Richard Leroy Les Noels de Montbenault Chenin 2020 Bottle (75cl)
Richard Leroy Les Noëls de Montbenault 2020 is a Loire white wine crafted by Richard Leroy from Chenin Blanc. This single-plot cuvée comes from the lieu-dit Les Noëls de Montbenault, located in Rablay-sur-Layon on a gentle slope featuring volcanic rock soils. The 2020 vintage thus expresses one of the two Chenin origins worked by the estate, alongside Les Rouliers.
La bouteille proposée
- Size
- Bottle (75cl)
- Packaging
- Loose
- Label Condition
- Perfect
- Fill Level
- Perfect
- Capsule Condition
- Perfect
Identité du vin
- Couleur
- White
- Pays
- France
- Région
- Loire
- Producteur / Domaine
- Richard Leroy
- Cuvée
- Les Noëls de Montbenault
- Millésime
- 2020
Cépage et assemblage
- Grape Variety
- 100% Chenin Blanc
Richard Leroy
Domaine Richard Leroy is a 2.7-hectare estate situated in Rablay-sur-Layon, in Anjou. Founded in 1996 by Sophie and Richard Leroy, it specialises in Chenin Blanc and cultivates, in particular, the ‘lieux-dits’ of Les Noëls de Montbenault and Le Clos des Rouliers. Certified organic, it has been marketing its dry wines under the ‘Vin de France’ designation since 2008.
- Owner
- Sophie et Richard Leroy
- Maître de chais
- Richard Leroy
- Surface (ha)
- 2.70 ha
- Production (average bottles per vintage)
- 8 000 bouteilles/an
Histoire du domaine
Richard Leroy, originally from the Vosges and then living in the Paris region, worked in the banking sector before changing careers. In 1996, Sophie and Richard Leroy bought two hectares of Chenin from Mr and Mrs Chêné in Rablay-sur-Layon and founded the estate. The first plot is situated at Les Noëls de Montbenault, on a terroir of volcanic rhyolite. Richard Leroy was supported in his early days by Joël and Christine Ménard, of the Domaine des Sablonnettes. They committed to organic farming from the outset, and the estate achieved certification in 2002. In 2000, the Leroy family moved to Rablay-sur-Layon; Richard Leroy became a full-time winegrower and acquired 70 ares at the Clos des Rouliers, on sandstone schist. Having initially produced sweet wines, he gradually shifted the estate’s focus towards dry Chenin whites. Since 2008, the wines have no longer been marketed under the Anjou appellation and are sold as ‘Vin de France’. Richard Leroy remains in charge of the estate and oversees the winemaking process himself.
Les Noëls de Montbenault
A Chenin wine from the Les Noëls de Montbenault plot, located on a terroir of rhyolitic volcanic rock in Rablay-sur-Layon. Initially vinified notably as a sweet wine under the Coteaux-du-Layon appellation, it has become a dry white, commercialized as Vin de France since the estate withdrew from the appellations. It is distinguished from the producer's other single-plot wine, Les Rouliers, by its terroir and a generally more powerful and dense expression.
- Origin of the cuvée name
- The cuvée takes its name from the lieu-dit and plot Les Noëls de Montbenault, acquired by Sophie and Richard Leroy in 1996.
- Cuvée creation year
- 1996
- Style of the cuvée
- A dry Chenin Blanc of high density, ample and powerful, marked by a fresh, saline and often smoky backbone linked to the volcanic terroir. Barrel aging and the concentration of the wine give it a structure that generally requires time to integrate.
- Position within the range
- One of the estate's two single-plot cuvées, originating from its founding and emblematic plot.
Histoire de la cuvée
In 1996, Sophie and Richard Leroy acquired two hectares of Chenin in Les Noëls de Montbenault, forming the initial core of the estate and its first wine. The first vinifications included sweet wines, after which production shifted towards dry Chenin. Following a period under the Anjou appellation, the estate has commercialized its wines as Vin de France since 2008.
