2014 Brut Vouvray

Vincent Foreau is the fourth generation of his family to make an understated, soulful Vouvray that provides a drinking experience rather than calling for its components to be picked apart. The cellar, next door to Domaine Huet, is remarkably modest considering the beauties that lie within its cool tunnels. Its 12 hectares of vines – worked organically but not certified – lie within a ten-minute walk of the family home and winery. There’s no fancy winemaking here: press fractions aren’t separated. After 18 hours of settling, the wine is sent to very old barrels where wild fermentation occurs. “You lose the soul of the vintage if you use commercial yeasts,” Foreau says. The wine is racked “when it pleases me” and bottled relatively early to preserve freshness and allow the aging process to occur in the bottle. While all around them, producers are making a proliferation of terroir cuvées and a barrel-aged style, Foreaux blends his parcels to create single cuvées depending on their sweetness level: i.e., sparkling, dry, demi-sec or moelleux. The wines are pure and unforced and, after ten years in bottle, shake off their youth and blossom.