New release Loire reds: the best from 2019 and 2020

When Jacky Blot bought Domaine de la Butte is 2002, he didn't immediately fully realise the potential of the 0.8 hectare Les Perrières parcel. It was soon clear that it is an excellent site with a similar exposure as Mi-Pente, the best site on the main vineyard of La Butte. The 2019 is excellent with dense colour and a black fruit character, especially blackcurrant and blackberry. It has stunning texture and balance with very well integrated tannins. Great ageing potential, if you can restrain yourself!

Les Blancs Manteaux is one of Domaine de la Noblaie's two single vineyards. The vines are 70 years old, and planted on tuffeau – the local limestone. The site is at the top of the hill above Ligre – Noblaie's village. This wine is fermented with natural yeasts and is then aged for 12 months in 500-litre oak barrels and then for a further three months in stainless steel tanks before bottling. Deep, dense colour with ripe black fruit aromas, in particular blackberry. It has good structure along with some freshness on the long finish. Still youthful, it will certainly develop in bottle with the potential to age for at least 15-20 years.

Domaine Vincent Pinard makes some of the best Pinot Noirs in the Loire's Central Vineyards. The domaine is now run by Clément and Florent Pinard. Despite some hot vintages that have pushed alcohol levels up to 14.5% and higher, the Pinards manage to judge the right time to pick and their meticulous attention to detail ensures that they retain the finesse of Pinot Noir, where other Sancerre producers' reds, although impressively concentrated, can lack Pinot Noir's delicate charm. This 2019 is all about delicacy and light red fruits, especially raspberry, but without lacking concentration. It is particularly impressive that this is the domaine's 'entry level' red!

Blackberries and black cherries. Good structure and well handled ripe tannins and a fine balance. Can be enjoyed now but should age well.

Yannick and his son Benoît run Domaine Yannick Amirault, making great Cabernet Franc. Their vineyard holdings include parcels in both Bourgueil and Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil. Le Grand Clos is a privileged site on the hillside with flinty clay soils over limestone. Grapes are harvested by hand into small boxes. Fermentation is in tapered conical wooden vats. The wine is then matured in 400-litre barrels for 12-18 months depending on the vintage. The deep coloured, powerful 2019 has spice and violets notes with a rich texture of ripe black fruits, well structured with well-worked tannins. It needs more time in bottle and has very good ageing potential.

André Dezat & Fils is a long-established Sancerre domaine, whose reputation was made by André more than 40 years ago. André saw huge changes as Sancerre changed from a poor, backward region to the Loire's wealthiest appellation. The domaine is now run by André's sons, Louis and Simon, and their respective sons, Arnaud and Firmin. They own 20 hectares in Sancerre – 15ha of Sauvignon Blanc, 5ha of Pinot Noir – and a further 15 hectares in Pouilly-Fumé. This 2019 has delicate raspberry aromas, an attractive silky texture and well-integrated tannins, and shows the finesse of good Pinot Noir.

Gamay is the only permitted variety for Côte Roannaise – not surprising as these vineyards are only some 40 miles west of Beaujolais. The Paire family have been vignerons for generations, although until recently vines were one element of their polyculture. Romain, who now runs the domaine, joined his parents in 2005 and the vineyard has increased to 21 hectares. Romain has modernised the winery and made the domaine both organic and later biodynamic. The 2020 has a deep plum colour with spicy, ripe black fruits and well-rounded tannins. Although still young, this is showing the potential to develop in bottle, and it shows just why these Upper Loire wines are worth exploring.

Domaine Mourat, now run by Jéremie Mourat, is the largest domaine in the Fiefs Vendéens, with around 120 hectares under vine. It is based at Mareuil-sur-Lay, some 30 miles east of Les Sables d'Olonne. It is interesting that Négrette is found here in the Vendée when it is probably better known as the grape variety of Fronton close to Toulouse. The vines are 80 years old and planted on alluvial soils. Grenouillere is aged for 12 months is large wooden vats (3,500 litres). This softly fruited 2019 has fig and prune notes with a slightly rustic character, but has a fine balance of fruit and acidity. Can be enjoyed with or without food. I also tasted the 2020 Chenin de jardin Naturiste, Vin de France (90 points).

The vineyards of the Côtes de la Charité, to the northeast of the La Charité-sur-Loire, were revived at the end of 20th century, in part by Caves des Hauts de Seyr, with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, until it ran into financial difficulties. In 2005 Domaine Alphonse Mellot bought the company, giving them 18 hectares here. The very deep coloured 2019 Les Pénitents Pinot Noir (cask sample) has ripe black fruits, a rich texture, structure and power. This is a very muscular version of Pinot Noir.

The vines for Le Pavillon are planted on clay limestone. The wine is is aged in stainless steel tanks and bottled in June. The powerful and rich 2019 Le Pavillon de Targé has attractive red fruit notes, a mouthfilling texture, and is well balanced with a long finish. In addition to their red, Targé has is also now known for the pur Chenin Saumur Blancs. I tasted the fine 2019 Les Fresnettes (92 points) barrel-fermented and aged white Saumur.

