Radicalement Blanc 2024

If you need to explain to someone why Chenin Blanc grown on black Anjou schist is one of the great terroir combinations in France, open this bottle. Radicalement Blanc is 90% Chenin from the La Pommeraye plateau's schist bedrock, 93 metres above the Loire, naturally ventilated and organically farmed for over 20 years. The Chenin Blanc is blended with 10% Chardonnay harvested slightly earlier to keep the freshness calibrated. The grapes are whole-bunch pressed slowly, the must racked the following day, fermented with indigenous yeasts for two to four weeks, then left on their lees for several months before bottling with minimal sulphur at the end.

What this process preserves is exactly what Chenin on schist produces at its best: citrus, pear, white blossom, and a flint-mineral thread that runs from the nose all the way through the finish. The texture is delicate but the acidity is firm and clean. This is not simply a soft, approachable white, it's a wine with spine. The 2024 vintage in Anjou brought good natural acidity and freshness, keeping the Chenin energetic rather than broad. Drink it as an apéro, or with anything from the sea.

Pairs well with oysters, grilled white fish, goat's cheese, sushi, or langoustines.