Verdier-Logel

Village:
Marcilly-le-Châtel
Appellation:
14ha
Côtes du Forez
Growers:
Odile Verdier
Jacky Logel
Maxime Gillier
Julie Logel
The Côtes du Forez appellation is located between the Loire and Allier rivers in the center of France. The nearest town of note is St. Etienne which was significant to the booming mining industry that dominated the region through the nineteenth century. The miners required a lot of wine to quench their thirst and as late as 1930 there were 5000 hectares planted in Côtes du Forez. Today, there are less than 200.

Domaine Verdier-Logel is the leading estate of this small and obscure appellation where vineyards are few and far between. The Côtes du Forez hillsides are foothills of the volcanic mountains of the Massif Central and have soils of granite and volcanic composition. The cool climate and rocky soils impart a strong, earthy fragrance to the wines which combines well with the elegant fruitiness of the gamay grape. Due to the difficult climate only parcels with the best exposition and soils are planted with grapevines. The appellation’s laws mandate Gamay as the sole grape to be used and Verdier-Logel produces separate wines from volcanic and granite soils. The Domaine Verdier-Logel is certified both organic and bio-dynamic.

Read Odile’s comments in the Loire Vintage Reports

"Volcanique"

The Volcanique cuvée is produced from parcels with volcanic/basalt soils. In contrast to the granite soils which are sandy and very poor, the basalt soils have on average 25% of clay mixed in, which helps with water retention. The basalt soil tends to give the wine a bit more tannin and “rusticity”. The Volcanique is produced using the semi-carbonic technique with two-thirds of the bunches whole cluster (The same sandwich as the CDG). The maceration lasts about 11 days.The wine is matured in tank until the following spring and then bottled.

"Cuvee des Gourmets"

The Cuvée des Gourmets is produced from parcels with granite soil and the vinification is done using the semi-carbonic technique. The grape bunches are layered into the fermentation tank with only the middle layer being de-stemmed. Jacky Logel likes to call this the “sandwich” method. The maceration lasts 8/9 days and there is a short maturation in tank that follows before the wine is bottled.

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Home > Weekend Wine > Verdier-Logel Côtes du Forez La Volcanique 2015

Verdier-Logel Côtes du Forez La Volcanique 2015

Within the confines of the Loire Valley, how far removed is it possible to be fromBordeaux? The Côtes du Forez is a long way in pure geographical terms, although if this is the measure we are to use this region would probably lose out - just - to the vineyards around Orléans or Gien, both of which lie a smidgen more distant. But it's not geography I am interested in really, as my original question related to style. Which wines - red wines, to narrow it down a bit - present us with a style that is as far removed from the rich, oak-aged, Cabernet- and Merlot-dominant reds of St Julien, St Emilion and the like? Obviously, the Côtes du Forez is still in the running.

There is no Cabernet Franc here in the vineyards around Feurs, as the appellation allows only for Gamay. You can find a little Chardonnay or even a few pieds of Pinot Gris orViognier here or there depending on whether the grower in question feels more orientated towards Burgundy, Alsace or the Rhône Valley, but these are niche interests and they don't have an appellation (they exist under the esoteric Vin de Pays d'Urfé designation). And you won't find any familiar terroir here, none of the limestone or clay that characterises the right bank in Bordeaux, or the gravel of the left. The vineyards can be found on a thin strip of decomposed granite, basalt and other igneous rocks which runs north-south, sandwiched between the alluvial soils of the Loire to the east, and the lower slopes of the Massif Central to the west.

Even the vinification differs, although the fact I am drinking this 2015 already should tell you as much. While all the red wines of Bordeaux from this vintage slumber on in their expensive wooden barrels for the next 18 months, this alternative 2015 has seen out a very brief élevage in cuve, was summarily bottled under cork, and has been shipped ready for drinking.

Verdier-Logel Côtes du Forez La Volcanique 2015

The domaine was founded in 1991 by newlyweds Jacky Logel and Odile Verdier. They had met in Alsace, and after their marriage they then moved to Odile's farm on the slopes above Feurs. Although the family had vineyards, established by Odile's father, they simply sold the fruit. Jacky changed all that, as he set about vinifying and bottling the wine for himself. And being a native of Alsace, he also planted a few of those aforementioned Pinot Gris vines (and some Viognier too, in truth).

They turn out a number of cuvées, not least the deliciously fun Cuvée des Gourmets, butLa Volcanique is a step up. The difference is in the terroir; while the Cuvée des Gourmets comes from vines planted on a granitic sand, which Maxime Verdier - Jacky and Odile's son - says is easier to work and naturally gives a lighter wine, with La Volcanique the Gamay vines are planted on a harder basalt terroir. The fruit is picked by hand, and then fermented in whole bunches at a temperature of 20ºC, with a maceration lasting three weeks. The use of whole bunches implies there is some carbonic maceration here, although I confess when I last met Maxime I omitted to verify this. Thereafter the wine sees a short élevage, also in cuve, before bottling. What you get is the pure essence of Gamay fruit, with the freshness and frame engendered by the acidic soils, unfettered by toasty oak and other overt tricks.

