LOIRE VALLEY
The challenges of 2021
With regional differences marked by harsh climatic episodes, the 2021 harvest in Touraine is moving towards a profile that breaks with recent years. After a few vintages on the warmer side, 2018 and its very solar character, 2019 that was dry, warm with quick maturity and 2020 that showcased richness and volume, 2021 will be remembered as the break in the cycle. Cooler, marked by frost, 2021 was a technical, stressful vintage overall.
However, the resulting wines shows a very typical Loire character, closer to a 2014 profile, whose trademark is the freshness made possible by the acidity. The winegrowers have not been idle, and it will be a vintage that will remain marked in their memory.
Starting off strong, this challenging vintage had weather difficulties in April and experienced multiple frost episode, especially in Nantais, but also across the whole region. This complicated spring affected yields tremendously with heterogeneous loss across sectors from east to west. Patrick
Baudouin, producer in Anjou noir, committed to promoting the great terroirs of its region, located among others on the Chantefaux Commune known for its abrupt geological chaos explained how difficult vintages like 2021, often reveals the differences, and unique character of different terroirs. An average of 40% of loss was observed, with varying degrees. Nantais has experienced a 30% of loss, Vouvray was around 40% and in Anjou, Saumur & Touraine some unsettling losses of more than 70%. Fortunately, effective frost protection is more and more widespread in the Loire region. Cannon, aspersion, wind turbines, fire candles, flaming haystack, weather station are very common practices now and helped some fortunate parcels.
Unfortunately, leaving no respite to the winegrowers, summer wasn’t easier on the vines. Rain poured constantly and encouraged diseases developpement. These fragile grapes required proper treatment, sorting, meticulous, gentle maceration, careful monitoring of the plots to address this issue depending on producers’ practices.