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Domaine Huet

"Turn right in one hundred metres" intoned Sheila, as my children have christened our in-car satellite navigation system, "now arriving at Dumeeen Huey-aw". Sheila's navigational skills are remarkable, but her mangling of French pronunciation never fails to raise a smile. Not to worry, we all have our faults. Today she has directed us, without one wrong turn, to the door of Domaine Huet in Vouvray, and for that I can forgive her linguistic shortcomings.

Although I must confess Sheila has accompanied me on this journey purely out of habit (and also the desire to visit a few less familiar domaines later in the day, I admit). For this is perhaps my fifth visit to Domaine Huet in a similar number of years, and I am certain that I could guide my car quite faultlessly to the Huet cellars without my electronic guide, as indeed I have done in recent years, before I availed myself of my sat-nav. The location of Domaine Huet, and Philippe Foreau who resides just up the road, has become engrained on the map of Vouvray that resides inside my head, firmly etched on the 'wine centre' of my cerebral cortex.

This certainty is a far cry, however, from my first ever visit to Vouvray many, many years ago when I circled the town again and again, map in one hand, steering wheel in the other. I hoped for guidance from the wine atlas on the seat beside me, but it was not to be; the maps were easy on the eye, but their accuracy left something to be desired. Domaine Huet was definitely not where the map said it was. Eventually, by sheer trial and error, I found the Huet cellars, and my affair with the wines of this domaine began in earnest. Today, when I look at the accurate maps and satellite images available on the internet, I wonder how I ever could have been lost, but I remind myself that, without such detailed information, it is only too easy when landing in an unfamiliar town for the first time.

Why return to the same domaine so many times? There are many good reasons. For some, Domaine Huet defines the Vouvray appellation (indeed for some it defines the Loire Valley beyond their cursory knowledge of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé). The domaine's relevance to the appellation, the roles that its guardians have played over the years, and the supreme quality of the wines produced here cannot be over-estimated. This is a benchmark domaine, its relevance extending in fact far beyond the confines of the Loire, its wines deserving of comparison with those from the Côte d'Or and Chablis as much as with Savennières or Sancerre. It should come as no surprise that this domaine is one of the most prominently featured on this site, the most frequently tasted, the wines most regularly written up. This profile brings together all my knowledge of Huet, picked up from not only my multitude of visits to the domaine, but also meeting and tasting with Noël Pinguet several times, including the annual Salon in Angers and tastings in London, and it of course reflects my natural tendency to drink the wines at home (the domaine dominates the producer list in my cellar software) and, when the opportunity arises, in restaurants.

Victor & Anna-Constance

Despite this domaine's great significance the history of Domaine Huet l'Echansonne, to use its full title, is not a long one. This is perhaps surprising when one considers, as I have alluded above, that no account of Vouvray, and perhaps of all the wines of the Loire, would be complete without discussion of Victor Huet, his son Gaston, the third generation in the shape of Noël Pinguet, and the portfolio of vineyards that they have tended over the years.

It was Victor and his wife Anna-Constance - after who Cuvée Constance (shown left) was named when first released in 1989 - that planted the seed that grew into the domaine as we know it today. Although his ancestry can be traced back to the Loire Victor had spread his wings, and was making a living running a bistro in a small village in La France Profonde. A veteran of World War I and exposed to mustard gas in the trenches, Victor began to experience respiratory difficulties, and decided on medical advice to give up his bistro and return to the Loire, to take advantage of the cleaner air of the countryside. His original intention had been to take up forestry, but when Anna-Constance spotted the house above the 3-hectare Le Haut Lieu vineyard on the rue de la Croix Buisée she set her heart on it, and thus a new opportunity presented itself to Victor. A deal was struck between the then proprietor Monsieur Massé and the Huets, and in November 1928 Victor and Anna-Constance took possession of the property. Thus Domaine Huet was born, and the Huets themselves embarked on their new lives as vignerons. Having acquired the estate late in the year, their first vintage was 1929.

Victor's son, Gaston, had been born in 1910, and so by the time the family came to Le Haut Lieu he was already 18 years of age. Whilst Victor set about making the wines Gaston left to study agriculture, and when he returned to the family home in the mid-1930s he was naturally on course to take over the running of the domaine. But fate had other plans for Gaston, at least for the time being; war broke out in Europe yet again, and Gaston found himself enlisted in the French army. And so Victor carried on at the domaine whilst his son went off to war.

Le Maire Gaston

An excellent account of Gaston's adventures during World War II can be found in Wine and War (Coronet, 2002) by Don and Petie Kladstrup. Having been captured in Calais in 1940 he was interned for the remainder of the war, for which I suspect some of his fellow prisoners were eternally grateful. Life in a prisoner of war camp must have been just that little more bearable for Gaston's presence, thanks to his habit of organising wine dinners (despite their meagre provisions), and arranging celebrations of French viticultural life using bottles of wine posted into the camp by the inmates' families. Although such tales have an innate charm, we should not forget of course that such imprisonment must have been a gruelling ordeal; when Gaston was eventually liberated he was a weak and shrunken man, who nevertheless had the grit to walk home across France to his native Vouvray. He found - as did many of France's vignerons - overgrown and untended vines, the cellars and equipment in disarray and disrepair. Both Huet the domaine, and Huet the man, needed some years to recover from their respective tribulations.

Shortly before Gaston left to take up arms he married Germaine Foreau, André Foreau's sister and thus an aunt of the aforementioned Philippe Foreau, who today runs the other very significant domaine on the rue de la Croix Buisée. Before war broke out they had one daughter, Jacqueline, and following his return two more, Jean and Marie-Françoise. With his family complete, including one son who was no doubt anticipated to be the next doyen of Domaine Huet when he retired, Gaston set about his work to the benefit of both the domaine and the appellation as a whole. Indeed, his erstwhile activities deserve more than a mere passing mention. Elected mayor of the town in 1947, he served in this role for more than four decades, only giving up his office in 1989. During this time he held numerous influential positions on several committees, including Conseiller Général of Indre-et-Loire, vice president of the local growers syndicat, and Loire representative on a number of INAO committees. Although his remit was broad, his most significant accomplishment may well have been in the 1980s, when he ensured the new TGV line was routed underneath the vines of Vouvray, rather than right through them. Many hectares of precious vineyards were saved.

The Huet Vineyards

As I have already mentioned Gaston also set about augmenting his holding of vines in Le Haut Lieu. From small beginnings, the domaine has grown, and today it takes up 35 hectares of the Vouvray appellation, of which 23 hectares are accounted for by three very significant vineyards. Before continuing on with this tale of Huet inheritance, it seems appropriate at this moment to take a look at these three Huet lieux-dits, starting with Le Haut Lieu.

This vineyard is the nidus around which the domaine has grown, but in the 21st century it looks rather different to the vineyard that Victor and Anna-Constance first caught sight of back in 1928. Initially just 3 hectares, Gaston increased the area committed to vines and acquired some neighbouring vineyards. Today there are 9 hectares of vines in Le Haut Lieu, situated alongside the rue de la Croix Buisée; to locate the vineyard and property, continue up past the Huet cellars, past the Foreau residence and cellars, taking a left when the road forks. Continue on about 200 metres and vines will appear on the left and beyond these, another 500 metres on, is the original Huet residence. The Haut Lieu vines themselves lie to the east, on the opposite side of the rue de la Croix Buisée.

Around Le Haut Lieu there are another 12 hectares of 'non-lieu-dit' vines, two-thirds owned by Huet and the rest rented; these are useful for the production of Huet's sparkling wines, but if of sufficient quality these wines may be absorbed into the Haut Lieu cuvée. Much is made of terroir at Huet (as it should be), and indeed any visitor to the domaine's cellars can inspect cross-sections of soils which are on display in the tasting room. The bedrock across all three is limestone or tuffeau, the pale stone which runs across much of this section of the Loire right down to Saumur. Soft and easily worked, it has yielded many thousands of tons for the region's elegant chateaux, but has also facilitated the creation of many kilometres of underground caves, cellars and troglodytic dwellings, often tunnelled out with nothing more than simple hand tools. At Le Haut Lieu the bedrock lies up to four metres down, the soils above aubuis (as in Domaine des Aubuisières), a mix of heavy, brown clay and chalk. This combination gives the wines of Le Haut Lieu a reputation for being the earliest drinkers, although this should not be taken as implying that they can not age well for many decades.

Next to join the Huet portfolio was the Clos du Bourg, and for many modern fans of Huet this is their favourite from amongst the three lieux-dits. The vineyard in question lies to the west of the main Huet cellars, and if approaching by car I feel the best way is to continue along past the residence at Haut Lieu as described above, taking a left turn at the next junction, and then taking first left again, so you are heading back towards Vouvray itself. Continue along this road about 600 metres until you reach the cemetery, and the Clos du Bourg is the vineyard on your right. A true clos, surrounded by a high stone wall (even if it is a little tumbledown in places), the vineyard sits on the first slope above the eastern part of the town, including the church, the spire of which is visible beyond the expanse of vines within.

There is considerable history here, records indicating the existence of the Clos du Bourg as long ago as the 7th century when it was owned by the collegiate church of St Martin de Tours. A 6-hectare lieu-dit previously owned by Charles Vavasseur, also a onetime mayor of Vouvray, Gaston Huet acquired the vineyard in 1953. The bedrock is the same tuffeau that extends eastwards towards Le Haut Lieu and Le Mont, although the topsoil here is much shallower, up to a metre deep at most. Perhaps it is this need for the roots of the vines to penetrate the solid limestone below that imbues the cuvées from the Clos du Bourg with a greater sense of power than those from le Haut Lieu?

