Vouvray Brut, Bernard Fouquet, Domaine des Aubuisières NV

‘Vigneron de père en fils’, Bernard Fouquet is justifiably considered one of the leading lights of the Vouvray appellation and has now been joined by Charles Lesaffres who is gradually taking hold of the reins of the business. Bernard vinifies nearly 30 hectares of Chenin Blanc, carefully separating the grapes he grows on the argilo-calcaire ‘tuf’ limestone from those from the flintier slopes of the arrières côtes. Running his vineyards to the sustainable rules of lutte raisonnée, he has grassed through the entire vineyard and raised foliage height to 1.60m to get greater ripeness at harvest (given the high-density planting in Vouvray, this height gives a huge boost to maturity), holding yields low through a spring de-budding. His wines are vibrantly transparent expressions of Vouvray Chenin Blanc.