Late to the Party, Right on Time for Sauvignon
Last fall I was zig-zagging across France in a very short timeframe — east from Paris to Luxembourg, south to Alsace, then west through Champagne to the Loire, and back east to Burgundy, all in a mater of days. In all that movement, it's hard to feel grounded. But in the middle of all that travel, a few days in the Loire had a way of settling things. The Loire feels like home to me. Maybe it's the countryside, which reminds me of our own Willamette Valley, or maybe it's that my maternal family roots are in the region — either way, it was easy to sink into the scenery and relax.
I must have gotten too comfortable rolling down the small country lanes through the vineyards and farms, because I was more than a little late for my rendez-vous with Lionel Gosseaume of Pré Baron. I arrived in the village of Oisly behind schedule, then turned myself around convinced I knew where the winery was — just around the next corner, surely. When I finally pulled up, I was greeted cheerfully by Cathy Henton, who runs the business side of Pré Baron.
Cathy is English by origin but has lived in the Loire for nearly three decades. In addition to managing the business, she's deeply plugged into the regional wine community and full of local knowledge. As the wines were poured and conversation warmed up, she dropped this on me: Oisly was the first village in the Touraine to be planted with Sauvignon Blanc, back in 1905. The variety was introduced from Sancerre, to the east, at a time when the region was primarily making red wine. Now the Touraine is virtually synonymous with Sauvignon — and Oisly is where it all began.
It's a beautiful landscape of verdant rolling hills between the Loire River and its tributary, the Cher, dotted with villages and stone farmhouses. There's not much to block the horizon, so the sky looks enormous, and the countryside turns golden in the late afternoon sun. The Sauvignon vines seem as if they've always belonged here.
Lionel, who took over the domaine a few years ago, has kept up the incredible quality we found when we first met him a few years ago, and even added a few fun new wines for good measure (more on those soon!). His signature bottling, from this ground zero of Touraine Sauvignon, is called "L'Élégante," and a fresh batch is on its way to us just in time for spring.
Pré Baron ‘L’Elegante”
Oisly Sauvignon Blanc 2024
True to its name, this wine leads with finesse as much as aromatics. There's no hiding the crisp, snappy citrus nose of Sauvignon, but it opens into a kaleidoscope of stone fruit and tropical notes, with mouthwatering acidity and a nicely weighted finish.
This is one of those whites that is delightfully versatile — as inviting as it is persistent. Pair it with fresh chèvre, salads, seafood, or a lemony roast chicken, or simply enjoy it on its own as the evenings get longer. Chill one down and make sure to have a backup.