The third member of the Huet triumvirate of vineyards is Le Mont, another site just to the east of the Huet cellars. The vineyards lie further down the slope than those of Le Haut Lieu (which as the name suggests is much higher up the slope), sitting on the same slope as the Clos du Bourg to the west. There are 6 hectares of vines here, in a vineyard acquired by Gaston Huet in 1957.

Like those of the Clos du Bourg, the wines here are long-lived, despite the soils here being deeper than those found at the clos; the roots of the vines must penetrate several metres of earth before they hit the limestone bedrock beneath. Perhaps the soil type contributes in some way to the style of wine; here the greenish clay is mixed with flint, a terroir known locally as perruches, and indeed above the lieu-dit there is a road running down to the rue de la Croix Buisée named the Voie des Perruches. This is probably the best way to get a glimpse of the vines; travel up the rue de la Croix Buisée away from the Huet cellars, but instead of taking the fork to the left towards Le Haut Lieu, keep right along the Perruches road; the vines of Le Mont lie to your right. Alternatively you could try to view the vineyard from the bottom; this does not afford such a rewarding view of the vines, but it does provide a glimpse of another quite significant Huet asset which lies at the foot of the lieu-dit.

Here, in an unassuming property connected to the main Huet cellars (which lie just to the northwest) by a stone staircase carved from the rock in 1968 to celebrate their marriage, resides the modern-day doyen of Domaine Huet, Noël Pinguet, and his wife, Gaston's daughter Marie-Françoise. And, leaving behind this account of the Huet lieux-dits, it is Noël who is the next player in the story of Domaine Huet.

Noël Pinguet & Anthony Hwang

With the passing of the years it is natural for the vigneron to look to the next generation to take on the family domaine, but Gaston's son, Jean, was not interested. He and his father did not see eye-to-eye, and he left home the same year as the marriage between Noël and Marie-Françoise, eventually carving out a successful career as a photographer. And so it was Gaston's son-in-law Noël (right) who stepped up to the plate.

Noël had no real viticultural training; he was not descended from vignerons, and he only met Marie-Françoise by chance when studying mathematics in Paris. Nevertheless within a couple of years of their marriage they were ensconced in the little house at the foot of Le Mont, and Noël, leaving behind a life of number-crunching, began to work alongside his father-in-law in the vineyard. Five years later he took complete control of the domaine, although naturally Gaston was never very far away.

In the latter years of Gaston's life the two worked together, coaxing even higher quality from an already exalted collection of vines. Initially it was only natural that Noël changed very little, but with the time he came to stamp his authority more firmly. An important step was the conversion to biodynamic viticulture, a change instigated by Noël who wished to move away from the dependence on chemical vineyard treatments, pesticides and herbicides. He met up with Nicolas Joly of Clos de la Coulée de Serrant, and was interested enough to switch over a trial portion of the vineyard - with Gaston's agreement of course - to biodynamic methods in 1988. The results were such that by 1990 the whole estate was cultivated according to the teachings of Rudolf Steiner, with full Demeter certification, making Noël and Domaine Huet amongst the earliest converts to the technique. The domaine remains entirely biodynamic to this day.

In 2002 Gaston Huet died, leaving Noël to run the domaine, but without any clear line of inheritance thereafter. Curiously, Noël has found himself in the same position as his father-in-law had before him; Jean and Jacqueline remain just as disinterested in Domaine Huet as ever, and neither of Noël and Marie-Françoise's daughters, Anne and Carine, were looking to take on the life of a Vouvray vigneronne. And so as a result the domaine was offered for sale, and in 2003 the Filipino-American financier Anthony Hwang struck a deal with Noël in which he took an 80% stake in the new Société Huet, with Noël taking the other 20%. Financially secure, Noël's next task was to look for the 'next generation', so to speak, somebody to replace him on his retirement when he reaches 70 years of age, in 2015. He found it in a young Vouvrillon named Benjamin Joliveau, the son of a local vigneron and one of Noël's friends. Benjamin, who has gained some experience with several stages in other wine regions both in France and further afield, began work at Huet in 2009, so there is plenty of time for him to get to know the vineyards and their wines before Noël hands over full responsibility.

Despite this fundamental change in ownership little has changed in terms of philosophy, style or winemaking at Domaine Huet. Although there are perhaps some signs of investment at the cellars, a result of Hwang's backing perhaps? When I first visited, many years ago, I am sure I tasted the wines in the chill of the cavernous storage warehouse, with nothing more than a trestle-table dressed with a paper table-cloth to suggest that this might also be a tasting venue. In more recent years a tiny room at the back of the house on the rue de la Croix Buisée was put to use for tastings, but in 2009 construction of a splendid new tasting room (above) was completed. 

Vines, Harvest & Vinification

Each of the three core Huet vineyards contains a balance of young and old vines, in fairly exact proportions; 15% between 1 and 10 years, 35% between 10 and 30 years and 50% between 30 and 50 years. These exactitudes reflect a policy of gradual replacement of old or dying plants on a single vine-by-vine basis rather than the whole scale uprooting and replanting of vineyards. Vine care is biodynamic, as described above, with some use of copper when required for the treatment of mildew.

The Huet grapes are hand harvested, which enables picking by successive tries – each tri being a separate pass by the workers through the vineyard. This enables the selection of only the best bunches of ripest or even botrytised grapes. The best selection is destined for the première trie wines; these are not, despite the name suggesting it, merely the first picking in the vineyard. These wines are made from the highest quality, botrytised fruit, which may of course be brought in on second, third or subsequent tries, depending on the weather and how rapidly or slowly the botrytis develops.

The wines, which naturally are 100% Chenin Blanc, undergo temperature-controlled fermentation in large, old oak demi-muids as well as stainless steel vats. There is no encouragement of the malolactic fermentation, thus the vast majority of Huet wines remain rich in malic acid, a character that brings an age-worthiness to the wines. In late 2009 at a tasting of the 2008 vintage Noël told me that in his experience only two wines had managed to undergo spontaneous malolactic, these being the 2008 Clos du Bourg Moelleux Première Trie we had just tasted, and one cuvée from the 2003 vintage.

The wines usually see an early bottling, typically during the spring following the vintage, and so even though they remain cloudy and sweetly-fruited when tasted at the annual Salon in February by the time summer comes they are ready for tasting, and purchase if desired, at the domaine.

The Wines of Domaine Huet

As with many of Vouvray's domaines there is a large range of styles produced here, sparkling and still, dry and sweet. It is worth considering some of the finer points of these wines in a little more detail.

Although when we focus on Vouvray it is often on the beautiful sweet wines of the region, or perhaps the vibrant sec or under-rated and often over-looked demi-sec cuvées, the truth is the vast majority of the appellation is dedicated to sparkling wine, much of it rather lacklustre. This is not true of Huet's efforts of course, which are based on high-quality fruit rather than the under-ripe grapes which are often channelled into sparkling wines by the region's less devoted producers.

In recent years Huet has offered two styles of sparkling wine, the first being a mousseux made in the méthode traditionelle, that is a bottling made à la Champagne, a vin clair bottled with yeast and sugar for the second fermentation. This is the first sparkling wine to be offered by Huet, and with a pressure of 4-6 atmospheres it has a bead and mousse very reminiscent of Champagne, even if the flavours belie the wine's true origins.

More recently (although on reflection it is actually many years ago now) Noël Pinguet began to experiment with a méthode ancestrale, an increasingly popular practice if the number of examples I encounter from Vouvray producers at the Salon are anything to judge by. In this case the wine is bottled before the primary fermentation is finished, the result being a lower pressure sparkling wine - the pétillant style - because only a portion of the fermentation occurs within the bottle. Although it is not strictly necessary to add anything when bottling, Pinguet favours the addition of yeast to ensure the fermentation progresses smoothly. Once finished the wine is disgorged and then topped up with an aliquot of a sympathetic cuvée in order to achieve a dosage usually in the order of 10 g/l. In the case of the 2005 Pétillant, for example, decanted bottles of the 2002 Le Mont Première Trie were used.

Any tasting of the still wines naturally begins with the sec cuvées, wines which could once be relied upon to possess in the region of 3 to 5 g/l of residual sugar. In recent years, however, it is notable that the residual has been creeping up, and most recent vintages have between 10 and 15 g/l. This is not so much sec as sec-tendre; not overtly sweet, the sugar is usually balanced out by the fine acidity, but the wines are certainly richer and more fleshy than they once were; it is a development that has not been to everybody's taste. I must confess, however, that I still find the wines very appealing, and they cellar very well indeed. At 10 to 15 years these wines are still babies, drinking beautifully, and for some this is when the drinking window truly starts. Personally I find they drink well from the very beginning, and have enjoyed Huet's sec Vouvrays at all ages, sometimes after a year or two in bottle, sometimes many more.

The demi-sec wines of Domaine Huet are archetypal Vouvray. The division of the harvest into wines of different must weights, by running several tries through the vineyard and by careful selection, is a very welcome manipulation (because it gives us those savoury sec cuvées, and of course the fabulous sweet wines), but what the vineyard would give us if taken as a unified whole is probably a demi-sec wine. Demi-sec cuvées are thus perhaps the truest expression of Vouvray, no matter how delicious the other styles might be; thus, by extrapolation, if you don't know the appellation's demi-sec wines, then you don't know Vouvray.

