Red berry fruit balanced by savory black pepper and bramble. Delightful!

The Coteaux du Vendômois is the most northerly of the Loire appellations. The unusual Pineau d’Aunis grape is its most striking feature. In an area where wine-making is all too often a part-time activity, Patrice Colin is one of the few who has good holdings, as his family have been in the area since 1735. He farms about 25 hectares, organically, half of which he owns. Thoré La Rochette is on a plateau, with a drier micro-climate than the surrounding areas. The soil is a very flinty sandy clay. Patrice produces a full range of wines, red, white and rose, still and sparkling.