(Domaine de l’Aujardière Muscadet Côtes de Grand Lieu Sur Lie, Loire Valley) Muscadet from its home in the Loire’s westernmost Nantais region is capable of sublime elegance, with the ability to produce both lighter styles for near-term consumption and wines with terroir-driven complexity for aging. Siblings Eric and Gaëlle Chevalier, working in the lesser-known Grand Lieu subzone, use native yeasts and extended fermentation to “express the vintage and the location.” A granitic foundation gives this wine a reticent nose, with quince, grapefruit, and lemon-peel flavors. Medium-bodied, it shows a discreet minerality, coupled with a medium-long finish, and should improve with a few years of aging. Hot Picks
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By David Furer, CWE
(Domaine de l’Aujardière Muscadet Côtes de Grand Lieu Sur Lie, Loire Valley) Muscadet from its home in the Loire’s westernmost Nantais region is capable of sublime elegance, with the ability to produce both lighter styles for near-term consumption and wines with terroir-driven complexity for aging. Siblings Eric and Gaëlle Chevalier, working in the lesser-known Grand Lieu subzone, use native yeasts and extended fermentation to “express the vintage and the location.” A granitic foundation gives this wine a reticent nose, with quince, grapefruit, and lemon-peel flavors. Medium-bodied, it shows a discreet minerality, coupled with a medium-long finish, and should improve with a few years of aging. Hot PicksMarch 15, 2010, (See more on Sommelier Journal...)