The concentration of residual sugar in a demi-sec cuvée is traditionally in the order of 10-20 g/l, although in practice - as with the sec cuvées - the typical figure has been creeping up in recent years. But what counts is balance, and these wines certainly achieve that. Put together the right combination of sugar and acidity and you get a rich and fleshy wine, rather than an overtly sweet one. With age this becomes even more pronounced, the wines becoming drier and yet, paradoxically, more honeyed with increasingly advanced maturity. These are complex and evolving wines which should not be ignored. Sadly many drinkers do ignore the demi-sec wines, and this is noticeable in the opinions and scores of many critics who also seem to overlook them. Their excuse might be that they can find no use for the wines when paired up with modern cuisine, but this is an inadequate response as there are many fine potential matches, from the arenas of seafood, pork and poultry in particular, and I think as the wines go into early maturity this becomes even easier. As they mature even further, and develop greater complexity, they prefer to be sipped on their own I think.

These sweeter cuvées seem to have no shortage of acolytes of course, especially once we pass beyond the limits of the straight moelleux cuvées, which have typically more than 30 g/l residual sugar, and move into the realms of the moelleux première trie, which might have between 60-100 g/l. There is more than just sweetness here though, these wines possess all the complexity of botrytised fruit; as I have already stressed above, these cuvées do not originate simply from the first picking of fruit, but is rather a highly-tuned selection of nobly-rotten fruit from any number of passes though the vines. The most extreme expression of this botrytis-driven style is Cuvée Constance, an occasional release created with the 1989 vintage and named for Gaston's mother. The 1989 is an exalted cuvée which was followed by the 1993, less of a success, a wine subsequently withdrawn and re-released as a Première Trie from Le Haut Lieu. I have the wine in my cellar, under both labels, and am merely waiting for the right moment to carry out a comparative tasting to see if they really are one and the same ( I know they are, but tasting for yourself is one of wine's great pleasures). Then came 1995 and 1997, and moving into the next century 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2009.

In very recent vintages use has also been made of the Vodanis vineyard alongside Le Mont, Le Haut Lieu and the Clos du Bourg, where a sec was produced. The commonly encountered vintage was the 2001, when Domaine Huet rented the vines and had control over the entire process from harvest through to bottling. There was none produced in 2002, and in 2003 newly arrived investor Anthony Hwang stated that the quality was insufficient for Domaine Huet, and that there would be no more wines from Vodanis; this perception that the wine never lived up the name of Huet may be why some bottles in the UK market were simply labelled Domaine de Vodanis, with no mention of Domaine Huet anywhere to be seen, although the label design was unmistakeably Huet.

That 2001 was the one and only vintage seemed to have been confirmed when I visited the domaine that year, but on subsequent visits I see there are also 2003 and 2004 vintages of Vodanis available. Whereas the 2001 has always been listed with the Domaine Huet wines, namely those from the three exalted vineyards listed above, it is notable that the 2003 and 2004 were listed under the Sélection Noël Pinguet, known today as the Vins l'Echansonne. This is another side to the Huet coin, a négociant arm; alongside these more recent vintages of Vodanis, there is also a sparkling Cuvée l'Echansonne Vouvray Brut, Chinon from Domaine Philippe Pinard and Tokay from Domaine de Királyudvar (which as Huet fans will know is also owned by Anthony Hwang, and which has a significant level of consultancy from Noël Pinguet).

There are a few other unusual wines that might be encountered. In 1980 there was a late-harvest vin de glace; I've never tasted this cuvée, although it is still widely available. In addition there was once a sparkling Touraine Rosé, a wine once used to quench the thirst of the harvest team. Today a similar wine may still be found listed within the Huet négoce list.

Huet Opinion

As I have already mentioned in my discourse on the demi-sec category, nothing vexes me more than those critics who fail to see past the sugar in Vouvray. Yes, I understand that the great première trie moelleux wines, protected by their admirable but often not monumental sugar concentrations and also their firm acidities, have the capability to age and take on the rich complexity that can not be replicated by any method other than long years of patient cellaring. But are they automatically superior to the demi-sec wines, and are they in turn automatically superior to the sec cuvées, by virtue of the fact that they have more sugar, or perhaps in the case of the moelleux wines a tinge of botrytis complexity? The answer is plainly no, but if this is the case why do so many critics persistently provide ascending scores for the sec, demi-sec and moelleux cuvées, as if the prime defining feature of a great wine in every vintage is how sweet it is? It is because they are seduced by sugar. The losers here are the demi-secs, because the sec cuvées will still sell, but the ill-informed buyer looking for a sweeter wine will look at the ratings for the demi-sec and the moelleux cuvées and then dismiss the former as an inadequate imitation, a wine that wasn't 'good enough' to be 'properly' sweet and which was scored low as a result. It is a sorry state of affairs, one which I felt manifested particularly in the 2008 vintage, a year in which the demi-sec cuvées reined supreme, and yet so many writers couldn't draw their ogling gaze away from the première trie wines, it seemed. I know I am repeating myself here, but if you truly wish to know Vouvray, and in particular the wines of Domaine Huet, then I urge you to give the demi-sec cuvées a try.

Looking beyond the issue of the demi-sec cuvées to the broader Huet style, it is only natural that the character of the wines depends on the vintage as well as the terroir, with the best years such as 1989 and 1947 being defined by great wines of marvellous longevity. Such exalted cuvées can sell for exorbitant sums (although surprisingly some can still be picked up at auction at very favourable prices), but thankfully there are more recent vintages of similar standing where the prices are much more friendly to the wallet; look for the wines of 2002 and 2005 across the board, also 2008 for demi-sec cuvées, and do not ignore 2009 especially for the moelleux cuvées but also the rich and fleshy sec wines from all three lieux-dits.

As well as the vintage, the vineyard also makes its mark. The première trie wines from the Clos du Bourg in a good vintage, for example, are among the most sought after wines of the Loire, and rightly so; they can be magnificent. The same for Cuvée Constance. But again, do not ignore the sec cuvées and the wonderful pétillant wines, as only the trophy hunter focuses exclusively on the exalted and the rare. At every level, the wines of Domaine Huet are excellent; pure, defined, minerally, lively and elegant. These are wines that can be drunk young (although - as already noted - I know some who swear that opening a bottle before ten years of age is a criminal act) but which also have a remarkable propensity for aging, even with the sec and certainly with the demi-sec cuvées. This is why the wines of Noël Pinguet and Domaine Huet, a benchmark domaine not only for the Loire but globally, can be found in my cellar. And it is why Sheila, regardless of my now certain knowledge of the domaine's location, has among her 'favourites' list the co-ordinates for Domaine Huet, on the rue de la Croix Buisée, 37210 Vouvray. (2/10/03, last updated 18/8/10)

Contact details:
Address: 11, rue de la Croix Buisée, BP 34, 37210 Vouvray
Telephone: +33 (0) 2 47 52 78 87
Fax: +33 (0) 2 47 52 66 74
Internet: www.huet-echansonne.com

Domaine Huet - Tasting Notes

Organising such an array of tasting notes, with so many different styles and vineyards involved, can be difficult. Eventually I decided, within each vintage, to order my notes as follows; first the pétillant, then the three principle vineyards in the order Le Haut Lieu, Le Mont, Clos du Bourg, then any other wines. Within each vineyard I run from sec through to moelleux. Many wines have multiple tasting notes; the most recent are always listed first. Click to locate stockists.

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2009: A finely floral nose here, full of youthful apples and pears, and on the palate a broad and attractive flesh. It seems dry although certainly rich, in keeping with the fairly high residual sugar in Huet's sec cuvées these days, backed up by good acidity. Delicious for drinking now, although no doubt cellaring will bring benefits. From a 2010 Huet update. 17.5+/20 (July 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2009: The aromas here are reminiscent of fine pears, aromatic, very pure but with finesse rather than power. A very fine character on the palate, slightly sappy, and a good texture. Floral, delicate, as these wines can be in their youth. Delicate and balanced, but fanning out into a lovely broad finish like the proverbial peacock's tail. Excellent potential here. From a 2010 Huet update. 17.5-18.5+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Moelleux 2009: A beautiful nose here, youthful and floral, and there is a fine palate to follow on from this first impression. Exotic, rich, well defined, well-layered with wonderful flesh from the residual sugar and good fruit complexity too. A very fine effort for the standard moelleux. Lots of length in the finish too. From a 2010 Huet update. 17.5+/20 (July 2010)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2009: A very floral nose here, tighter and more concentrated than Le Haut Lieu in this vintage, and not so expressive. A fine, stone fruit style, lovely texture, firm and finely balanced. There is a lot of good substance here, great built-up structure and a fine length too. This is an impressive wine with plenty of promise. From a 2010 Huet update. 17-18+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux 2009: A lovely nose here, deeper and more reserved than the Haut Lieu, although still fresh, youthful and floral. On the palate a very bright character, substantial and fleshy, with a wonderfully floral composition. A very fine effort at this level. From a 2010 Huet update. 18+/20 (July 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Première Trie 2009: This wine has a very pure and intense nose, with fine aromatics, with nuances of yellow plum, star fruit and vanilla. The palate is similarly fabulous, broad and elegant, very persistent and pure and polished. An excellent wine with huge potential for the cellar. From a 2010 Huet update. 19+/20 (July 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Première Trie 2009: Residual sugar 93 g/l. This vineyard has also given a première trie wine in this most successful of vintages, and on the nose it displays a pure, minerally, pear and apple fruit character. The palate has wonderful harmony, a very balanced, fresh and floral style, with a fine linear substance. A perfectly composed wine, ethereal and lifted. This is wonderful, a grand vin with the potential to age for decades if not a century. Wonderful. From a 2010 Huet update. 18.5-19+/20 (February 2010)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux Première Trie 2009: Great minerality here, more so than the Le Mont I think. This comes though on the palate especially, which although broad and impressive like the Le Mont also has a fine-grained character surely reflecting the wine's terroir. Incredible and a must for the cellar for all long-term Huet fans. From a 2010 Huet update. 19-19.5+/20 (July 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux Première Trie 2009: Residual sugar 92 g/l. This is vibrantly aromatic with the intense, sweet pear fruit that these wines display in their youth. The palate has gorgeous purity, fine composition with great acidity. A honeyed texture, vibrant flavour and great purity. A vinous tour de force, with marvellous tension behind the sweetness and wonderful balance. Great wine. From a 2010 Huet update. 18-18.5+/20 (February 2010)

