Nicolas Joly - Savennières Coulée de Serrant 2023

Bettane & Desseauve

About the estate:

Eden viticole la Coulée de Serrant is a place where life exults. Nicolas Joly, a pioneer of biodynamics, has made his wine a brand recognized around the world. He can also count on the vision of his daughter Virginie to continue to raise this estate among the best. Four hectares in Savennières and four hectares in Roche-Aux-Moines, a vineyard grazed by sheep, pecked at by chickens, worked by hand, in harmony with nature. Observation, experimentation, model viticulture and an unmissable estate.

Guide Hachette des vins

About wine:

After an exceptional 2022 Coulée de Serrant with 32 g/l of residual sugar, we return to "normal" with a very dry 2023 (2 g/l), remarkable in its purity and brilliance, a more airy version of this great terroir wine. After an initial oxidative note, great complexity unfolds around bitter orange, ripe pear, herbal infusion, menthol, lemon, and wet chalk. A full-bodied and dynamic attack opens onto a palate of great depth, very fresh, very silky, stretched out by salinity and fine bitterness. A unique Chenin, full of elegance, with an inimitable touch.

About the estate:

This venerable 7-hectare vineyard planted with old Chenin vines clinging to schist slopes, created by Cistercian monks in 1130, is one of the few appellations in French viticulture to be under monopoly. Reinforced over the centuries by illustrious and crowned connoisseurs, its aura has taken on an international dimension since Nicolas Joly, the French "pope" of biodynamics, took charge of its destiny, accompanied today by his daughter Virginie. The wine derives its original and unique character from grapes harvested when overripe—even botrytized—in four or five passes. In the cellar, there is no new wood, which would mask the terroir, but 500-liter barrels. And as little intervention as possible.

Guide des Vins Gault & Millau

About the estate:

Nicolas Joly is now assisted by his daughter Virginie. Without detracting from her father's reputation, it must be said that the wines have become more precise and delicate in recent years. La Coulée de Serrant is now at the pinnacle of quality for its terroir. A schist terroir that gives the wine length, precision, and subtle brilliance. The wines need time and, above all, aeration.

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About wine:

La Coulée de Serrant is much more restrained at this stage, without the oxidative character that can sometimes cloud the interpretation of the wine when young.

About the estate:

The exceptional Coulée de Serrant vineyard stretches along the edge of a schist cliff that drops directly into the Loire River, near Angers. The nature of the site and the quality of its exposure have allowed it to stand out for centuries. Restored by Denise Joly in the 1960s, the estate was taken over by her son Nicolas. This brilliant innovator is a fundamentalist of biodynamic cultivation, which he has practiced at Coulée de Serrant since 1981. A portion of botrytized grapes (more or less pronounced depending on the vintage) gives these exceptional whites a baroque complexity of aromas and a unique fullness. Nicolas Joly's daughter, Virginie, is now in charge of the estate. Some wines, such as the 2016 or 2019, can be flamboyant, sculpted by an impressive concentration of dry extract. Others, such as the 2020, lack precision, which leaves us perplexed. These wines require lengthy aeration and a serving temperature of around 12 degrees, so not too cool. They are even served at room temperature during tastings at the estate!