Eschewing the classically lush profiles of the past, our newest entry on the Loire Valley shelf captures what we love in Chenin–and in Montlouis.

Vincent Bergeron makes zesty, brisk Chenin Blanc in the key of the appellation's contemporaries; organically farming and naturally producing, he’s working like them too—no surprise once you see he came up under Frantz Saumon. 

Since his first vintage in 2016, most of Vincent’s wines have landed in Japan—so as a relative rarity on US retail shelves, this is the time for Loire believers to dig in.
 

 
After earning degrees in Art History, Literature, and Agriculture, Bergeron moved through a handful of careers, where a viticultural mentorship with Jean-Daniel Kloeckle opened the world of wine to him. But it was Frantz Saumon—one of Montlouis’s most skilled practitioners—who kept him there.

Saumon brought Vincent on in 2012, where he cut his teeth in the cellar, shaping the tense, hands-off style he’s known for today. By 2016, Saumon had gifted him a tractor and a small Pinot Noir parcel—a generous catapult to his first own-labeled wine, just 500 bottles of sparkling which were quickly whisked away to Japan.

Despite Vincent's genuine humbleness, his lineup – which has of course become anchored by Chenin Blanc – has received incredible response, mostly abroad, but quietly dotting some serious lists stateside.

Vincent in one of his limestone-packed vineyards; photo via The Source

The wines are serious, precise; but still marked with the unabashed expression of Montlouis limestone that we've come to love in his mentor's wines. As the importer put it, "a little Bowie, a lot of Bach."

Vincent is farming organically with biodynamic principles, and now a decade of experimentation in the cellar has dialed in the approach to élevage in a mix of mostly French oak and some fiberglass, often without any addition of sulfur.

2022 Vincent Bergeron 'Certains l'Aiment Sec' Chenin Pet-Nat, Loire, VDF $42
Chenin Blanc pétillant naturel, fermented in fiberglass with full malolactic fermentation and aged on the lees in bottle for 18 months. No dosage, fining or filtration, with a touch of sulfur added. Joyous, refreshing pet-nat.

2022 Vincent Bergeron 'Matin Midi Et Soir' Chenin, Loire, VDF, $48
Chenin Blanc from a larger parcel of 40 year old vines, fermented with full malo and aged for a year in a range of French oak (225-400L). No fining or filtration with a touch of sulfur added. Taut, lithe, mineral Chenin, a quintessential bottling for Vincent.

2022 Vincent Bergeron 'Maison Marchandelle' Chenin, Montlouis-sur-Loire, $52
Chenin Blanc from a 0.87 parcel planted in 1970, fermented with full malo and aged for a year in a range of French oak (225-400L). No fining or filtration with a touch of sulfur added. A touch more generous and vinous while still in the key of his delicately energetic style.

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