Constance

Domaine Huet Vouvray Cuvée Constance 2009: This is Huet's top sweet cuvée, first introduced with the 1989 vintage, this being (if I have my sums correct) the eighth release since then. Residual sugar 153 g/l. This has a mouth-watering nose, with concentrated and sweet stone fruit, with a powerful autumnal, appley character, juxtaposed against a fresh vibrancy. Wow - the palate has an amazing start, showing vibrantly precise acidity, with lots of gentle, creamed, honeyed fruit. Brilliant precision and vigour, a broader midpalate, so rich and also so well balanced. A truly evocative wine, superbly appealing, and an invoker of deep contemplation for sure. From a 2010 Huet update. 18.5-19.5+/20 (February 2010)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2008: Residual sugar here is 15 g/l. Minerally nose, fresh, with rounded pear fruit, aromatic, a touch floral even, and more integrated that when tasted in February. The palate is harmonious, full and fruit-rich. Ripe fruit, with a good midpalate grip, and overall a lovely fresh quality. Good substance, very toothsome, and it has lots of spicy length. Really fine. From a tasting of the 2008 vintage in London. 17.5+/20 (September 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2008: Unfinished and certainly still cloudy wine. The nose is very attractive though, fruit-rich, with vibrantly precise pear aromas. The palate is similarly bursting with fruit, with good midpalate substance and grip, and a fine acidity too. Broad, peppery but precise, this has excellent potential. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17-17.5+/20 (February 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 2008: A great vintage for demi-sec, and I have been intent on adding some to the cellar. Intense character, honeyed richness, broad and fleshy on the palate, grippy with plenty of structure. Although it is packed with substance there is also elegance here, and as usual this wine shows in a very impressive fashion. Great potential. From a 2010 Huet update. 18.5+/20 (July 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 2008: The third time with this wine which I tasted in February and September last year; it is showing a consistent and delicious style. A beautiful essence of white peach and spring flowers on the nose, with a lovely seam of stony minerality too. A finely composed palate, textured, with appealing substance. A great and vibrant style, overall a super wine which is surely one of Huet's greatest demi-secs ever. From a 2010 Huet update. 18.5+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 2008: Residual sugar here is 27 g/l. This has a beautiful and captivating nose, to describe it as breath-taking would not be over the top. There are complex nuances here, of fresh vanilla pod, beeswax and crystalline flower petals. All the same it does have it does have a rather softer, rounded character than Le Mont today. Full, fleshy, flattering, with lovely tingling acidity at its core though. Great bright fruit, honeyed and stylish, rounded, with a fine supporting backbone of grip. There is a background touch of caramel richness in the end too. Long finish. Stunning wine. From a tasting of the 2008 vintage in London. 18.5+/20 (September 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 2008: There is 27 g/l of residual sugar in this cuvée. It kicks off with a very attractive, floral nose with a pretty, aromatic character over gently golden fruits, although I suspect with time this will show more richness on the nose. The palate is just fabulous; explosive, lively and vivacious, before revealing a firm and stony backbone in the midpalate, a broad sweetness and fine acids. Great balance right through to the finish. Brilliant wine. An update from the 2009 Salon. 18-18.5+/20 (February 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Moelleux 2008: Residual sugar here is 54 g/l. A fine, fresh-fruit nose here, with a touch of exoticism too, and nuances of honey, caramel and thyme. There is a crystalline element to the fruit. Very open and gentle, soft and broad, but with a little more grip and punch through the midpalate. Good acidity, although overall it is less well defined than some of the preceding wines. Delicious flavour though, round and polished but a little plump. This will make good drinking, will cellar well, and may offer good value. From a tasting of the 2008 vintage in London. 17+/20 (September 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Moelleux 2008: The sugar here is 54 g/l. The nose carries a touch of floral honey, but it is a broad and minerally character which dominates most. The palate is beautifully flattering, with fleshy richness but also good freshness, acidity and a stylish, elegant character. This is a broad wine with lovely balance of structure, but it is not a huge wine. I prefer the two preceding demi-secs on this tasting. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17-17.5+/20 (February 2009)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2008: The nose here is floral, with elements of rich beeswax and certain complexity. Great composure, supple, with spicy elements behind the ripe layer of fruit. This has a very fine grip; what a superb wine this is. Another wine which will be delicious to drink at all stages in its evolution, which will slowly unfold over the coming half century (and perhaps beyond). From a 2010 Huet update. 18.5+/20 (July 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2008: Another pop at this superb wine, today showing a great expression and wonderful depth. Floral and rich in citrus fruit, minerally and displaying good tension. A fine presence on the palate, finely balanced, great substance underpinned by vibrant acidity. Deeply mineral as the nose suggested, structured, with very fine potential. Superb. Although on my last tasting I just preferred the demi-sec from Le Haut Lieu on this tasting I just can't separate them. Lovely wines. From a 2010 Huet update. 18.5+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2008: Residual sugar here is 27 g/l. This has a beautiful nose, floral and aromatic, fresh with waxy fruits and crystallised flower petals. The palate is similarly very fine, not really sweet just full-textured and generous. Lots of bright substance. A little plumpness through the middle, fresh and balanced, and with good grip. True harmony here. This is great wine, very substantial, very good length too. From a tasting of the 2008 vintage in London. 18+/20 (September 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2008: This also has 27 g/l residual sugar. It is a little more withdrawn than the Haut Lieu tasted alongside, perhaps showing a more mineral character, with tense, tightly wound fruit. The palate has acidity and minerality to the fore, and seems to be at the drier end of the demi-sec spectrum on the palate despite the residual sugar figure. It has a gentle, fleshy roundness but a great minerally character and a precise and defined nature. More serious, but no less brilliant. An update from the 2009 Salon. 18-18.5+/20 (February 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Première Trie 2008: A third time to taste this wine. A very expressive wine here, finely mineral, quite intense. Beautifully pure on the palate, very nicely poised, with a fine acid core. Very broad, but also linear, defined, elegant in terms of structure and flavour. A brilliant, quite tense composition. This is a superb effort that should age for decades. From a 2010 Huet update. 18+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Première Trie 2008: Residual sugar here is 65 g/l. Not so open or expressive on the nose as some of the other wines. This is reserved, tight, with some honeyed fruits. Fleshy and very fine on entry though, broad. flowing out nicely on the palate. It seems to display much more aromatic character on the palate than the nose brings forth. It is, despite that initial reticence, remarkably attractive. Broad and appealing, very rich, stylish, sweetly polished but rich and more savoury rather than simply sweet. Very long. From a tasting of the 2008 vintage in London. 18+/20 (September 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Première Trie 2008: This cuvée carries 65 g/l of residual sugar. It has a fairly reticent nose today, gently mineral, but with the suggestion of precision. It has a greater texture and vinosity than the straight moelleux, with powerful midpalate minerality and a broad, textured finished spiced with brighter mineral notes. Rich but also elegant, with great potential. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17.5-18+/20 (February 2009)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Sec 2008: Residual sugar here is 13 g/l. Pears, honeyed fruits, floral tones, very fresh. Very good style on entry, a touch fatter than Le Haut Lieu, and more spice here too. More depth. Still a delicious wine, just as it was in Angers. Lots of grip and spice in the midpalate here, and overall really great substance, leading into a fine, honeyed-fruit finish. From a tasting of the 2008 vintage in London. 18+/20 (September 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Sec 2008: Pear and bitter stone fruits on the nose of this wine, which doesn't seem too expressive otherwise. The palate is superb though; fresh and clean, with good substance through the midpalate, florally precise fruit and lots of stony acidity. Firm and defined through to the finish. This is really impressive; a true vin de garde. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17.5-18+/20 (February 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux Première Trie 2008: Residual sugar here is 66 g/l. This is the mysterious malolactic cuvée, a wine that underwent 80% malolactic fermentation prior to alcoholic fermentation, an unprecedented and unexplained event. On the nose it has youthful and fresh flavours, sweetly herbal and aromatic, with vibrant pear character. This remains extraordinarily primary in character, a combination of components rather than an integrated wine. Hugely impressive though, a silky polish to its mouthfeel, cut through by fine acidity. Harmonious, touching on ethereal, this is a stunning wine of superb potential. From a tasting of the 2008 vintage in London. 18+/20 (September 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux Première Trie 2008: The residual sugar here is 66 g/l. It is a touch firmer and more concentrated than the equivalent Le Mont, with gently golden fruit on the nose and a white pepper minerality. This latter character kicks off the palate, which has a finesse that then broadens out to show beautiful fruit and then a fine, delineated finish. The acidity and textured mineral qualities are perfectly balanced, the wine has superb elegance overall, with a very pure and lifted style. This is just stunning wine. An update from the 2009 Salon. 18.5-19+/20 (February 2009)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2007: This has about 7 g/l residual sugar, and this is my third taste of this cuvée. The nose is clean, with good minerality. The palate is nicely integrated, with nice smoky minerality showing today, over a good weighty midpalate. Lots of good substance here, with a fresh, sappy, mouth-watering finish. Lovely wine. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17+/20 (February 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2007: Another pop at this wine which I first met at a tasting in Bordeaux in April. A lovely floral character to the nose, more pronounced now, sweetly bright, with an intriguing note of liquorice. Delicate and fresh on the palate at first, but broadening out thereafter to give a little note of nut. Plenty of stylish, direct, delineated substance here, with a fresh finesse helped along by more than lively acidity. Possibly a higher score than this is warranted. 17-17.5+/20 (July 2008)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2007: Fresh, aromatic, lightly mineral. A little floral, but this certainly has more substance than the 2006. Fresh, nicely structured, with good grip and good acid backbone. A nice minerality, well poised, with an appealing sappy finish. Really very good indeed. It has 7.3 g/l residual sugar, with 5.7 g/l titratable acidity and alcohol 13.5%. 16-17+/20 (April 2008)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 2007: My first time tasting any demi-sec from this vintage. This has 21 g/l of residual sugar, and has an elegant and gently floral nose. There is spicy minerality too, although otherwise it is not hugely expressive. The style though is very appealing, with a lovely depth and peppery minerality, and a precise power and acidity. Fine stuff. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17+/20 (February 2009)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2007: Strangely I haven't tasted this cuvée before, despite having tasted the Clos du Bourg and Haut Lieu wines twice before now. This has 8 g/l sugar. There is mineral but also floral character on the nose, which offers gentle and harmonious fruit in a very gentle style. A fine palate, harmonious and integrated, with beautifully fresh acidity. This has a fine character, with good but gentle grip at the finish. Another fine effort. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17+/20 (February 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2007: The nose here has lovely sweet fruit on the nose, typically floral character, elegant, rather much as I found it in February last year. A lovely style on the palate, creamed white fruit, quite minerally too. A fine tension, fleshy but not overtly sweet, beautifully tender and composed. A very good wine indeed. From a 2010 Huet update. 17.5+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2007: Up to 24 g/l residual sugar here, and again the nose is rounded, soft, floral and gentle. The palate follows on in the same vein, a very harmonious one, with delightfully flattering residual sugar but also very fine and defining acidity. As a result it has a lovely freshness too. There is a good substance and fine style; it doesn't show the potential seen in the 2008s but nevertheless this is very drinkable. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17+/20 (February 2009)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Sec 2007: This wine, which has about 7 g/l residual sugar, is a little less open and expressive compared to the other sec cuvées. I have found this to be the case on previous tastings. The palate is very fine though, showing great balance and harmony, with good grip beneath. Lots of good acid and minerality, and underneath it all a little more power than either the Haut Lieu or Le Mont I think; I think if considering the cellar this is the best of the three. In time, this vin de garde should be very good. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17.5+/20 (February 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Sec 2007: Another chance to assess this wine. This has a more serious and reserved nose than the Haut Lieu, open but when it lets go it shows a very open, pure, direct style. This shows a touch more than the Haut Lieu, with considerable midpalate substance, although it remains gentle and stylish. A firm, bright, lemony finish. This has a very good future. 17.5+/20 (July 2008)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Sec 2007: Less aromatic than the Haut Lieu, but characterful, with a delicious, lively, deep, fresh minerality. A good sappy substance, clean and characterful, I think this has greater long term potential than the preceding wine. Really very fine. Here we have 7.5 g/l residual sugar, 5.5 g/l titratable acidity and alcohol 13%. 16.5-17.5+/20 (April 2008)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux 2007: Honey and flower petals on the nose, with a fine and flattering style. The residual sugar is 46 g/l (it seems to have lost 3 g/l since 2008), and this shows on the palate which has a gently fat nature with a broad but balanced weight. It has more overt sugary weight towards the finish but it remains bright and fresh, with a little bitter grip, throughout. Fine stuff with very good potential for the cellar. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17+/20 (February 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux 2007: Another chance to assess this wine. A delicately floral nose, quite pretty, although it suggests some substance. Clean, with a little nut. The palate is appealing, pure and fine, and showing nice flesh through the middle. Rich and yet pure and delicate, sappy and fairly long. I think this is a vintage for sec rather than moelleux, but nevertheless this is very good, and certainly elegant. 17.5+/20 (July 2008)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux 2007: This is not a rich or hedonistic wine, rather it is fresh and gently aromatic, with lively grapefruit and a suggestion of gentle sweetness. The palate holds a fine minerality, a fresh, stylish, elegant and lightfooted style with a lovely, sappy substance and weight. There is a clean finish and some length too. There is excellent potential here, although I rate it for elegance rather than hedonism. The residual sugar is 49 g/l, titratable acidity 5.0 g/l and alcohol 12.5%. 17.5+/20 (April 2008)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2006: An incredibly perfumed nose here, this is in a very open and feminine place right now. It has just a light trace of minerality. On the palate, it is very soft and relaxed, and doesn't possess the structure I would have hoped for. I would like to taste this again before passing judgement, but on this tasting it seems rather inconsequential. 14-15+?/20 (July 2007)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2006: Another very perfumed nose, although a touch less pungent than the Haut Lieu. It also displays more substance and depth on the palate, with a firmer, less feminine style. The influence of the vineyard, I would say. It is preferable, but again I am not sure as to the absolute quality. 15-16+?/20 (July 2007)

