, principally Riesling, Gewurztraminer and Pinot Gris with an aromatic flavour and a dry finish and are a beautiful match for spicy cuisines.

For more details contact:

	Sales Director	01924 373328	07801 922478
	Sales Director - Pub Groups	01924 373328	07801 922480
David Robertson	Wine Development Manager	01924 373328	07813 662863
	Wine Key Account Manager	01924 373328	07837 193677
Peter Skuse	Pricing and Sourcing Manager	01924 373328	07801 922461
	Wine Administrator	01924 373328	07842 126966