Description
Domaine Claude Branger, Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine “Château-Thébaud”
Of the four coastal regions featured in our Coastal White Roundup, Muscadet Sèvre et Maine is probably the farthest from the actual coast. But the influence of the Atlantic Ocean, 40 miles to the west, is still keenly felt. The Sèvre and Maine are two tributaries of France’s Loire River that converge near Nantes, a historic port town in the Brittany region. “Muscadet” is the regional descriptor for wines made from the Melon de Bourgogne grape, not just in the “Sèvre et Maine” but in other delimited areas of the western Loire Valley.
The Pays Nantais, as Muscadet country is known, is a cool climate with Atlantic currents funneled inland via the Loire River. This bottle-aged beauty from Claude Branger wine hails from the village of Château Thébaud, one of 10 growing areas with its own cru designation (cru communaux). The distinctive granite-based soils of Château Thébaud infuse the wine with profound minerality, while sur lie (“on the lees”) aging provides an overlay of creaminess and bread-dough aromas.
Pale straw-gold with bright aromas of tart green apple, citrus pith, Anjou pear, cream, wet stones, and brine, this wine is tailor-made for seafood, especially a big plateau of freshly shucked oysters. Few wine/food combinations are as iconic. Serve at 45-50 degrees in all-purpose stems and keep at least one other bottle close at hand!
