Chenin blanc

Chenin blanc comes from the Loire Valley in France. According to Gault&Millau, about 95 percent of French plantings are in the Loire, divided between Anjou-Saumur and Touraine. In the French specifications the grape is called chenin B, with pineau de la Loire as its official synonym.

Well-known names are Vouvray in Touraine and Saumur, Anjou and the Coteaux du Layon in Maine-et-Loire. Worldwide, according to the same trade journal, there are some 35,000 hectares of chenin, of which about 28 percent is in France. Within the total French vineyard area the grape remains small: less than 4 percent.

Every Loire appellation has its own specification from the INAO. A few examples:

• Vouvray (recognised in 1936): chenin is the main grape, orbois may make up to 5 percent. The appellation covers still, sparkling and semi-sparkling wine from eight communes in Indre-et-Loire. Sparkling Vouvray matures at least 12 months after the tirage.
• Saumur: white still wine is made from Chenin; sparkling white Saumur requires at least 60 percent Chenin.
• Coteaux du Layon (since 1950): sweet white wine made from chenin in Maine-et-Loire, with at least 34 grams of sugar per litre and at least 80 grams for Premier Cru Chaume. The grapes are harvested in successive picking rounds.
• Crémant de Loire (since 1975): sparkling with second fermentation in the bottle, at least 12 months of ageing, and chenin is one of the permitted grapes.

South Africa is the country with the largest plantings of chenin blanc in the world. According to the Chenin Blanc Association, there were 16,485 hectares in 2022, 18.4 percent of the total South African vineyard (SAWIS figures). Breedekloof and Paarl are the largest areas. Worldwide, according to Gault&Millau, 53 percent of all chenin is in South Africa.

The grape came to the Cape in 1655 via Jan van Riebeeck and the VOC. For a long time it was called Steen there and was regarded as a Cape grape of its own, until Professor C.J. Orffer established in 1963 that it was chenin blanc. The oldest known chenin vineyard, Mrs Kirsten in Stellenbosch, was planted in 1942.

Bush vines are vines grown without wirework. The official South African dictionary of SAWIS defines a bush vine vineyard as vines trained without a trellis system, in Afrikaans bosstokwingerd. The French equivalent is the gobelet: a short trunk with the pruned canes arranged in a ring.

According to wine.co.za, many headline-making South African chenins come from bush vines in Swartland, Paarl and Stellenbosch. Large volumes come mainly from Olifants River, Breedekloof and Worcester. If bush vines is on the label, it says something about how the vineyard was planted, not about the taste.

All three occur. Chenin blanc is used for dry, off-dry, sweet and noble sweet wine, and also for sparkling wine. The label and the appellation usually point the way.

• Coteaux du Layon is sweet by definition, with a legal minimum of residual sugar.
• With Vouvray, the word sec appears on the label when the wine is dry.
• Crémant de Loire and sparkling Saumur are bubbles made by the traditional method.
• In South Africa, too, Chenin is made dry, late-harvested and noble-sweet, still or sparkling.

If you are unsure about the style of a bottle, just ask in the shop.

At ’t Bockje there are chenins from both countries. From South Africa: Mooiplaas Classic Chenin Blanc Bush Vines, Boschendal 1685 Chenin Blanc, Boschendal Rachel’s Chenin Blanc, L'Avenir Horizon Chenin Blanc and L'Avenir Provenance Chenin Blanc. Buitenzorg Chenin Blanc - Sauvignon Blanc is a blend of both grapes.

From the Loire: the sweet Coteaux du Layon from Domaine du Hauts Perrays and the sparkling Langlois Blanc de Blancs Crémant de Loire. Would you like to know which bottle suits your occasion? Drop by at Brink 2 in Bathmen or call 0570 541 278.

The shop is at Brink 2 in Bathmen. Open Tuesday to Friday from 09.00 to 18.00 and Saturday from 09.00 to 17.00. For advice, call 0570 541 278 or email info@bockje.nl.