In the glass the 2015 La Volcanique from Verdier-Logel displays a really quite vibrant rose-crimson hue. There is a convincing lick of black fruits on the nose, especially dried blackcurrants, and alongside these we also have nuances of morello cherries, laced with fresher tinges of juniper and bay. The palate feels sweet and ripe, surely a vintage effect, set against a dry concentration rather than anything confected or too flashy though. It feels full, cool, savoury and tense, and is full of the juicy, pebbly fruit at which the nose hints do clearly. It is all wrapped up by a little ribbon of tannin in the finish. Overall the fruit profile feels genuine, and the texture true, so this is quite simply fantastic to drink, and it is exactly what Gamay combined with an igneous terroir and its acid soils should be all about. Fun, freshness, frame, and no winemaking fripperies. 16.5/20 (2/5/16)

Every year about this time we ask our winemakers to send us reports on the current vintage : events over the growing season, harvest conditions, what's happening in the winery during these early stages. It takes a while for all reports to roll in, which we will eventually compile and publish on our Vintage Reports page. Meanwhile we've received enough responses from all over France, from Champagne, Loire, Southwest, Rhone, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Beaujolais...to post a preview of Vintage 2019.


Having heard from wine makers in different regions of France, weather conditions in 2019 were almost uniform, north to south, east to west, having to do with similar climatic irregularities during the growing season. All inconsistant with historic norms. Warm winter and early spring, leading to early bud set, only to be beset by frosts in April and delayed flowering, then heatwaves and drought in summer, somehow miraculous comebacks with needed rains at the end of the growing season, and clement harvesting weather. In general there was a loss of yields but high quality fruit. Climate changes are tangible and posing serious challenges to wine growers who are now needing to anticipate how to adapt their wine growing methods to deal with an erratic and quickly changing growing environment.

Notes from our winemakers :

L'Yonne

Domaine d’Elise, Chablis, Frédérique Prain

The year 2019 = a hot and dry year
Alas, we had a bit of hail at the beginning of April and again in late April.
The hail beginning of May at which time buds were between 1 and 12 cm.
With this persistant cold budding was slow, taking through the end of May.
The vines were in full flower around June 17th
Which put the predicted harvest date at September 25th;Then the heatwave came!
Very hot at the end of June: 38°C, beautiful all of the beginning of July and at the end of July, record hot temperatures in Chablis : 42.6°C on the 25th of July.
End of August it was still very hot, and above all dry.
So the harvests began in the region the beginning of September, around the 10th in Chablis, on the 17th at Domaine d’ELISE!
The quality is excellent but its necessary to take note that there a lot of underdeveloped berries that were slightly dried out, and some even burned by the sun.
The yields are only 40HL/HA instead of the usual 60.
The degrees vary between 12.5 and 13.5, which is very high for Chablis and Petit Chablis.
However the acidities are correct, allowing for making characteristic Chablis.
They will be for medium term keeping.
The juice is already tasting very well : its round and fruited, very agreeable on the palate.
Since the year 2000 we've experienced many good years, despite climactic warming.
Often with excessive ripeness comes a decline in acidity, which is not suitable for Chablis.
Happily, le Domaine d’Elise always has good acidity because of its rocky, very calcareous soil.

Savoie

Domaine des 13 Lunes, Savoie, Sylvain Liotard

The 2019 vintage was the vintage of confirmation for me (my third year), in spite of being a growing season of all possible climactic hazards.

We had frost, hail, violent winds and 3 months of drought.

I was anxious about protecting the grapes.

In the end, the losses were not too bad, (15 to 20%).

The acidities are for the monent high, a real mountain wine.

The maturities were very good but heterogeneous, resulting in quite a bit of millérandage (mixed sized berries and partial crop failure).

The fermentations are quite variable, according to different parcels. Those that got hail are taking more time.

I really like these wines to come, I think that they will have great personality.

I just finished (end October) putting the wines in tank or in barrel to finish fermentations and for maturing.

Autumn work begins, earthing-up the vines, treating of the soils, replacing certain vines and a bit of commerce.

