Naturally when our redacteur en chef, Hervé, asked us all for a short contribution on suggesting a wine to match Easter lamb I obliged. However, on the day I’m afraid I largely ignored my advice: we had duck not lamb. Although an ugly duckling may turn into a swan, there are no known instances when the duckling has turned into a lamb. 

Early Friday morning we headed off to the market at Montrichard with the first stop Malbran-Clément, who specialize in poultry, where we bought a duck. We had thought that the duck was just for us two but that changed when we invited two friends and then shortly after the meal was expanded to six. I was slightly worried that the duck would stretch to six people. However, I pot-roasted it with some young turnips and there was plenty to go round, especially with a pot of red cabbage cooked with Kentish apples. 

 The evening started with a delicious glass or so of Jacky Blot’s Triple Zero Rosé  (Domaine de la Taille aux Loups). Launched last December this is a blend of 50% Gamay and 50% Grolleau with no added sugar at any point of the production just like the white version which has been around a liong time now.

We had three fresh vegetables for the first course – Touraine asparagus, beetroot and some radishes. This trio accompanied an OK 2009 Pouilly-Fumé from Domaine Seguin – grassy, citric with some minerality but a bit 2D.

For the main course a chose a magnum of 2008 Saumur-Champigny from Château de Chaintres. I did have my doubts that this might be too young. However for a party of six it is good to have a magnum (admirable moderation here!). The 2008 Chaintres was still quite young and tannic with plum and damson fruit. However, with the duck it was well matched as it cut the meat’s richness.  

For the cheese course people continued with the Saumur-Champigny or reverted back to the Pouilly-Fumé. Dessert was a greengage tart from Grainger, the marvelous pâtisserie in Montrichard. Here we had the wine of the night – 2005 L’Anclaie, Coteaux-du-Layon from Claude Papin’s Pierre-Bise. It had all the richness expected from a 2005 and the orange and marmalade citrus notes that are always so typical of L’Anclaie, always one of my favourite sweet wines from Pierre Bise.

Apologies to anyone who I assumed I would be trying out my recommendation – you are welcome to grouse as I ducked out of it!

Jim

 This year for the first time in its 25-year-old history the Salon des Vins de Loire opened on a Sunday. This gave the Salon a decidedly calm start as no only was it Sunday but there was also competition from La Dive Bouteille at Brézé and Renaissance at Angers’ Grenier Saint-Jean.

  Although the calm may have been disappointing for some of the exhibitors, conditions for tasting and chatting to the vignerons were ideal. I made sure that I tasted the new vintage of Pierre-Jacques Druet’s rosé – the wine that launched the adventures of Les 5 du Vin.

Bottled in September Pierre-Jacques 2009 has a delicate pink hue with aromas of red fruits including wild strawberries. Well balanced the palate is quite generous with long lasting red fruit flavours. A rosé that give pleasure for several years – not the type that will fall off its perch in its first year.   

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 Postscript

Marc and Pierre-Jacques agreeing the finer details of the photo op

Marc Vanhellemont was at the Salon yesterday and we tried to get a photo of Pierre Jacques with his famous rosé but he is a popular man and we were unable, despite several attempts, to find a moment for photo opportunity. This morning the Salon was calm and this time we managed to get PJ to pose with Marc to mark and capture this historic moment.

When we asked PJ for a sample to take to Hervé we were informed that the price had risen dramatically. Not really a surprise given the undoubted kudos of being associated with Les 5 du Vin. I assume that it is now huge popular in China and may well already be more sought after than Lafite. I fully anticipate that we can expect to see Chinese characters on the label next year. 
 

Pierre Jacques with his 2009 Bourgueil Rosé + 20% of Les 5 (above and below)