Nicolas Joly : Savennières Roche aux Moines Clos de la Bergerie 2023

Characteristics and tasting recommendations for the 2023 Savennières Roche aux Moines Clos de la Bergerie from Nicolas Joly

Tasting

Appearance
The wine displays a pale yellow hue with golden highlights.

Nose
The nose opens with flinty notes and white fruit aromas, accompanied by citrus nuances and delicate floral touches.

Palate
On the palate, this wine reveals a beautiful balance between freshness and depth. The mineral structure is fully expressed, supported by great aromatic complexity that lingers on an elegant, persistent finish.

Food and wine pairings

This Savennières Roche aux Moines Clos de la Bergerie 2023 is an ideal match for poulet à l'angevine with its mushroom cream sauce, veal blanquette or pike-perch in beurre blanc. It also pairs beautifully with scallops and other seafood. For cheese, opt for cantal, salers, comté or a very dry goat's cheese.

Serving and cellaring

To fully appreciate this Savennières Roche aux Moines Clos de la Bergerie 2023, it is recommended to open the bottle 24 hours in advance or to double-decant it 2 hours before serving during its first three years. This wine has a cellaring potential of 10 to 12 years or more and can be enjoyed until around 2035.

An elegant, well-balanced biodynamic Chenin Blanc from the Loire

The estate

A historic Loire estate whose vineyard was first planted in 1130 by Cistercian monks, Domaine de la Coulée de Serrant spans 7 hectares in the Savennières appellation. Nicolas Joly, a former banker who converted to winegrowing, runs this family property, which was taken over in 1961 by his mother Denise. A pioneer of biodynamics since 1981, he has elevated this estate to a benchmark of Chenin Blanc and biodynamic viticulture worldwide. Today, his daughter Virginie Joly is in charge of general management and winemaking. La Coulée de Serrant enjoys the exceptional status of a single-estate AOC, a very rare privilege in France.

The vineyard

Clos de la Bergerie covers 2.77 hectares within the Savennières appellation. The Chenin Blanc vines, from massal selections and averaging 40 years of age, are rooted in schist and sandy soils. Farmed biodynamically since 1981 with Ecocert and Demeter certifications, this Loire vineyard maintains deliberately low yields at an average of 25 hl/ha for the estate, well below the 35 hl/ha authorized by the AOC.

The vintage

The 2023 vintage began with an early season and a persistent risk of frost lasting until the end of April, before nature finally turned favorable. The growing cycle proved demanding, requiring meticulous work in the vineyard. Summer alternated between cool, wet periods with marked temperature swings and almost tropical conditions. A cool, damp September slowed ripening and led to the appearance of pockets of rot, making rigorous sorting essential. Harvest took place from early September through mid-October, over nearly six weeks. The vintage is distinguished by its elegance, length and balance, offering a fine expression of the estate’s Chenin Blanc. Yield for this vintage reaches 34 hl/ha.

Winemaking and aging

Savennières Roche aux Moines Clos de la Bergerie 2023 is vinified according to a non-interventionist approach. No settling, cold treatment or inoculation with cultured yeasts is carried out, and fermentations rely exclusively on indigenous yeasts. The wine undergoes neither fining nor temperature control during fermentation. Malolactic fermentation is completed in full. Aging lasts 8 months with no use of new oak.

Grape variety

100% Chenin Blanc.