Pétillant

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2005: Tasted once at the domaine, and a second bottle at leisure subsequently. Chalky and minerally on the nose, suggesting a dry character. Dry on the palate too, a good structure, with a nice firm pétillance. Very firm fruit too, overall a very good character, crisp apple skin with a mouth-watering sourness. Classic style. Having said that, the subsequent bottle showed much less pétillance than the first, although it had all the same succulent, sour-fruit and minerally flavour - perhaps just a cork-related variation? From a 2010 Huet update. 18/20 (July 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2005: A ripe and very evocative, typical nose here, minerally, with a hint of volcanic character. This certainly holds promise! On the palate it starts off with a floral style, fairly light and elegant, although with a lovely chalky-volcanic minerality reflecting that found on the nose. A fine broad style though, fresh, with notably fresh acidity and good finesse. A very promising first taste of the latest release of this vintage. From a tasting of Huet sparklers. 17.5-18+/20 (February 2010)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2005: Not ideal conditions to taste this, as it was poured at a colleague's house prior to then going out for dinner. One advantage though, is that with a large crowd in attendance, I had the opportunity to sample from a number of different bottles. The first taste from a bottle that had been open a little while showed a nose which was pure and defined, lifted, rich and minerally. The substance of the vintage comes through on the palate, which is weighty but very well framed by acidity and overall it is a delight. Subsequent bottles were tighter - they were popped and poured - but just as wonderfully linear and defined, and clearly this is a wine with great potential (although also delicious now). 18+/20 (October 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2005: A clear, shimmering hue. A lovely organic nose, stony and gritty, with fruit aromas along the lines of peach skin, yellow plum and lemons, with notes of pine nuts. Fabulously fresh and deeply characterful on the palate, broad, huge in terms of composition. Lots of substance, almost meaty, with a little grip too. Finely fresh acidity, tingling its way through the midpalate, with a really forceful finish where all the components vie for your attention. A dense wine, with a great length, fanning out to give even more pleasure. A brilliant wine, with huge potential for the future. 18+/20 (July 2008)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Moelleux 2005: Again, although not showing too much aromatically here, this wine has all the necessary texture and weight for cellaring. It is broad, correct, stylish, integrated and nicely balanced. The more interesting aromatics and characteristics will return with time I think. 17.5+/20 (July 2007)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2005: This bottle shows a little differently to the one I recently drank at 21212; whereas that one seemed very open and intensely minerally, this bottle seems very tight, linear and pure (more what I would expect from the wine and the vintage at present). There is cleanly defined stone fruit on the nose, with a slightly steely element to it. Nevertheless there is an elegant depth to the palate, crisp but well polished with stony, white fruits. The finish is delineated, pure but very, very long. This is a fine vintage for Huet, although in all honesty I think there is success here every year at the moment. Give this 8-10 years (or indeed longer) and it will be great. 18+/20 (December 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2005: A great opportunity to try one of these at a visit to the recently opened 21212 restaurant in Edinburgh, home to Paul Kitching. The nose starts off in a very inorganic way with a number of novel aromas not noted with previous tastings of this wine. There is a cordite, gun-powder element, a little sulphurous in character; I think at least part of this, however, is an intense minerality perhaps exacerbated by being served a touch too warm by the sommelier. Once chilled a little more the wine shows a much more typical profile. Defined, quite pure in fact, clean but full and fairly weighty, this fabulous wine has great potential. I have half a dozen in the cellar, bottles which I should try to leave well alone for now! 18+/20 (August 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2005: Very expressive and obvious development here - we are in a very different arena than the 2008s. Brown sugar on the nose, honey and vanilla, all rather open and diffuse. There is good freshness on the palate, some nice structural elements, a little grip too. It is polished but overall rather flat today, and I think this is going through a very awkward phase fairly typical of maturing Chenin. It could be enjoyed now, but it would be much better left for another five years (or maybe many more judging by the subsequent wines); that will bring a better composition and depth of flavour too. From a demi-sec tasting in London. 17+?/20 (September 2009)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Sec 2005: A limpid appearance, and a transfixing yet very primary nose, redolent of fresh pear juice, cut with minerals and cream. But in the palate it is patently dry despite the richness which does carry through from the nose, but the wine never loses focus or precision. There is a fabulous depth of flavour, tangible, almost floury extract and body, and an impressive length for a finish. This is very, very impressive, and should perform wonderfully in the cellar. 18+/20 (November 2006)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Demi-Sec 2005: This is pleasing, not so expressive, rather it is gentle, subdued, perhaps a touch closed on the nose. It has a lovely presence on the palate though, textured and delineated, with a good weight, structure and substance. The character and interest will come with time in bottle. Lots of potential here I think. 17.5+/20 (July 2007)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2004: A good colour, mildly rich. It opens out nicely on the nose, revealing quite quickly some very minerally, chalky notes which have great appeal. These sit alongside some reserved fruit. On the palate there is a lovely weight and balance, although it does not have the fine definition of a great vintage. Softer than expected, considering its young age, with a lovely evolving character already apparent, this is a wine that is ready for drinking now, although I am sure there is no rush. I last tasted this at the domaine in 2007 - it seems to have come on very nicely since then. Very good. Tasted at Number One (meal not written up). 16.5+/20 (July 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2004: This has a rather less exuberant nose than the 2006 version. There is a much more appealing minerality to the fruit, and less perfume. The palate is full, broad and rather grippy, although not hugely vivacious. Of the sec cuvées tasted here I like this wine most, although comparison with the 2006s in their embryonic state is perhaps invalid. 16.5+/20 (July 2007)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2004: Listed as of the Haut Lieu vineyard. This was a popular choice at the table, coping well with a wide range of choices for the first course. Very fresh and minerally on the nose, with a similar character on the palate, flavoursome and lithe, with a good broad presence on the palate. Tasted at The Witchery. 17/20 (March 2007)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Sec Clos du Bourg 2004: A fine nose, of minerals, pears, herbs and nettles, with little hints of richness in the shape of capsicum and lemon meringue. Overall though, fresh and vibrant. Richly composed palate, with great depth. Fresh and pithy, very structured, rounded and complete. This has a fine, grippy presence on the palate and has potential aplenty for the cellar. 17.5+/20 (November 2006)

