Mosse & Pinon

We normally only feature one winery at a time, but this month we are making an exception. Both wineries are located in the Loire Valley of France, with the first being in Anjou, and the second in Vouvray. I have a love affair with the Loire and that is pretty evident if you have perused our French section at either location. I at some point hope to transfer my passion for this region, their wines and food through sheer repetition.

Agnes and Rene Mosse founded their winery in the village of St-Lambert-du-Lattay in 1999. They owned and operated a wine bar/wine shop in Tours before they fell in love with the idea of winemaking. They went to viticulture and oenology school (lucky to have a very famous natural winemaker as one of their teachers) in Amboise before they purchased vineyards. From the beginning they practiced organically both in the vineyards and in the winery. Their two sons Syvlestre and Joseph took over winemaking from them in 2014 and have dramatically expanded the number of wines they are producing. At last count they make 16 different cuvees with Loire classic varietals making up the core. Chenin Blanc in all of its forms is a primary focus, of which they have multiple vineyard sites. Cabernet Franc, Cot, Grolleau Noir, and Gamay all make appearances as well. The key to these wines for me has always been fun and ingenuity. There is nothing boring about anything they make even as they span from deliciously dangerous to borderline funktastic. I had a chance to visit back in 2017 and get to know the brothers and thankfully; drink all the wine.

These wines are not easy to get here in CT since everything is entirely too small production but I am persistent and hence we got a good deal. The wines listed below are what we carry from them.

• Mosse Anjou Blanc Le Rouchefer 2018

• Mosse Cabernet Franc 2018

• Mosse Goldeneye 2019

• Mosse La Joute 2018

• Mosse Les Bonnes Blanches 2018

• Mosse Magic of Juju 2019

• Mosse Moussamoussettes 2019

The second winery feature this month is Francois et Julien Pinon hailing from Vouvray. Sadly Francois Pinon passed away almost two weeks ago. He was a legend in the wine world and will be sorely missed, but he was also an incredibly patient and kind man. This winery is very much a family affair and much like it was passed to Francois from his father, the torch has been passed again.

Julien Pinon has brought some changes to the winery in his time there, solidifying their organic viticulture, and minimal interventionist winemaking. Vouvray is all about Chenin Blanc, in all of its varying forms. The balance between; sugar, acid, and alcohol is the key to balance for any winemaker. For Vouvray producers where sugars can swing from 10g (per Liter) to 140g , maintaining that balance is the challenge. When I visited and had a chance to taste many of the wines not seen here in CT, I was left with two distinct feelings. One that I had lost all my sense of how to taste sugar in wine. Two that this winery walked the balance between acidity and sugar better than any producer I had tasted. They make a number of wines but sadly we only receive around 5 cuvees each year. Some of these are from distinct parcels, that are defined by their soil types (either black flint, or limestone and clay). They also make sparkling wine from Vouvray which is a damn treat if you have not tried. The wines listed below are what we carry from Pinon.

• Pinon "Les 2016" Vouvray

• Pinon Pet Nat Brut Rose

• Pinon "Les Deronnieres" Vouvray

I also promise next month I will not write Chenin Blanc even once.

David