Chenin blanc is an endlessly compelling grape variety. Some versions are rich like White Burgundy, while others are as brisk and mineral-driven like Sancerre or Chablis. This bottling from Isabelle Suire showcases both styles at the same time. On the southern banks of the Loire, Isabelle runs her family’s century-old winery, producing bright, textured chenin that’s tailor-made for all types of fresh seafood.
Isabelle Suire is a 4th generation vigneronne. Her great-grandfather was a vineyard worker in the in Berrie, a village south of Saumur in the Deux Sevres region. However, the family’s domaine really started when his son married Isabelle’s grandmother, whose family owned vineyards in Berrie as a facet of their polyculture farm. Together they cultivated the vines, bred animals, and farmed grains. As time went by, the family decided to focus solely on viticulture and sold off the other land.
Isabelle took over in 2007, and by 2021 she became the president of Saumur’s white wine association, where she met Romain Guiberteau – the president of the Saumur reds. Romain helped to confirm her desire to convert to organic viticulture after having already worked at two biodynamic domaines in the region (Château de la Tour Grise and Domaine de la Garrelière).
2023 marked the first year of transition to organics (certified expected in 2026) along with a bevy of other improvements in the vineyards: cover crops in humid vintages, increasing organic matter using local cow manure from a neighboring farm, and parcel-by-parcel canopy management improvements, including higher trellising. To further improve the health of her soils, she has hired the biodynamic guru Michel Chevré (ex-vineyard manager for Thierry Germain and vigneron at Clos de L’Ecotard), as a consultant.
-From the importer