Pétillant & Pétillant Réserve

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2002: This is surprisingly rich and golden; I've seen some opinions of this wine suggesting it was for the long haul and nothing else, but the colour doesn't suggest that, and neither does the nose. Although I am sure that this wine will go for years, it has some delightfully accessible aromas now, especially minerals and honey, liquid rock, herbal tea, smoke and more; it speaks much more of Chenin than of bubbles. The palate is just as impressive as the nose, with great precision and acidity framing smoky fruit with plenty of liquid mineral to match the aromas. Yes it is very firm, acidic, and it will certainly do well in the cellar for years if not decades, but it is still lovely now, taut and firm, yet also giving, and very long too. Excellent wine with brilliant future potential. From a tasting of Huet sparklers. 18+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2002: This is in fact my first taste from a half-case I acquired at the domaine last year. The bottle lets out just the faintest phhut with the release of the cork, an effect of the lower pressure pétillant style of course. The wine itself has a rich golden hue, and a small to moderate sized bead. It is a pleasure to behold, but this is nothing compared to what is gained from the aroma, which is vibrant, aromatic and full of typicity. Here we have a wine that is unmistakeably Vouvray, full of chalky, powdery, almost sherbetty mineral quality, together with notes of golden fruits. The palate is broad and characterful, spreading across the mouth on contact, stimulating the taste receptors with its array of lemony, powdery, chalky character all wrapped up in a creamy, gently effervescent richness. And under it all, the firm stab of acidity that will carry the wine along for a decade or two in the cellar, developing and softening as it does so. My only concern is, despite appreciating the joys of older Vouvray, this has a lot of youthful pleasure to give now. And it is much better than my cursory note from the summer of 2007 suggests (although the score says enough, I think). For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 18+/20 (May 2008)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2002: This has much more impact than the non-vintage bottling. An attractive, earthy minerality, stony and less floral. Full palate, lots of presence, and a delicate pétillance. Much better. 17.5/20 (July 2007)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant Réserve 2002: A fine, honeyed-straw nose here, with a good presence of minerals and honeycomb. Still showing a very good pétillance. Great structure on the palate, lots of aromatic character, lots of substance and structure too. Fresh and well held together by a frame of acidity. A fascinating evolution compared to my recollection of the early-release 2002; I look forward to comparative tastings in the future. Excellent. From a 2010 Huet update. 18/20 (July 2010)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 2002: This is a clean, mineral wine on the nose. Currently very tight on the palate, but with racy acidity. This will develop more character and weight with time. 16+/20 (August 2003)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 2002: Very expressive on the nose. On the palate this is fuller and richer than those from Le Mont. Nevertheless it has poise and balance also. Another stunner from the 2002 vintage. 16.5+/20 (August 2003)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2002: Predominantly mineral aromas on the nose, like crumbled, chalky rocks - a terroir note perhaps - with a touch of classic wet wool to round it out. A faint tingle of dissolved carbon dioxide on entry. Otherwise it's round, mouthfilling, but very bright and minerally on the palate. Quite rich, but cut through by a firm citrus acidity. Clearly shows the quality of the 2002 vintage. 16.5+/20 (August 2003)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2002: A lovely, expressive nose. There is more intricate complexity here than with the 2005, with nuances of lemon-honey and caramel crunch. This is certainly tighter than the preceding wine as well, and this is in keeping with my understanding of the vintage. The palate is lovely, very pure, polished and round, overall very well packaged. A very stylish and linear wine although certainly not revealing all it has to offer yet. Leave well alone. From a demi-sec tasting in London. 18.5+/20 (September 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux 2002: Aromas of melons over stones on the nose. A lovely palate – it has poise and elegance rather than power. It is full, expressive, and has a wealth of fruit. The complexity will come with time. Balanced acidity. This is a lovely wine for drinking over the next decade whilst waiting for other wines from what is obviously a great vintage to mature. 16.5+/20 (August 2003)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux Première Trie 2002: Giving little on the nose but fruit and mineral nuances and an obvious purity. A fabulous weight and texture on the palate. Much more flavours than the nose would suggest, and exquisitely balanced. This is brilliant. What a vintage! One for the cellar. 18+/20 (August 2003)

Pétillant

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2001: A rich golden hue here, and a good bead to, extraordinarily fine though, in keeping with its pétillant nature. The nose has plenty of golden minerals, and golden, slightly autumnal fruits. The palate is lively, fresh and vivacious, full of forceful acidity, evolving honey-tinged minerals, and a creamy pétillance. There is good weight on the palate, broad and full-flavoured, bright and firm, with plenty of acidity and grip showing in the finish. This is lovely for drinking now, but it is still very youthful, and it will actively repay cellaring yet. From a tasting of Huet sparklers. 17.5+/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2001: This is fairly richly coloured for the appellation, the colour perhaps enhanced to some degree by four years of ageing sur lie before disgorgement. There is a wonderful richness of aroma on the nose too; there are plenty of minerals, with a sweet apple character, and more complex fruit notes too, reminiscent of orange blossom and maybe even a twist of liquorice? But above all, it is the minerally character that dominates. Fresh, slightly fat but also appealingly chalky at the beginning, with a broad, fresh, minerally character. There's good substance towards the finish, a good broad, mouth-filling weight rather than anything overly fierce, but with a nicely defined, substantial end. Lots of fine, stony character, but perhaps not the power and delineation of the 2002. Nevertheless, a delicious and easily drinkable wine from Huet that disappeared very soon after I opened the bottle. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 17+/20 (April 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2001: I have already tasted this latest release of Huet's successful pétillant cuvée at the domaine last year - and added some to the cellar. The wine has a lovely smoky minerality, with an intense palate showing firm and stony character. But it has a generosity too, a creamy presence of fruit, but principally this is a wine of smoky, gun-flinty, rock-dust minerality. This is delicious stuff. An update from the 2009 Salon. 17.5+/20 (February 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2001: A smoky and minerally nose, overall a very appealing style, very nicely opened out. The palate has a very gentle approach, with a well rounded minerality. Lots of stone, very firm, and yet also a touch of creaminess to the pétillance, but this is finely balanced out by the huge minerality. There is perhaps a slight leanness through the midpalate, but I think this will continue to flesh out. 17.5+/20 (July 2008)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 2001: Open, expressive nose. Fresh palate, with a full, rounded mouth-feel. Some mineral flavours. It remains somewhat tight and needs more time yet. 16+/20 (August 2003)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2001: Very expressive nose, with aromas of blood oranges and lots of mineral nuances. A characterful palate, full of orange fruit, backed up by appropriately fresh acidity. Nicely balanced. This is lovely. 16.5+/20 (August 2003)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Demi-Sec 2001: Expressive nose, full of minerals and bright, slightly waxy, floral elements. Full, rounded, with firm acidity on the palate. Still has the faintest spritz of carbon dioxide. Very flavoursome. Lovely weight, probably derived from the residual sugar. 16.5+/20 (August 2003)