Beaujolais

Domaine du Crêt de Bine, Sarcey, Florence Subrin

2019, a crop of excellent quality but a small crop as a result of climactic hazards. The 2019 vintange for us will have been remembered by the successive late frosts in the month of April, as well as the hailstorm on the 18th of August. With the very warm start of the growing season, vegetation started early, then suffered the climactic "rewind" of a sudden drop in temperatures in April. Follwed then by a lovely spring and a hot summer, which was favorable to good ripeness of fruit. Unfortunately, the quantity was affected by a violent hail storm in August. Nevertheless, this small yielding season, makes up for itself in quality. Indeed, with such beautiful fruit, very balanced with delicate aromas, we are able to vinify wines that reflect that beauty the of fruit. Entirely hand harvested over 9 days, our 2019 cuvées are showing a rare finesse with beatiful bright "cherry" color, all with no added sulfur other than a minimal dose at bottling to protect them during transport. Beautiful "Natural" cuvées, are equally "Beaujolais" ; they will be released in the Spring 2020.

Sud-Ouest

Chateau La Caminade, Cahors, Dominique Ressès

Here is my first impression of the 2019 millésime.

We’ll say that the vintage, started a bit poorly with a spring frost (May 6th), but finished well, though with a reduced quantity, but superior quality than we estimated.

In addition, a beautiful, hot and dry summer provided conditions for the vines to catch up on the delay caused by the Spring frosts.

Finally, some rains at the end of August and beginning September, followed by nice weather, hot during the day, cool at night, during the whole rest of September, made for a lovely and homogeneous ripening of the fruit.

We started harvesting the 3rd of October and finished the 9th, days were cloudy and cool.

Today we can say that this vintage will be easy to drink, gourmand, with low acidities and high pH (already 3.6/3.7 before malolactic!!!)

Loire

Domaine Christophe Thorigny, Vouvray

The harvests went very well.

The crop is correct with a good quality in spite of the difficult climactic conditions of the year : 20% of vines affected by frost in the spring, heatwaves and drought this summer.

Domaine Verdier-Logel, Côtes de Forez, Julie Logel

The year 2019, once again, translates as an exceptional year, in the sense that the climate has upset the usual growth patterns of the vine and challenged the wine grower. Frosts during Spring and little rain caused a delayed development of the vines, which only started coming into a phase of fruit maturity at the end of August, which meant the winegrowers had to roll up their sleeves after traditional summer vacations. In the end, the harvest was quite satisfactory concerning quality. Vinification is just now finished, the wines are starting the maturing process and are already displaying a 2019 vintage that is less powerful than 2018, but more typical of the wines of the Forez and express the granite and basalt terroirs of the region.

Champagne

Champagne Perseval-Farge, Montagne de Reims, Isabelle Perseval

Each new vintage is an occasion to write a new page in history and above all to understand new winegrowing conditions in the changing climate.

The 2019 winegrowing season was once again quite singular : the erratic climactic cycles meant we had to organize ourselves around spring frosts, sudden unusual cold temperatures at budding and then heat waves during the summer. These changes in weather are recent and their consequences are unknown ; with little hindsight, an evolution is in progress. Each year we have to review the new imprint and rethink our production strategy.

The musts are very aromatic, and stimulate the palate. They have fruit, balance, concentration with a touch of liveliness, everything is there.

The fragrances emanating in the winery are so pleasant, we can’t wait to taste the first wines. Nature has given us the best, now it is up to us to magnify the fruit of our labor.

The Chardonnay has quite particular aromas : complexity, fruitiness, while the Pinot Noir and Meunier are powerful and elegant.

The 3 forgotten varieties (Arbanne, Petit Meslier and Fromentot) are very expressive. Their specific aromatic profiles are complementary : they combine freshness, balance, generosity and finesse. The production of the Cuvée Les Goulats remains very limited [1,000 bottles approximately / year]

In the end, the cuvées will be a reflection of the winemaker, his passion and his emotion. To that add patience to discover an acomplished wine…..

Now it is time that everyone takes ownership of their own Terroir and takes responsibilty and makes decisions to maintain productive vineyards, and bring the quality of production to the highest level. It is our credo and we consistantly pursue this objective. On this note, we have the pleasure to announce that Henry, our second son, has taken his place at the winery and that he has come to observe and assimilate Benoist’s savoir-faire after his wine-growing/making studies in Alsace and 2 years of profesional experience outside of our domaine.

Bordeaux

Chateaux Barraillots, Margaux, Yannick Martin

The 2019 harvests took place in very good weather with grapes in very sanitary condition.

It was sunny the entire harvest from September 26 through October 10th.

The grapes were healthy and well ripened.

Vinifications are almost complete, this week (end October) we finish the juice runs and pressings.

The malolactics are also almost finished.

In brief, a lovely crop, very good quality and good yields.

Rhone

Domaine de Berane, Côtes de Ventoux, Bertrand Ferary

We had quite a few suprises in 2019.

We grow Syrah, Grenache and Mourvedre. And for 19 years we have been harvesting them in that chronological order. For the first time Grenache matured before the Syrah. Incredible! In addition, maturities were blocked.