Jacky Blot (Domaine de la Taille aux Loups in Montlouis) bought the 15-hectare Domaine de la Butte just before the 2020 harvest. La Butte is a steep, very well exposed, south facing clay-limestone slope. The vineyard is 'classified' in a Burgundian style with Mi-Pente in the middle of the slope making the top red. La Haute de la Butte is slightly less well exposed, although it is protected from cold north winds by forest.

Domaine des Rochelles built its reputation on its reds, especially La Croix de la Mission, made unusually from 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, with Cabernet Franc making up the balance. La Croix de la Mission is a favoured early-ripening site, which allows the Cabernet Sauvignon to ripen properly. Breton is the local name for Cabernet Franc and this is 100% Franc with an average vine age of 25 years. Anjou-Villages is the superior appellation for reds from Anjou. The communes in the northern part of the appellation are allowed to add Brissac, a small market town, to the appellation. Anjou-Villages cannot be sold until a year after vintage. The 2019 has dense, sweet, ripe black fruits and some structure with very well integrated tannins – impressive, as reds in Anjou often tend to have grippy tannins.

Bertrand Minchin owns Domaine La Tour Saint-Martin in Menetou-Salon and the 15-hectare Le Claux Delorme, which has 10ha in Valençay and 5ha in Touraine. This is a blend of Gamay (45%), Côt (the local name for Malbec – 35%) and 10% each of Cabernet Franc and Pinot Noir. Bertrand has been replacing Cabernet Franc with Côt, which is better adapted to the climate here as this is the eastern limit for regularly ripening Cabernet Franc. The 2020 has soft black fruits, a mouthfilling texture and well-integrated tannins. Still young, it has the potential to develop in bottle. Served chilled – would be a good with a barbecue.

Built in 1655 and overlooking the Loire, Château de Targé is a prominent landmark in the commune of Parnay. The property has been owned by the Pisani-Ferry family ever since and over the years several family members have served in various French governments. The domaine has been run by Edouard Pisani-Ferry since 1976, and now his son Paul has now taken over the 24 hectare estate, which is mainly planted with Cabernet Franc along with around 5ha of Chenin Blanc. The mid-weight 2019 domaine Saumur-Champigny has raspberry aromas and is an attractive, easy-drinking red to be drunk relatively young, Serve slightly chilled, especially in summer.

Château de Villeneuve makes three main Saumur-Champigny wines – domaine, Vieilles Vignes and le Grand Clos. All are pure Cabernet Franc and picked by hand. Jean-Pierre Chevallier, who runs the estate, is admirably rigorous: he will will only release his superior wines – Vieilles Vignes and Le Grands Clos – when it is justified by the quality of the wine. In difficult vintages he will only release the domaine red, which will include wine from his best sites. The well balanced, vibrant 2019 is still young with smoky black fruit notes, soft texture with ripe tannins and a long finish. Ideally needs a little more time in bottle to develop further.

The oldest part of the Château du Hureau in the commune of Dampierre-sur-Loire, just to the east of Saumur, dates from the 15th century. Philippe Vatan took over the running of the domaine in 1987, which has 20 hectares of vines – 18.5ha planted to Cabernet Franc and 1.5ha to Chenin Blanc. Tuffe is the domaine's largest cuvée and is a blend of a number of parcels all planted on limestone, hence the name Tuffe – a local name for the famous soft Loire limestone. Tuffe is mainly matured in vat for between 12 and 24 months depending on the vintage. The deep and densely coloured 2019 has rich, ripe black fruits. The tannins are well integrated into the structure. I also tasted the very good L'Argile, Saumur Blanc (pure Chenin, 92 points).

Red fruit and smoky aromas, good texture, medium weight with currently quite grippy tannins, so needs time to soften. This Schistes Anjou-Villages cuvée comes from a group of small parcels of vines planted on schist, totaling one hectare averaging 35 years old. The grapes - 90% Cabernet Franc, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon - are picked by hand as late as possible to achieve maximum maturity. The wine is matured in barriques.

Pigeur Fou, Domaine de la Cotelleraie is Gérard Vallée's 'natural wine'. The grapes come from vines planted on gravel, which makes up the majority of the Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil appellation. Hand picked, the grapes are fermented without destemming, which allows him not to add sulphur – all the other cuvées are destemmed. It is matured in wooden vats for six months and bottled unfined and unfiltered. The deep coloured 2020 has smoky aromas, black fruits, and a soft mouthfilling texture.

Le Temps des Cerises is the domaine’s easy drinking cuvée de printemps. It’s got ripe black fruit aromas including notes of black cherry, and has considerable structure for an easy drinking red. However, it is well balanced with the ripe fruit continuing through the long finish. The yet to be bottled 2021 is lighter bodied.

