Loire Royalty, for a Song
A Library of Baumard's Epic Chenin Blancs
Savennières - Coteaux du Layon - Quarts de Chaume
1992 - 1995 - 1999 - 2001 - 2002
The legendary sweet and dry Chenin Blancs of Baumard cast a long shadow across the Loire.
The Baumard family is Loire royalty - they own some of the choicest real estate for producing monumental, long-lived Savennières and the famous sweets from the Coteaux du Layon and Quarts de Chaume. The wine journals are littered with tales of how these wines, both young and old, have served as mind-blowing benchmarks.
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These are sweet wines on par with the world's greatest, whether from Germany or Sauternes. Yet, in comparison to these icons, the great wines of the Loire remain an incredible value - the most expensive bottle in this offering is $36.
Today, quality and value go hand-in-hand as we present a library of Baumard’s most important wines, from Savennieres to Quarts du Chaume from the early nineties and up to the epic 2002 vintage. Where you can find comparison pricing, expect it to be 20% higher or more.
There is no denying the breed of these wines - let us state flat out that Chenin, along with Riesling and Chardonnay, is part of the holy trinity of noble white grapes. The aging curve of these wines rivals Riesling; Baumard’s Savennieres can age for 20+ years and their sweet Coteaux du Layons and Quarts de Chaume can age considerably longer. These wines seem to deliver a complexity whose fascination endures - Chenin Blanc in its most elegant and graceful form.
Below you'll find all the information you need to quickly buy a bottle for the holidays or to put together a more sizable purchase for the cellar.
Quantities are slim and with the reputation of Baumard and the silly value these present, we expect these to disappear quickly. To place your order, email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call us at (212) 980-9463.
Joe Salamone
Stephen Bitterolf
Wine Buyers
Crush Wine & Spirits
Coteaux du Layon is a broad appellation in the Loire used almost exclusively for sweet wines. - the deals here are astounding. The best examples age beautifully. The flavor spectrum begins with honey and apricots and then shifts to peaches and ripe pears only to be further complicated to by an undertow of herbs and quinine. Baumard makes two wines from Coteaux du Layon, the "Clos St. Catherine" and the "Le Paon."
1999 Baumard Clos Sainte Catherine
1999 proved to be a strong year for Loire sweet wines - the Clos Ste. Catherine has great richness and depth. After some difficulties with rain earlier in the season, a dry October sealed the deal for solid wines with good acidity. The Clos Ste. Catherine comes from a sandy vineyard, in comparison to the Le Paon it is the more elegant, nimble with a beautiful bright sweetness.
2001 Baumard Clos Sainte Catherine
A trickier vintage, but Baumard nailed it. This is one of the top values of the email, no doubt. August and September rains made the harvest difficult, though Chenin ripens later which helped it shake off the weather and Baumard’s rigorous selection produced a very solid lineup. The Clos Ste. Catherine comes from a sandy vineyard, in comparison to the Le Paon it is the more elegant, nimble with a beautiful bright sweetness.
2002 Baumard Clos Sainte Catherine
A legend among the vintages of the past decade for Loire whites in general - this is a silly value and a wine to put in the cellar as it won't show the full riches it has to offer for some time. Collectors will snap this up quickly. Baumard makes two wines from Coteaux du Layon, Clos Ste. Catherine and Cuvee Le Paon. The Clos Ste. Catherine comes from a sandy vineyard, in comparison to the Le Paon it is the more elegant, nimble with a beautiful bright sweetness.
1995 Baumard Le Paon
Powerful wine that is going to bowl you over. One of the top vintages of the 90s and another that favored the late-ripening Chenin. Spring frosts and a hot, dry August kept yields low. September brought some rain, but October was nearly perfect. Baumard's Le Paon is a powerful Chenin made from an old-vine selection that’s often botrytis infected and only released in the best years. The Le Paon delivers a rich layered style that offers profound (almost bewildering) depth.
2001 Baumard Le Paon
August and September rains made the 2001 vintage no walk in the park for vignerons. However, the combination of Chenin’s late ripening, which helped it to shake off the weather, and Baumard’s rigorous selection produced a very solid lineup. Baumard's Le Paon is a powerful Chenin made from an old-vine selection that’s often botrytis infected and only released in the best years. The Le Paon delivers a rich layered style that offers profound (almost bewildering) depth.
1992 Baumard Quarts de Chaume
Success in this abundant vintage rested on ruthless crop thinning. Again, you can trust Baumard’s dedication when it comes to these things. The vintage also favored Anjou and its sweet wines including, of course, its phenomenal Quartes du Chaume. Baumard’s Quarts de Chaume represents one of the pinnacles of the estate’s craft. Quarts du Chaume, always a luscious, multi-dimensional wine, in Baumard’s hands has the electricity turned up with its racy acidity, vivid fruits and currents of bright citrus. Great stuff.
Chenin grown on Savennières’ sunny and rocky slopes can reach absolutely mythic proportions. In no place is this better illustrated than Baumard's Clos du Papillon, a butterfly-shaped vineyard (thus the name) that combines a sandy topsoil over schist and volcanic rock and is generally considered a top site of Savennières. Baumard's Papillon offers an amazing interplay of minerals, citrus, honey and herbs wrapped around a nervous and also generous core of acidity.
2000 Baumard Savennières Papillon
The 2000 vintage in Savennières, despite a cool and rainy July, was carried through by sunny and warm weather in August and early September to produce an elegant cast of wines with bright acidities.
2001 Baumard Savennières Papillon
As with the 2001 Paon above, Baumard's rigorous selection and Chenin’s late ripening were the keys to producing the round and captivating Savennières like this one.
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