Chenin blanc: the forgotten grape variety

[darby]

Chenin blanc presents an enigma to those who are looking for some varietal variety. I donÂ’t mean why it is the forgotten variety. ThatÂ’s easy, because it most often makes forgettable wines.

But there are some great Chenins around. The best of the Loire wines from CB, dry and sweet, are wonderful and long lived gems. (Vouvray is the Appelation to look for)

There are about ninety producers in Australia, by far the most are in WA. However a scan thru Halliday’s Wine Companion 2005 shows that there is increased interest in the variety. I like to think that the varieties grown by the producers marked as new in the Companion are a ‘quick and dirty’ guide to where the industry is going. About 15-20 of the 370 new entries are growing/making CB. This puts it in same ball park as new growers of Petit Verdot and Sangiovese not far behind the much more fashionable Pinot Grigio/gris and Viognier.

There doesnÂ’t seem to be much fuss made about CB wines. The only great wine that comes to mind is brilliant late picked wine made by St LeonardÂ’s in the late seventies. I canÂ’t recall the exact vintage.

Has anyone tasted a good Chenin blanc lately? Or is it all Chenin bland?

[Chow Chow]

PEEL Est. fr WA. Big. rich, oaked and alcoholic. Will Nairn took 20 yrs to perfect it. It's a red wine drinker's white wine. The absolute benckmark for this varietal fr AUS!
suspect Torb might go ga ga :lol:

[Daryl Douglas]

CB can be a departure from the usual varieties. It is more common in WA than most other areas and is a component of the venerable Houghton White Burgundy (sic). Remember when Goundrey Unwooded Chardonnay was the flavour of the month? Tasted side-by-side a few years ago I much preferred the CB by a margin of agreeable for the chard to recommended+ for the CB but have not been able to find it since that tasting. The Coriole mailing turned up the other day. Apparently their CB 04 was recognised as one of the "Great Expressions of Chenin" at the Rendez-Vous du Chenin in the Loire Valley this year so I guess that makes it one of Oz's better examples of this variety and may be reasonable value @ $15/btl from CD. Tempted to further punish the plastic just to try it!

Cheers

daz

[707]

Whoa, don't be taken aback by a 707 post on whites, I only tasted it in the name of research, read on.

Anzac Day last year I was was a group at Leibich's to taste a full vertical of The Darkie (CW's Block for our US forumites).

After the tasting we were discussing closures and Ron Leibich produced a 1975 Rovalley (they're former label) Chenin Blanc under screw cap, This wine should have been dead 20 years ago but was wonderfully alive, fully developed but still had a sort of freshness to it, just marvelous.

Showed that CB will age well and the qualities of screw caps as a closure.

[Guest]

Chenin Blanc seems to be a bit of an underachiever in Australia.....NZ is having more success with Collards and Millton.....some great old world ones around at the moment.....the Marc Bredif 1985 which is floating around the traps for around $40 is fantastic, Huets, etc.
If anyone is visiting Coriole in the near future, ask Grant about Chennin Blanc the porn star in the U.S.........funny story

[meshach]

dowie doole has a nice one too. apparently 2003 won some award in france coming up against french chenins... tried it and quite liked it, screwcap.

[cranky]

The Houghton WB is a simple nice quaffer when released, but can be a great complex stunner at 5 to 8 years of age.
The Nicolas Joly Savennieres Coulée de Serrant is described as one of France's best white wines, though when I tasted a young one, I got very little out of it. I guess I should have bought and tasted a 10 or 15 year old one.
I guess that the dry Huet 1999 I have should be ignored for quite a long time before I crack it!
CB really should get some more respect. I believe that one of WA's best selling whites is the Amberley CB, which is another light quaffing style.

Cheers