Vodanis

Domaine Huet Vouvray Vodanis Sec 2001: As noted previously, the label actually says 'Domaine de Vodanis' without any mention of Huet. A lovely nose, more evolved now, rocky, stony and mineral. Quite classic, a little funky, certainly expressive, quite bright and pervasive on the nose. Firm and lively acidity at the core, very well delineated, a rather masculine structure, with piles of flavour, with some forceful texture wrapped around that. A lot of impact, perhaps not the most elegantly presented wine but it is but certainly full of character and appeal. A touch creamy and yet incisive, with firm acids on the finish. Still lots of cellar potential here. 16+/20 (July 2007)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Vodanis Sec 2001: The label actually says 'Domaine de Vodanis' without any mention of Huet, but the design is unmistakeable. It is a vineyard they rented for two years, and I previously tasted this wine at the domaine in 2003. As noted then, this is actually a sec tendre wine (4-15 g/l residual sugar), so it carries a little more around the middle than many a sec. Not much on the nose - as with last time. A little mineral. But the palate has evolved. Slightly creamy. Full, almost sensual texture on midpalate. Mineral-apple element. Very good. 15.5/20 (April 2005)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Vodanis Sec 2001: Not giving much on the nose – quite closed. Fairly full and rich on the palate, probably reflecting sugar concentration – this is in fact a sec tendre wine (4-15 g/l residual sugar, rather than 3 - 5 g/l which is the norm for sec wines). There’s some good minerality, although no great character otherwise. But I suspect this will come with time. 16+/20 (August 2003)

Pétillant

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2000: It is a couple of years since I last opened one of these, so it is good to see how it is getting on. A really luscious golden hue in the glass, quite a remarkable sight in fact, with sparse and moderate bubbles. Sure-fire minerality on the nose, with plenty of exuberant character, golden honeyed fruits, with fresh lemon and dill providing a good contrast to the more evolved aromas of oat and biscuit. The palate has a very gentle entry, soft and creamy, a texture which persists through the palate even though it is backed up by plenty of bright, stony, incisive acidity. Good crisp mousse. Lovely Chenin style here, chalky-volcanic and woolly notes, all in a very harmonious but also lively composition. Fresh but approachable, as it turns out this is coming along very nicely. From a tasting of Huet sparklers. 17.5/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2000: This doesn't quite have the depth of character of the 2002, which I prefer, but it is good. It is less aromatic and less broad, but has an appealing structure on the palate with floral streak, and it fades slowly in an attractive finish. 17/20 (July 2007)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 2000: A very soft phhutt on opening, and a very gentle foam when poured into the glass. A pale lemon-golden hue, and quite a tight bead. Surprisingly, quite a bready-biscuity edge to the aroma, although with more classic mineral notes and nuances of white flower petals following this up. A lovely palate though, soft and divinely caressing, gently building in texture through the midpalate, before a complete and slowly fading creamy finish. Full, fruity, rather fun, not terribly complex but wonderfully flattering and very well made. I suspect it will last some time, but as long as the 1987? Who knows? Very good indeed now though. 17+/20 (November 2006)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2000: Honeyed, crunchy golden nose, with ripe golden fruits. A lovely, caressing palate on entry, then a drier style through the midpalate with lots of broad punch here. Just a little tightness here still, structured, grippy with firm acids. Lots of substance and build. Linear, defined, sappy and stylish. But also tight and young. This needs time. From a demi-sec tasting in London. 17.5+/20 (September 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 2000: Very fresh and aromatic on the nose. Clean, well-flavoured palate with good acidity. There is a touch of roundness at the edges. 16+/20 (August 2003)

Pétillant & Mousseux

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant 1999: This has a fairly rich golden colour, and despite the pétillant designation it has quite a coarse bead. This quickly fades, however, leaving just one or two streams of tiny bubbles. There's a good nose, which is classic Chenin Blanc, with a fresh and honeyed (although not sweet), wet wool nose. Bright fruit on the palate, and good freshness. The acidity is prominent. Just a touch bready. 16.5+/20 (September 2002)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Mousseux 1999: A vibrant nose, with a stony quality. It seems more open than my last tasting, with a more rounded, complete nature. It is firm, with good acidity underneath a very overt and lively mousse. Nice character, no doubt good fun to drink, although I prefer the pétillant style myself. 16.5/20 (July 2008)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Mousseux 1999: There is a little rubber on the nose here, alongside some mineral fruit. On the palate it has a much broader, much firmer mousse than the pétillant wines. Lots of character, and some hopefully temporary funky characteristics. Very firm. Good, but the two pétillant vintages are the better wines I think. 16.5/20 (July 2007)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 1999: Classic nose, led by aromas of wet wool and crumbled, chalky rocks, with a prominent cordite, gunflint-like note as well. Firm, structured, and quite grippy on the palate. Strong, peppery, tingly acidity which would keep this wine going for some time in the cellar. Medium bodied, with more mineral and stone fruit flavour. Clean finish, good length. 16+/20 (August 2003)

Pétillant Réserve

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant Réserve 1998: This reserve release has a lovely, lemon-zesty, mineral and honeycomb character on the nose, with a very fine and persistent pétillant mousse in the glass. Rich substance on the palate, certainly more wine than sparkle, with a rapidly fading pétillance here. Good length to it though. Very nice development here. From a 2010 Huet update. 18/20 (July 2010)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Moelleux 1997: Honey and beeswax on the nose, with toffee notes and mineral complexity. A real cornucopia of flavours on the palate, which has honey, toffee, a waxy candle-like note and orange-blossom fruit. Lovely complexity leading into a crescendo of a finish. This was a brilliant vintage and I think this wine will yet improve. 17+/20 (August 2003)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Moelleux Première Trie 1997: This has an appealing, mid-gold hue, pure but not excessively or worryingly deep in colour. The nose has a number of classic Chenin traits, showing a warm, woolly character, with faint traces of honey and toffee that I suspect may become a little more apparent with further bottle age. Rich and quite direct and defined on entry, before showing a broad and yet firmly structured character through the midpalate, with good texture cut through most decisively by a classically styled acidity. Little notes of richness on the finish. Lovely balance, and great length. It still has quite a tight core on the palate, and this wine clearly has a lot of potential for the future. I am glad I have the best part of half a case left to see how this one goes - it should be great. From a tasting of the 1997 Vintage at ten years of age. 18.5+/20 (December 2007)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Première Trie 1996: A fascinating illustration of how a bottle is treated can affect the quality. Two bottles of this included in the tasting; this one the first, sourced from a UK merchant. It has a bright and shimmering yellow-gold hue, and a nose of powdered rocks, firmly mineral, smoky even, with a honey and lemon layer of fruit behind it all. What the palate offers is broad and well balanced; a fine layer of minerally, stony fruit set in a texture that is rounded and creamy, but clearly matched by the fine pervasive presence on the palate and a firm, somewhat peppery undercurrent of acidity. This shows very precise, well defined, rather firm structure with a nuance of melon-edged fruit, both components that suggest this will cellar well and show fine depth and complexity in the future. Impressive, with a very typical chalky, honeycomb style, and great potential. The second bottle was purchased at the domaine in 2003 and stored by me ever since, and it shows quite differently, with a fabulously intense golden hue, with a firm, deep, characterful nose that already hints at the great complexity and varied array of aromas and flavours that this wine will offer over the coming years. There is a profound, smoky, lemon-butter and thyme nose, with a firm minerality too, which is simply delightful. The palate has a similarly forthright structure, so much more defined and precise, with streamlined lemon and mineral acidity, carrying forward a fine array of musky, smoky, beeswax, straw and hay flavours. This is simply divine, I am slightly at a loss for words to describe its deep finesse. Lovely, delineated finish and considerable length. This should do well in the cellar for a decade, and perhaps much, much longer. From a 1996 tasting, ten years on. The first merited 18+, the second a higher score. 19+/20 (December 2006)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux Première Trie 1996: This wine displays considerably less approachability and maturity than the Haut Lieu Première Trie 1993. Full of beeswax and honeycomb flavours on the palate, balanced by a fresh lemony acidity. Fantastic weight and texture. Needs time. 18+/20 (August 2003)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec 1995: It's a great opportunity for me to try this wine alongside the 2005, a glimpse perhaps of what the more recent vintage might offer. It has a glorious, pure, pale-golden hue. The nose carries aromas of crystalline quince and herbal tea, with a great, liquid-rock minerality. This has purity yet also richness. This character comes through on the palate as well, with has a lovely, evolved, mouth-filling, surprisingly fleshy richness which is nicely balanced out by the dry structure. There is a touch of crystalline fruit and grip at the finish. Very good indeed, beautiful now, no need to rush to drink here, and indeed may well develop further. 17+/20 (December 2009)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux 1995: This older wine shows more obvious maturity on the nose – but it was not such a great vintage. On the palate it is a little one dimensional, but it has a pleasurable dense sweetness which is balanced by good acidity. 16+/20 (August 2003)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec 1993: A moderately rich, golden hue. Lots of honey and complex Chenin character on the nose, and a little suggestion of botrytis too? An interesting possibility for what is obviously a dry wine, made from vineyards harvested in tries. There is plenty of complexity, a funky mix of straw, minerals and organic aromas all presented in a very integrated fashion. Bone dry on the palate, slightly sour acidity, rich but not through sweetness, through depth and flavour. Golden straw. It hangs together well, but is bordering on unbalanced. Nevertheless, enjoyable with this in mind. 15.5/20 (July 2007)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Moelleux Première Trie 1993: Paler than the Tokay, obviously, but still a very rich colour for the Loire. The nose has honeycomb, smoke, butter, bay, and stony minerals. On the palate there are piles of fresh acidity carrying forth a raft of intense, minerally, slightly honeyed fruit with notes of bottle age. Lovely intensity and acidity. This is brilliant. Needs another five to eight years at least. From a 1993 Vintage ten year on tasting. 18.5+/20 (December 2003)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Moelleux Première Trie 1993: The only single-vineyard sweet wine from this vintage (there was a Cuvée Constance). Great interest here – a smoky, fatty nose, with minerals and stones thrown into the pot as well. Developing wonderful complexity on the palate which has notes of toffee and orange fruit, balanced out by perfect acidity. Brilliant. 18.5+/20 (August 2003)

