2011 Harvest

What a complicated vintage it was, but it actually turned out to be more than successful, resulting in wines with good fruit and delicacy,  despite lacking a bit of concentration.
 
The weather certainly wasn't typical: after a fast kick-off in March, April broke all the records (it hadn't been so hot since 1947!). May was so good that the flowering of the Cabernet Franc was over before the end of the month whereas it usually doesn't start until mid-June.
And then…July 2011 will go down in history as the coldest in the last thirty years : according to the weather station at Angers,  this was the eleventh wettest and the eighth cloudiest summer since the creation of the station in 1945. Oh, my…
 
Nevertheless…the producers with their late-ripening grape varieties Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc managed to come up trumps. A hot and radiant Indian summer settled in for several weeks after the September 21st Autumn equinox - to the extent that by the beginning of October we were worrying it was too hot! (We even swam in our outside pool on 2nd October - and that's a first!)
 
We harvested between 20th of September and 6th of October. We were, admittedly, lucky, but it was also because we were patient and were in a position to be able to wait.

Oct 11 : Petit Futé 2012

Released in le Petit Futé 2012 "1001 wines for not more than 10 euros"

"A very pleasant aperitif with the Saumur Brut Rosé full of fruit and lively, with aromas of raspberry and redcurrant, pretty dense bubble. 9 euros"

" Targé 2009 : Always a constant classic for the winery, a Cabernet Franc treated well, fairly nervous attack, well built, flourishing in the aeration. 7.50 euros"

Oct 11 : article published in Decanter's August 11 issue

Here is what was published in the August 11 Decanter issue, after a tasting in December 2010  :

Targé 2009 : "slightly vegetal on the nose. Traditional style with green pepper, strawberry, cinnamon spice and soft tannins. Juicy and refreshing." 15.33/20, available in Majestic, £ 9.99

Cuvée Ferry 2009 : "Restrained aromas. Good fruit flavours with plenty of spice and a tannic structure. confident and vigorous wine with a very long finish. promising" 15.5/20, not available in UK

Sept 2011 : Dussert-Gerber Guide 2012

"I appreciate my friend Edward, warm and passionate, from my first Guide and I followed, vintage after vintage, his progress that lead him to the top of his wines' Appellations.

Since 2000, he got every year the label "Terra Vitis" (independent organism checking the respect of the environment): cultivated soil and grass, compost replacing chemical fertilizers..

 Saumur Champigny Targé 2009,  garnet, fragrant, rich on the palate, with well balanced tannins, combining tannic structure and roundness, very affordable (7.50 €). La Cuvée Ferry 2009 is intense, spicy, with rich tannins, powerful mouth, deep garnet color, good structure, a wine that is worth waiting for better use of its potential (14 €) : as the 2008 Quintessence, rich on the nose and mouth, still young, a great aromatic complexity, combining breadth and richness of tannins on the palate (20 €).
Beautiful Saumur Brut Blanc 2008 (70% Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc 30%), partial aging in barrels that have been used for Les Fresnettes, light  and persistent foam, combining savor and distinction, with notes of toast, peach and narcissus , what a distinction (9 €). The Saumur Brut Rosé 2009 develops on the nose and mouth with aromas of red fruit, a round wine with fine bubbles and bright, ideal on a strawberry dessert (9€).

Very charming, Saumur Blanc Les Fresnettes 2008 (Chenin from severe sortings, on low yields and a total breeding in barrels), sweetness of fresh fruit and ripe, rich and distinguished (12 €).
Goûtez également le Coteaux de Saumur 2009 , (élevage une bonne dizaine de mois dans les fûts qui auront servi pour les Fresnettes) , de charpente fine et bien équilibrée, un vin charmeur, riche et persistant en bouche, savoureux, d'excellente garde (21 €). Vous hésitez encore ?"

Sept 2011 : Bettane & Desseauve Guide 2012

"Château de Targé Saumur Champigny 2009 : Red pepper and suppleness of tannins, this wine has an immediate charm."

June 11 : Article in The Telegraph

Published in the newspaper "The Telegraph", London :

"Chateau de Targe 2009 Saumur-Champigny, France (13%, £8.99 down from £9.99 when you buy two, Majestic)

Light-bodied Loire cabernet franc seems made for warm June and July days. From a superb Loire vintage, this is smooth as a fold in satin, it has ripe yet poised fresh fruit, and its texture and glide is like throwing a paper plane and watching it fly. Very elegant. Drink slightly chilled, perhaps with rare lamb chops."

