Description

A venerable 19th-century estate once associated with Anjou’s renowned sweet wines, Château de Bonnezeaux has transformed its abandoned, chemical-free vineyards into the source of some of the Loire’s most in-demand dry Chenin Blancs.

Falling into ruin in the 1980s, Château de Bonnezeaux was taken over by Guyonne Saclier de la Bâtie – a student of dry Chenin luminaries Mark Angeli and Stéphane Bernaudeau. Since 2012, Guyonne has revived its 3ha of vines at the heart of the appellation with biodynamic farming and a programme of careful replanting and expansion. Unfortunately Guyonne became ill and in 2018 the estate was taken over by Pierre Boisseau who purchased a further three hectares around the estate to add to it’s holdings

After the pristine fruit is harvested by hand and crushed in an old mechanical press, Pierre adopts a low-intervention approach to craft Chenin Blancs with incredibly vivid perfumes and deep mineral complexity. Bonnezeaux’s wines are bottled without fining, filtration, or additional sulphites. All wines are bottles by parcel, the name of which adorns each bottle.

Gaining a cult following almost overnight among sommeliers and natural wine lovers when the first bottle was released from its cellar in over 30 years, Château de Bonnezeaux has become one of the Loire’s must-have allocations.