One of the causes is that we had the hottest summer in Provence since 2003. The grape skins were very thick, natures reaction to protect the pulp from dehydration, preserving its own production. We did reach normal quantites, with wonderful deep color, with higher degrees than usual.

We are performing many "déléstages" (multiple rackings of juice during fermentation and maceration, a process that aerates the juice and softens it by lessening time spent in contact with skins). And, hard to believe, for the first time, our Syrah and Mourvedre tanks have still not finished fermenting in early November. We expect they will have finished in a week. With this careful vinification, 2019 should be an excellent vintage.

Region: Loire

The Loire River runs a course of 1,000 kilometers. This grandest of French rivers rises in the volcanic Auvergne mountains at 1551 meters in the village of Mont Gerbier de Jonc. It takes its course flowing north through the center of France and then westward to the city of Nantes, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Along its way, the Loire River passes through thirteen departments and together with its tributaries, provides the setting for seventy-three different appellations. These seventy-three appellations fall within five viticultural regions: Auvergne, Centre-Loire, Touraine, Anjou-Saumur and Nantais...

The most concentrated areas of wine production are found in these last three regions all situated on the upper half of the river and centered around the towns of Tours, Angers and Nantes.

The Auvergne mountains give birth to the Loire and present a rugged landscape quite different from the bucolic countryside of the upper Loire between Blois and Angers. The Auvergne vineyards divide into four appellations : Côtes du Forez, Côtes Roannaise, Côtes d’Auvergne and Saint Pourçain. Today they are little known beyond their borders but wine has been made there for over a thousand years and historically they enjoyed widespread recognition. The vineyards of Saint Pourçain were among the most favored in the Middle Ages, rivaling those of Beaune and Chablis and gracing the tables of the Royal Court and the Papacy at Avignon. The overall area under vine is much smaller today than it was centuries ago. Côtes Roannaise is the smallest with 170 hectares of vines and Saint Pourçain is the largest with 600. All four taken together would be half the size of the Sancerre vineyards.

The Auvergne mountains are challenging to the viticulteur from the standpoint of topography and climate. The few vineyards that exist today are planted in the most favorable micro-climates. When the wines are well made they are extremely expressive and flavorful and give the impression of being rich in minerals and restorative, much like some of the “eaux de source” from the region.

The vineyards of Centre-Loire include the appellations of Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé, Pouilly-sur-Loire, Coteaux du Giennois, Menetou Salon, Quincy, Reuilly and Chateaumeillant. This is the land of Sauvignon Blanc; only the appellation of Pouilly sur Loire produces wine from a different white grape, Chasselas. The Centre-Loire has the city of Bourges at its center. Historically it is a mercantile city, and from where originates the word “bourgeois.”

The vineyards of the Touraine extend in all directions from the town of Tours and are organized into thirteen appellations. Additionally, to the north of Tours is the Vignoble du Loir where the appellations of Jasnières, Coteaux du Loir and Coteaux du Vendomois straddle the Loir River (what’s an “e” among rivers?).

The vineyards are spread along the Loire’s many small tributaries such as the Cher, Indre and Vienne on the south side and the Cisse and Brenne on the north. These smaller river valleys render landscapes of human scale and infinite variety, perfectly mirrored by the wines. Wines labeled as Touraine can be produced from a long list of grape types. The authorized white grapes include Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Romorantin and Arbois; the red grapes include Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Gamay, Cot (Malbec), Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. Four sub-appellations of Touraine, each spread about a particular village and named for that village, such as Touraine-Amboise, produce wines with a stricter set of mandates from the I.N.A.O. The wines of Touraine bring to mind the old Arlo Guthrie tune, “You can get anything you want at Alice’s Restaurant….”

The Touraine is followed down river by the wine regions of Saumur and Anjou. The vineyards here extend for many kilometers and are found primarily on the southern side of the river. Saumur is well known for its sparkling wine made primarily from Chenin Blanc. The natural and manmade chalk caves are like those in Champagne and provide the perfect repository for the maturing of the sparkling wine bottles. The separate appellation of Saumur-Champigny produces Cabernet Franc along the lines of Chinon and Bourgueil.

The Pays Nantais has its viticultural roots in the Roman era during which its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean provided commercial advantage to the region. However, invasions and political instability during the middle ages hindered the vineyards from flourishing. Not until the 17th century did the vineyards begin to prosper and expand thanks to the Dutch who used Nantais white wine to make Eau de Vie. The main grape of the area is the white wine grape Melon de Bourgogne, called locally Muscadet. Muscadet was widely planted in the early 18th century after the severe frost of 1709 wiped out most of the Nantais vineyards and showed Muscadet to be one of the only varieties to withstand the cold. Sharing the same viticultural zone as Muscadet in the Pays Nantais is the VDQS appellation Gros Plant which produces wine from the grape type, Folle Blanche.