Plou & Fils Tuffeau Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature 2024, Vin de France, Loire

Plou & Fils Tuffeau Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature is a sparkling white from the Loire, made from 100% Chardonnay grown on the Plou family estate around Chargé, just upstream of Amboise in Touraine. The vines grow on clay-limestone and flinty clay soils over tuffeau, the creamy white chalk stone of the Loire that gives the cuvée its name. After six months in stainless steel vats, the wine undergoes its second fermentation in bottle, which lasts around 12 months, while the bottles rest in a troglodyte cave dug deep into the chalk cliffs. It is bottled as a Brut Nature, with no added dosage, for a dry, pure style.

In the glass it shows fine, delicate bubbles. The nose is fresh and aromatic, with green apple, citrus and clear Chardonnay character. The palate is crisp, dry and clean, with bright apple and citrus fruit, lively acidity and a zesty, refreshing finish.

Serve well chilled, at around 6–8°C. It makes a lively aperitif and is excellent with oysters, shellfish and other seafood, Loire goat’s cheeses, salty snacks and fried starters. Drink it young, while the fruit is at its freshest.

Domaine Plou & Fils is a family estate in Chargé, a village on the banks of the Loire a few kilometres from the Château d’Amboise in Touraine. The Plou family has been making wine here since 1508, passing the domaine from father to son and adding to the vineyards over the centuries; today it is in the hands of brothers Mathieu and Guillaume Plou. The vines grow on tuffeau chalk from the Paris Basin, with clay-limestone or flinty clay subsoils, while the terraces along the river are sand and gravel. The family makes Touraine, Touraine-Amboise and Crémant de Loire alongside its Tuffeau sparkling wines, combining temperature-controlled stainless steel in the cellar with ageing in troglodyte caves carved into the tuffeau. The estate is certified HVE (High Environmental Value).