The Region
Chinon is a very significant red wine appellation in the Touraine District of the Loire. The vineyards extend south of the Loire on the banks of the Vienne. The region's most famous son, the early 16th century writer François Rabelais, did much to promote the wines of Chinon. Today, it is the gastronomic writers of Paris who have done much to increase the demand for "Chinon". The distinct style of a fuller, long-term Bourgueil-like wine comes from vineyards on the Tuffeau limestone slopes and plateaux, most notably the south-facing slopes of Cravant-les-Côteaux, where Domaine Chauveau is located.
Chinon Red Wine
This wine is produced from the A.O.C. varietal Cabernet Franc, which was selected by an abbot named "Breton" to be planted at the Abbaye de St. Nicholas-de-Bourgueil in the Loire. Cabernet Franc is particularly well-suited to cool inland climates, such as the middle Loire, producing wines with a marked fragrance and more immediate fruit than its offspring: Cabernet Sauvignon. In 1997, "DNA Fingerprinting" established that Cabernet Franc, along with Sauvignon Blanc, was a parent of Cabernet Sauvignon.
The Cravant-les-Côteaux red wines of Chinon exhibit tasty, ripe, decadent and complex black cherry fruit with dark olive and a firm mineral edge. Aromas of mocha, anise and spice, with nuances of expresso, accompany the wine.
Chinon White Wine
Chinon's white wine is produced from the native varietal Pineau de la Loire. Galet suggests that it may have been well established in Anjou in the ninth century and exported to Touraine in the fifteenth century. Rabelais certainly wrote about it often as "Pineau d'Anjou."
The wine exhibits floral aromas with refreshingly vibrant crisp acidity and a physically thrilling concentration of honeyed melon flavours. A unique quality of this white wine is the fact that it has great cellar aging potential, and will outlast most other white varietals.
Chinon Rosé Wine
Rosé de Loire, a relatively important appellation, was created in 1974 in keeping with the fashionable rosé wines very much in vogue today. Chinon rosé is produced from the prized Cabernet Franc grape with the distinction that it is always "dry".
The Rosé of Domaine Daniel Chauveau is seductive, well-balanced and easy drinking, with flavours of strawberries framed with vanilla. Aromas of lavender and violet accompany the wine, which finishes with a crisp palette-stimulating acidity.