April 2011 : Pierre Seillan's consecration by Robert Parker

Pierre Seillan, the winemaker of St Emilion, who helped me to create the Quintessence de Targé, and flying winemaker in Tuscany (Italia) and in Sonoma (Northern California), has been recently consecrated by a second note of 100/100 by Robert Parker, the  famous US Wine Advocate whose tasting notes are so much dreaded when published.

I am even more proud as his second note of 100/100 concerns a Californian red wine, with no less than 60 % of Cabernet Franc (and 35 % of Merlot) while the Quintessence de Targé (100 % Cabernet Franc) follows more or less the same process!

Born in the SouthWest of France, this good old friend - he helped me to restart the Château de Targé winery when I inherited it 35 years ago - fell then "in love" of the Loire Valley Cabernet Franc, and obviously for ever.

March 2011: Quoted in the Gilbert & Gaillard 2012 Guide, already

Saumur Brut Blanc du Château de Targé 2008
Light gold colour. Creamy nose with white fruits and cave's aromas. Supple and light mouth with fine and thin bubbles. The creamy touch is back on the finale. A Saumur Brut that will be good for desert. 84/100

Saumur Blanc Dry, fermented and aged in oak barrels Les Fresnettes 2008
Bright and frank coulour. Delicate oaky nose (vanilla, pine), with white fruits notes after a few minutes. Rich mouth, still dominated by the ageing aromas. A qualitative structure associated with intense perfumes. A Chenin worth keeping. 89/100

Saumur-Champigny traditionnel, Targé 2009
Nice dark purple coulour. Very tipical cabernet nose (earth, pepper, ripe red fruits). Supple, balanced, with silky tannins. The rich aromas are well emphasized: a classic for the Saumur-Champigny AOC. Ideal for grilled meet. 88/100

Saumur-Champigny old vines, Cuvée Ferry 2009
Middle frank colour. Tipical nose bringing to mind earth vegetal, ripe red and black fruits. Supple mouth which is seductive through its fruity freshness and its fine tannins. The finale is warmer, probably linked to its young age. Some good potential. 85/100

Saumur-Champigny old vines in oak barrels, Quintessence 2008
Frank colour. Oaky grilled nose with fruits of the forest (blackcurrant, redcurrant). A racy wine, rich, with fine tannins, well integrated oak, velvety. A rich and generous cuvée which will be greater once the oak is well-matured. Beautiful wine. 90/100

Coteaux de Saumur du Château de Targé 2009 (Sweet white wine)
Beautiful bright colour. Rich and fine nose, recalling almond paste, honey, roasted fruits. Remarkable mouth, dense, rich, with a tender sweetness. The aromas are long, elegant, sophisticated. Balance between sugar and freshness: a success. 93/100

January 2011 : Quotation in the "Revue des Vins de France"

Château de Targé Cuvée Ferry 2009

A un moment donné appelée Héritage, d'un style dense (fruit noir et réglisse), qui reste très accessible, tout en développant une bonne persistance. 15 / 20

Available this summer 2011

January 2011: Quintessence 2006 cited on GaultMillau.fr (food & drinks great French guide)

"Quintessence de Targé is very well named. The '06 expresses intense touch of ripe fruits and warm earth. In the mouth, the texture is very bold, but the Cabernet is present to bring its freshness to the wine."

Unfortunately, this vintage is already run out.

December 2010: such a kind message that I am bound to publish

16th of december 2010, the menu for the Mess des Officiers of the Ministry of Defense in Paris at the Christmas celebration:

"...I could not help but to honor this wine. You should know that with a 'suprême de volaille Nantua', the 'pieds-de-mouton sautés' and the 'rattes du Touquet au four', the Saumur-Champigny 2008 from Château de Targé was in perfect harmony. Its velvety was remarkable and its distinguished finesse was loved by the women present at the celebration."

Maître principal Jean-Noël Boutard, mess des officiers de l'hötel de la Marine.