Constance

Domaine Huet Cuvée Constance 1993: A remarkably rich colour for any wine from Vouvray, belying the intensity of this nectar. The nose is remarkable, characterised by aromas of rich golden syrup, with a whispering seam of botrytis which has a curiously dry suggestion, as does the nutty, caramel nuances that follow on. This is deep, complex and multi-facetted. The palate has an impressive, broad character, with plenty of substance, rich but yet not opulently sweet as indeed the nose suggested; rather it is impressively layered and textured. This has a fine presence on the palate, built on depth and quality rather than a flattering layer of sugar, and I like the wine all the more for it. It is complex, with hidden depths that cry out to be explored. Although not the greatest Cuvée Constance by a mile, and certainly not the greatest vintage, this is a pleasure all the same. Great length too. Fine, drinking now, although there is no particular hurry. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 18/20 (July 2007)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 1989: Moderate depth of colour, a straw-gold hue. Very appealing on the nose, with aromas of coffee, honeycomb, wet wool and toffee. Moderate, elegant weight on the palate, with plenty of interest. Quite a bit of grippy structure alongside the rich, rounded flavours, but leading into a grippy, almost dry finish, although it gives a more full, rounded impression at slightly warmer temperatures. Great length. The one thing it lacks is concentration through the midpalate. This would go very well with many foods. This is ready now, but should drink well for years. 16.5/20 (April 2005)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux Première Trie 1989: Great colour, a rich slightly bronzed, golden hue. The nose is maturing and complex, with aromas of mint, herbal tea, dense and honeyed crystalline fruit, smoke, straw, honeycomb and more. It suggests minerality too. The palate has a broad texture, mature and drying out somewhat compared to the intense sweetness of a young première trie, but still showing plenty of rounded, gritty fruit and weight. This is fine, rather weighty, with great depth and multiple layers of sweet, crystalline but also rich and stewed fruit, ginger cake and spice, with tinges of cooked oranges and caramel. A fabulous wine, rich and textured, and very, very long. And I think this still has more to give, even though I suspect it will slowly dry out somewhat with the passing years. From a 1989 vintage twenty years on tasting. 18.5+/20 (November 2009)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Demi-Sec 1988: A moderate golden colour, a significant change in comparison with the preceding wines. Real beauty on the nose here, gentle perfumed sweetness, with little elements of toffee and roasted nut. Golden fruits, all very fine. A lovely, fresh and really quite dry palate follows, gently fleshed out, rounded but firm, structured and composed. Complex, sappy, very delineated, with very good acidity, this is flattering, but firm rather than soft. A fine effort, and still on the way up for sure. From a demi-sec tasting in London. 18+/20 (September 2009)

Brut

Domaine Huet Vouvray Brut 1987: This wine has a rich and golden hue in the glass, and a fine bead of sparse but very small bubbles. Charismatically Vouvray on the nose, with aromas of dried honey, minerals, straw and heady, golden autumnal apples, all very true to the appellation. What is more it is both evocative and clean, with no hint of oxidation. Full and rich in character on the palate, smoky, full of dried fruits cut through with a firm, powerful acidity. This is a charismatic, very forthright and domineering style, which is unmistakably mature dry Vouvray....just with bubbles. Great wine. From a tasting of Huet sparklers. 17.5/20 (February 2010)

Domaine Huet Vouvray Brut 1987: Quite a solid cork. A very soft fizz, generating just a little foam when poured, and a very fine but persistent bead. Quite a rich and golden hue. The nose is quite evolved and expressive but needs a little agitation to get it going, giving off some powdery, minerally, rocky character. Quite a lovely style on the palate, full with rich Chenin flavour, but cut through with super acidity. Talcy notes. Very complete, rounded body, with a creamy edge to the midpalate, and certainly holding up very well; this should go for years in the cellar yet. Esoteric and very characterful. 17.5/20 (November 2006)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 1985: In the glass the wine has quite a deep, rich, golden colour, rather more than I might have expected for a demi-sec. This is perhaps an indicator of the condition of the wine, however, which although initially a little muted then begins to show notes of baked apples which reveals a touch - fortunately just a touch - of oxidisation. But there are some lovely notes of mature Chenin too, aromas of funk and wool, and this wine still has much to offer. The palate also suggests that it is time to drink up - as judged by this particularly dusty bottle anyway - as it is quite dry. It has a considerable weight and certainly hasn't dried out, with a good texture, good grip, and firm fresh acidity, all nicely integrated and it will be some time before this wine falls apart. But there is no sweetness, although it has a broad palate, with more funky, appley notes like those on the nose, and there is still some length. With roast pork it worked very well indeed, coping very nicely with the apple sauce too. But I'm glad this was my one and only bottle of this, as I would be worried about any other bottles left lingering in the cellar. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 17/20 (February 2007)

Le Mont

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Moelleux 1985: I give credit to domaines that hold on to mature vintages and offer them for tasting. This richly coloured wine has aromas of beeswax and creamy lemon meringue pie. Good structure on the palate, nicely flavoured, with good sweetness still. There is a bitter twang in the finish, but overall this wine is wearing very well at eighteen years of age. 17/20 (August 2003)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 1971: A slightly richer hue here. A haunting nose, evolved, pure and defined, it has an ethereal outer character although in truth it is expressive and tangible, giving up powerful notes of citrus fruits and lime leaves mixed with toffee. Hugely impressive on the palate, perfectly composed, not drying out but certainly less fleshy than some other wines, defined, with a lemon-lime toffee character. Full, broad, with a lovely substance to it. Very harmonious and composed, really long too. This remains very tightly composed and amazingly I think this still needs more cellar time to show its best. A great vintage, although today it seems remarkably less generous than the trio of older wines, and it gives less pleasure as a result. But give it time. From a demi-sec tasting in London. 17.5+/20 (September 2009)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 1962: This a very different wine to the 1971, much more evolved. A gentle nose of swirled honey and caramel in combination, with elements of baked apple here, suggesting a little background oxidation. It is a fine nuance and doesn't affect the overall character on the wine, and it is a characteristic that probably varies from one bottle to the next. The palate is indeed very impressive, broad and sweet, honeyed, slightly caramelly, intense, balanced and harmonious, a touch richer and sweeter than some of the other wines. Although it seems a little drier on the finish. Good length. Brilliant wine which will continue to evolve although will show more drily with time if you keep it. From a demi-sec tasting in London. 18.5+/20 (September 2009)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux 1962: An impressive, mature, fairly deep, burnished golden hue. On the nose it offers aromas of straw, quince and dried apricots, developing into a more nutty, toffee-honey-fruit wet wool profile with air. In the background there is a faint seam of apply madeirisation, but thankfully this is not a strong feature here or on the palate. A good texture on entry, quite rich, weighty, with lively, almost tingling acidity. It loses this texture and weight through the midpalate though, and the acidity seems a little disjointed here. Nevertheless the mineral-edged, wet wool Chenin flavours persist. It has dried out somewhat - in fact it is quite dry, certainly so on the finish. As it receives more air it opens out to develop a more full, fleshy, almost creamy texture, although still kept serious by that firm acidity and dryness. Positive finish and great length. On this evidence this is unlikely to improve further - drink up. 18/20 (August 2003)

Clos du Bourg

Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Demi-Sec 1957: In truth the penultimate wine, tasted just before the 1949. A really interesting nose here, intense with sweet fruit which has a rather pastille-like intensity today. Dense, characterful, sweet but also with savoury threads, rather beefy at times, with notes of peppery stock. Lovely broad palate, the savoury element coming through nicely here and more than matching that intense pastille-character. In fact it isn't really that sweet, rather it is rich, with potential sweetness. Rich, broad, balanced, great structure and acidity, this is holding up very well. From a demi-sec tasting in London. 18.5/20 (September 2009)

Le Haut Lieu

Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Demi-Sec 1949: A very rich and golden colour, this is a strategic release as it has 60 years under its belt this year. A very round nose, fine and softly defined. A taste from a first bottle showed a hint of oxidation, and this was certainly carried through onto the palate which is fine, gently, sweet, with orange rind. But there are also notes of baked earth. It is very harmonious and worthwhile despite this element, although I would be surprised it if were scored very highly. A second bottle showed a much cleaner character, with freshness and more defined mature orange and sweet, caramel crunch aromas and flavours. Some bottle variation is to be explained in a wine this age of course. My score is based on the second bottle. From a demi-sec tasting in London. 18/20 (September 2009)

Pétillant

Domaine Huet Vouvray Pétillant NV: Current release. Very fresh and mineral, quite pretty on the nose, lightly floral. Fresh and delicate on the palate, a light pétillance (obviously), quite complete and attractive. Not the substance of the vintage wines, though. 15/20 (July 2007)