It is so good to see this great-value wine become a regular fixture in the Chidaine portfolio. This label was created in 2021, when, having lost 60% of his yields, François reached out to his contacts to secure small parcels of Chenin Blanc from across Touraine. Le Chenin d'Ici ends up a roughly 50/50 blend of purchased and estate fruit, including grapes from many of the domaine's exceptional parcels spread across Vouvray and Montlouis.

Made in exactly the same way as his estate cuvées, fermented with native yeasts and aged in used 600-litre barrels, the resulting wine is popping with Chidaine magic. It's a deliciously fleshy, orchard-in-a-glass Chenin with a close-grained, chalky core of tightly packed white peach, sweet herbs and citrus, finishing with a zippy, grapefruit-flecked brightness.

François Chidaine is one of the Loire's most admired producers, with benchmark Vouvray and Montlouis cuvees that regularly outperform wines at twice the price. Le Chenin d'Ici is the most accessible entry point into his world, and at this price, it is one of the finest value Chenin Blancs in our portfolio.