2020 Domaine Champalou Vouvray Loire 750 ml

Vouvray is one of the world’s great white-wine appellations, and Champalou is one of its marquee producers. 

Take one sip of their pale-lemon-hued 2020 Vouvray—with its aromas of red apple, white flowers, and honeycomb, and its supple, silky palate of beeswax and mineral, all underlined by refreshing acidity—and you’ll become a believer.

Champalou represents the region’s style so perfectly that when our Chief Wine Officer, Vanessa Conlin, was studying for her Master of Wine exam, she would regularly bring it for her fellow students to blind-taste—it’s the quintessential dry Vouvray.

By French standards, the domaine is just a baby—it hasn’t even been around for 40 years. However, owners Catherine and Didier Champalou come from families with a long history of winemaking: Catherine is a 12th-generation vigneron, and Didier a sixth.   

From the very beginning, the two have practiced viticulture with an eye toward the environment. Certified HVE (High Environmental Value) and charter members of Terra Vitis, an ecologically and socially minded association of winegrowers and landowners, the Champalous farm their vineyards sustainably while also taking measures to increase biodiversity—they even have nesting boxes for bats!

The grapes for their 2020 flagship Vouvray come from 35-year-old vines and are fermented and aged in stainless steel. The resulting wine will thrill not just Vouvray devotees, but also fans of crisp, high-acid Sauvignon Blanc and soft-textured Chardonnay.

Wonderful as an apéritif, this Vouvray Is also incredibly versatile with food. Take a cue from the Champalous, who love to pair it with rillettes, rillons (candied pork belly), and even Japanese food!