Profusely fizzy pet-nat that starts a bit mysterious and closed, but starts to reveal more once the bubbles calm down. High acid, with nice honeyed citrus, savory and chalky minerals, and while the mid-palate is a bit shy, it shows a long, pleasing golden raisin finish. Needs more time, I think.

A bit closed and oaky - should have revisited later in the night but didn't get a chance. A ton of stuffing underneath, wonderfully rich citrus and tropical fruit (kiwi? mango?), a bit of pastry cream, and juicy acid. Needs time for the oak to integrate. 91 for enjoyment now, probably add 2-3 in time.

3cm fill, cork came out in 1 piece with the Durand. Super stinky on opening, which blows off quickly. Focused honey and wool nose, under tones of flowers and mushrooms. More white mushroom in the mouth, which progresses to white-truffle over 3 hours - a very enjoyable marriage to the classic honeyed citrus Chenin palate core. Still remarkably fresh, with great acid, light wool and smoke, a savory potassium salt quality, and a funky cheesy note - the table calls it the “sheep cheese” wine for the rest of the night. 15% alcohol on the bottle. Hard to detect any heat - maybe just a smidge on the end of the long savory finish.

Very Huet in the nose - delicate but focused, honey lanolin and sweet flowers. First taste is a bit attenuated and a touch shrill, clearly Chenin flavors, with a bit of mineral bath salt bitterness. The palate fleshes out with some air, becoming more textural and with the acid playing more harmoniously. I like it more and more as it comes into balance over the evening. Probably would have enjoyed it more without being sandwiched between truly stunning wines, the Baumard and the Bernadeau.

Closed or off? Others say slightly oxidized; I don't find it especially so, but it comes across as a bit flat and missing depth and fruit. A core of acid and minerals. I still enjoy it but imagine that it's not a representative bottle.

Wow, an exotic chenin blanc that is 180 degrees from the Baumard! An incredible nose of passion fruit, white flowers, and honey - focused and incisive. It immediately evokes two distinct sense-memories. The first is opening a ripe pomelo, which first hits with a profuse cloud of citrus oil, followed by the bitter pith and delicate mild citrus flavor. The second is the grapefruit creme brulee at Friday Saturday Sunday in Philly, still perhaps one of the top 3 desserts I've ever eaten, with its more assertive grapefruit bitterness, a hint of tarragon and hay, perfectly interwoven with a rich creaminess. Beyond this, there's a mix of racy acid, salty minerals, and delicate flowers, leading to a long finish. Very elegant, but has plenty of heft and I suspect will get even better with time.

A real treat to try, a completely new dimension to chenin for me & something I'd like to find more of... Thanks Andy.

Textbook aged Chinon. Complex, especially on the nose, with old library leather & books, humidor, earth and macerated cherries, with a bit of green pepper thrown in. Lots of concentration and depth on the palate, and although it's clearly excellent and even beautiful in a way, it doesn't really move me for some reason. Interesting to compare my reaction to the 02 Breton Perrières, which objectively is the lesser wine, but has a je ne sais quoi that stirs me deep down. Others liked this way more, putting it up near the Rougeard for red WOTN. Perhaps it's just the Raffault style. I'm very sorry Olga, it's not you, it's me!

I really love Breton Perrières. This 02 feels at peak, showing classic cab franc notes of bell pepper (red and green), tobacco, but it has not lost any of its juicy red fruit. The palate is a bit tart and thin, leading to a rather short finish, especially when compared with the other wines, but it has such beautiful floral aromatics on the inner mouth, I sort of fall in love with this wine.

My first Rougeard. Oh so classy, with plush dark fruit, wood smoke, black pepper, ripe red pepper, so long and deep. Just keeps getting better and better over 3 hours, revealing a spiced prune in Armagnac component in the best possible way. Effortlessly elegant with cashmere tannins which makes you want to roll this on your tongue all night. It is clearly not showing all its cards yet, but it is so pleasing to drink already. Mouton of the Loire, maybe.

Terrific Baudry, still very young. Very classy and a bit more feral and burly than the Rougeard Bourg. Shows nuanced layers of dark cherries, crushed dark flowers, pipe tobacco, and a bit of green olive. Wonderfully fresh, with juicy acid and a streak of stony minerals. Tannins just a shade on the rustic side, and still needs 5-10 years to peak. 93+

Young and bold, leaning modern and fleshy, but with more rustic tannins than the Roches Neuves. Medium bodied but with an explosion of dark fruit, pipe tobacco and tar. A touch less balanced than the Roches Neuves, with spiky acid and tannins that jut out a bit. Palate fatigue at set in by the time I got around to trying this, and I'm guessing I'd score higher stand-alone. 91++ with time.

Wonderful young Roches Neuves! This is perhaps more "modern" than some of the other wines on the table, showing a bit more fruit-forward and polished than the other wines, or that could just be a combo of its rambunctious youthfulness and warm vintage. Lovely aromatics - intense flowers, cherries, plums, and a swipe of dried green herbs. Fleshy mouthfeel with juicy and pure red and black plums, cherry skin, and a distinctive and prominent stoniness - is this the own-rooted vines speaking? Fine, chalky tannins. All propelled forward by mouthwatering acidity like sucking on plum pits. Delightful and will probably be a knockout in 5-10 years! 92++

Top of cork is moldy and grungy, but the rest of the cork is in excellent shape. Can tell it's going to be good from the first sniff - laser sharp chenin nose, full of fresh honey, white flowers, and wax. A tremendous palate, lightly sweet with honey, golden raisins, jasmine up front, fanning out into sour orange confit, apricot and salty minerals. Clean wax, still drinks very young, like a 10yo wine. Plenty of phenolic grip and just so much stuffing. George says, "classy and classic, but not yet sexy." I'm inclined to agree. Probably even better in another 10 years.

Young and bright, but something seemed off. Some thought it had a lot of VA. I got maybe just a tiny bit, but that wasn't the problem for me; there was a bit of mouse or bacterial funk on the finish. Some of the stink was evident on the nose after a while as well. A shame, because there was clearly a ton of stuffing otherwise.