The 60-hectare Domaine des Rochelles in the Saint-Jean-de-Mauvets commune is on the south bank of the Loire. The domaine is now run by Jean-Hubert Lebreton, who is the fifth generation of the family to run the domaine. Rochelles, long known for the quality of its reds, has seen the quality of its whites improve considerably under Jean-Hubert's direction. L'Ardoise means 'slate' and this is a typical local building material in this part of the Loire – an extension of the hard rocks of the Brittany peninsula. It is made from 100% Cabernet Franc, using thermovinification to emphasise the fruit. The 2020 has softly textured, luscious black fruits with a very light structure. Very much a wine for casual drinking, to be served chilled.

The Domaine Grosbois is based in an old fortified farm building that dates from the 15th century, in the commune of Panzoult on the north bank of the Vienne. The 20 hectare domaine is run by the Grosbois brothers – Nicolas and Sylvain. La Cuisine de ma mère is Nicolas' attractive, easy drinking Chinon, made to be shared without ceremony, with friends. It's a tribute to growing up in his mother's kitchen, enjoying wholesome recipes, based on good ingredients, and surrounded by friends and family. Can be drunk without food – serve slightly chilled.

A powerful, deep coloured wine made using carbonic maceration. It has sweet, spicy black fruits and a marked Gamay character, good structure with ripe tannins and a long finish with a good potential to age. The Jean-François Mérieau domaine now has more than 35ha on the left side of the Cher Valley. It is based in Montrichard at the famous Cave de la Boule Blanche, which used to belong to négociant and grower Paul Buisse. Jean-François Mérieau took over the family domaine in 2000 after working for a number of well-known vignerons like Patrick Ducournau in Madiran and fellow Loire producer Alphonse Mellot. He and his wife Emilie now run it together.

The Les Vignerons de Saint-Pourçain cooperative was set up in 1952 and now has some 60 members. Sylvain Miniot, the chief winemaker, has been with the coop since 1990. La Ficelle de Saint-Pourçain is the signature wine of the coop. The average age of the vines is 30, with the Gamay planted on flint and granite soils and the Pinot Noir on clay-limestone. La Ficelle has a new bottle design every year. The quaffable 2020 has spicy, juicy red fruits and is made for enjoyment rather analysis. Serve slightly chilled.

The co-operative Cellier de Beaujardin is based in Bléré in the Cher Valley, some 25 kilometres east of Tours. It is run by the dynamic Kévin Vigne. Beaujardin has around 200 hectares with nearly 50% of these owned by the co-op itself. Côt is the local name for Malbec and is the best red grape variety in this part of the Loire. There are still a few parcels of Côt with vines that are 120 years old or more. The 2020 Côt Domaine des 7 Lieues has dense black fruits, a sweet ripe texture, well integrated tannins and the potential to age well. The Beaujardin website recommends drinking this with a côte de boeuf.

The 40-hectare Domaine la Bonnelière, based in the Varrains just to the south of Saumur, was founded in 1972 by André Bonneau. Today his sons Anthony and Cédric are in charge with mainly Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc planted. Although the majority of their Cabernet Franc is in the Saumur-Champigny appellation, they do have Cabernet Franc planted in the Saumur zone, which is used for their young, easy drinking La Gourmandine. The deep coloured 2020 has smoky, black fruit notes, a sweet ripe texture and quite marked tannins on the finish, which should soften with a little more time in bottle or be masked by food.

Claude Vallée established Domaine de la Cotelleraie in 1957 with six hectares of vines. His son Gérard took over in 1997. They now have 27 hectares and have been certified organic since 2013. This domaine wine is their largest cuvée and is a blend of their various vineyard parcels. Grapes are hand picked and the wine is aged in foudres over the winter. The 2019 has sweet ripe fruit and a soft texture with some wood notes. The tannins are slightly grainy on the finish but this is masked by food.

The rules for the Coteaux du Giennois appellation do not allow growers to make wine from 100% Pinot Noir. This Coteaux du Giennois has 85% Pinot Noir and 15% Gamay and comes from vines planted on limestone. The 2019 has vibrant spicy, black fruits, some texture and structure. The tannins are well handled, although they will soften further with time in bottle. This ideally needs a bit more time or decanting.

Vignobles Berthier, which is based in Sainte-Gemme-en-Sancerrois, was created in 1983 by Jean-Marie Berthier. It is now run by his sons Clément and Florian. Their vineyard holdings have increased to around 25 hectares spread across the appellations of Menetou-Salon, Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé and Coteaux du Giennois. The dark plum coloured 2019 displays smoky aromas and a delicate texture. It also has some floral notes, but the finish is currently rather drying – it's still youthful and needs time.

Domaine Claude Lafond, now run by his daughter Nathalie, has since the early 2000s been producing wine from the three hectares attached to the Château de Valençay – once the home of the famous diplomat Prince Talleyrand. This is a blend of 50% Pinot Noir, 30% Côt (Malbec) and 20% Gamay. The deeply coloured, youthful 2020 has attractive black fruit notes and slightly smoky aromas. Needs time, as at present the tannins are a little harsh on the finish.