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Huet, Chidaine & Blot: Vouvray’s Benchmark and the 1989 Montlouis Revolution

July 16, 2026

When the conversation turns to the greatest white wines in the world, White Burgundy often steals the spotlight. But for those of us who obsess over value, terroir, and longevity, all roads eventually lead to Loire Valley Chenin Blanc. Today, we have a very rare opportunity to look at a library of wines from the region's absolute benchmark producers: Domaine Huet, François Chidaine, and Domaine de la Taille aux Loups.

Historically, Vouvray was the undisputed star of the Loire. Montlouis, just across the river, was largely treated as an afterthought. It was a region known mostly for industrially farmed bulk sparkling wine and simple, sweet wines.

But in 1989, that completely changed. That year, François Chidaine and a former wine broker named Jacky Blot both began making wine in Montlouis. As author Jon Bonné points out in his book The New French Wine, these two applied Grand Cru standards to an overlooked appellation.

Blot brought a Burgundian mindset to the Loire. He isolated specific parcels for single-vineyard bottlings, fermented in oak barrels rather than stainless steel, employed long, cool fermentations that exposed the must to oxygen, and finished the wines in stainless steel. Chidaine pushed the farming to the extreme. He became a pioneer for biodynamic viticulture, utilized native yeast fermentations, and aged his wines in large 600-liter demi-muids. Together, they proved that Montlouis could stand shoulder to shoulder with Vouvray and the top whites of Burgundy.

What makes this specific list so compelling is the vintage depth. We talk a lot about the value of Loire Chenin, but the real magic is how it ages. Young Chenin is tense, electric, and bursting with bright notes of fresh quince and orchard fruit. Give it time in the bottle, and it picks up savory layers of beeswax, chamomile, and bruised apple while keeping its razor-sharp acidity. Having access to perfectly stored bottles from 2015 and 2016 means getting to drink these wines right as they hit their sweet spot, for a fraction of what you would pay for aged Premier Cru Burgundy.

Please see below for availability. The quickest way to secure your wines is via the links below, but we are always here for questions or suggestions at shop@mwcwine.com.

François Chidaine
Chidaine's obsessive focus on soil health produces Chenin with incredible texture and purity. This list offers a rare chance to look at a vertical of his Clos du Breuil going back to 2015, alongside his Les Argiles, which is famously grown in Vouvray terroir but declassified to Vin de France by the authorities simply because his cellar sits across the river. Clos du Breuil is from flinty soils and leans quite linear, while Les Bournais is from young vines but on pure tuffeau. Les Bournais always needs time to fully express its verticality and structure.
    2015 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Clos du Breuil - 4 btls @ $50/btl
    2017 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Clos du Breuil - 8 btls @ $55/btl
    2017 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Les Bournais - 2 btls @ $65/btl
    2018 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Clos du Breuil - 9 btls @ $48/btl
    2019 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Clos du Breuil - 2 btls @ $45/btl
    2019 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Les Bournais - 1 btl @ $48/btl
    2020 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Clos du Breuil - 4 btls @ $45/btl
    2020 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Les Bournais - 6 btls @ $48/btl
    2023 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Clos du Breuil - 6 btls @ $41.99/btl ($37.79 with case discount)
    2023 Les Argiles, VdF - 11 btls @ $41.99/btl ($37.79 with case discount)
    2023 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Les Bournais - 8 btls @ $52.99/btl ($47.69 with case discount)

Domaine de la Taille aux Loups
Jacky Blot passed away in May of 2023, which means the older vintages on this list are among the final wines made by the visionary himself. His signature approach combined plowed soils, low yields, and Burgundian pragmatism to create impressive expressions of dry Chenin Blanc with no malolactic fermentation. Clos Mosny is sourced from 50-year-old vines on flint and always boasts a fruit-forward expression while remaining bone dry. Romulus is a very rare bottling made from botrytized Chenin Blanc grown on 70- to 80-year-old vines, and Les Hauts de Husseau is from 120-year-old own-rooted vines.
    2016 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Clos Mosny - 7 btls @ $56/btl
    2017 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Romulus - 2 btls @ $95/btl
    2024 Montlouis-Sur-Loire, Clos de Mosny - 12+ btls @ $45.99/btl
    2024 Montlouis-sur-Loire, Les Hauts de Husseau - 12+ btls @ $49.99/btl

Domaine Huet
Founded in 1928, Huet is the historical pinnacle of Vouvray. While the Huet family sold the domaine to the Hwang family in 2003, the estate's soul remains intact because the farming has never changed. The estate has been strictly biodynamic since 1990, and they still draw from the same three legendary vineyards: Le Haut-Lieu, Le Mont, and Clos du Bourg. These recent releases are made with the same exactitude that made Huet an icon in the first place.
    2019 Vouvray, Clos du Bourg Sec - 4 btls @ $50/btl
    2020 Vouvray, Le Haut-Lieu Demi-Sec - 1 btl @ $44/btl
    2023 Vouvray, Le Haut-Lieu Sec - 4 btls @ $43/btl ($38.70 with case discount)
    2024 Vouvray, Le Haut-Lieu Sec - 10 btls @ $47.99/btl ($43.19 with case discount)
    2024 Vouvray, Le Mont Sec - 12+ btls @ $53.99/btl ($48.59 with case discount)