Loire Valley

Loire Valley: the home of Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin

If you love a crisp, mineral white, the Loire is where a lot of it begins. The river runs for hundreds of kilometres, and the grape changes as you go: Sauvignon Blanc in the east at Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, Chenin Blanc in the middle around Vouvray and Savennières, and Melon de Bourgogne out west at Muscadet by the sea. Learn the river and three of the most useful white wines on any list fall into place at once.

The wines

Sancerre is the benchmark for taut, flinty Sauvignon Blanc. Vouvray shows how versatile Chenin is, from bone dry to honeyed sweet. Muscadet is the great-value oyster wine. And Chinon and Bourgueil make light, gravelly Cabernet Franc reds worth knowing.

Where to go

Base yourself in Tours and the region opens up by car or train. The Loire is also château country, so the wine pairs with the great Renaissance houses at Chambord, Chenonceau and Amboise. Sancerre, the hilltop village, sits east and is worth the drive for the view alone.

Eat

Goat cheese is the local hero, especially Crottin de Chavignol near Sancerre. It was made for the Sauvignon Blanc grown beside it, which is the whole lesson on a plate.

Getting there

Take the TGV from Paris to Tours in about an hour, then hire a car for the vineyards and châteaux. Sancerre is best reached by road from Tours or from the east near Bourges.