December 2010: a sparkling Saumur out of a great terroir

Read in the local newspaper "Le Courrier de l'Ouest", last dec 21st:

"François Vicente, cavist of the Vins & Company in the south of Saumur, selected Chateau de Targé's production from Parnay for two reasons. While this bottle was elaborated with the strict specifications used for Crémant de Loire - manual harvest, ageing on laths for more than 24 months, etc. - Edouard Pisani-Ferry decided to keep the Appellation Saumur Brut. An elegant - as the wine - way to show the value of the terroir.

"It is a tip of the hat for a balanced wine, lightly oaked, bold and round. An interesting thin bubble structure which will be perfectly adequate for an aperitive. - 11euros"

November 2010: Global Warming in Loire Valley

Etienne Neethling, trainee at the National Institute of Agronomical Research of Angers, made last autumn a synthesis of the meteo data from the 60 past years and of the maturity/ripeness controls over the 30 past years, all along the Loire Valley. Evolutions are astonishing:

Average temperatures
Average 1,3°C increase during the year, higher increase during summer than during winter.

Pluviometry
Annual average stable with fewer and heavier rains.

Quantitative ripeness at harvest
From 1,5% to 2,5% increase in potential volume : 1 to 3 g/L decrease in total acidity.

Angers' climate is now compared to Bordeaux's 60 years ago...

October 2010: Harvest days!

Once again, a good and attractive vintage !

In mid September the harvest was already looking very promising, in spite of a dryness which began to worry us (hey, the vine is a plant and needs water as any other plant. As it is, the Saumur area is the dryest and hottest spot in the entire Loire Valley...).

And the rain came as hoped, at the end of September. But then, a little bit too much...oh dear, the rot will explode...then in October, just as the producers were beginning to pull their hair out (mostly those who had not grassed through their vines nor their grapes ventilated), the good weather returned, bringing with it a chilling and drying north-easterly wind  : so we harvested the Cabernet Franc for the reds in a perfect state, obtaining 14° !

The Chenin Blanc grapes (which are sensitive to rot) concentrated so quickly that two tris were made within a week of each other, with juice coming in at 20°.

Happy as a king in his Loire Valley kingdom - even if the yields were lower than the previous year.

September 2010: Guide Petit Futé "The 1001 best wines under 10 €"

La Rose de Targé 2009, AOC Cabernet de Saumur, 6.50 €

"A rosé well done for amateur, fruit in the sweetness and freshness, nuances of citrus and spring flowers."

Château de Targé 2006, AOC Saumur Champigny (red), 8.50 €

"A classic of the appellation, an quite strong attack, an expressive mouth of the terroir, which is pleasantly round while remaining tense"

September 2010: Bettane & Desseauve wine guide

Targé 2008 : 13.5 / 20

There is a suppleness of tannins with hints of red fruits"

Quintessence 2006 : 15 / 20

"This well structured old vines' wine is still marked by its breeding, but the fruit comes well behind: he must wait another few months"

September 2010: Guide Dussert Gerber 2011

"...Superb Saumur Champigny Ch de Targé 2008 (7.50 €), deep colour, complex nose
sporting all the characteristic spiciness and ripe redberry flavours
of the Cabernet Franc. Well structured, with good keeping potential.

The Saumur-Champigny Quintessence Vieilles Vignes 2006 (19 €) offers a
superbly rich mouthful, with long-lingering flavours of cherries and
blackberries. Intense and aromatic on the nose, good keeping
potential.

Also not to be missed is the Saumur Blanc Les Fresnettes 2007 (12 €) made
from specially selected Chenin grapes from low-yield vines, matured in
barrel. Very classy and elegant, loads of acacia flower, fern and
apple notes on the nose, rounded and perfumed on the palate.

The novelty is the Saumur Brut Blanc de Targé 2007 (11 €) made from 70 %
Chenin Blanc,  30 % Cabernet Franc. Part - matured in barrels previously used for the Fresnettes cuvé. Harvested exactly as per the Crémant its bubbles are restrained but long-lived, combining flavour and class with nuances of hot toast, peaches and narcissi. A very elegant cuvée.

Not to be missed."

September 2010: Gilbert & Gaillard Wine Guide 2011

Brut de Targé 2007 : 85 / 100
Sparkling wine - Saumur Brut A.O.C.
"Light yellow. A precise nose conjures up ripe white fruit over mineral, cellar-like undertones. The palate is well-balanced and fruit-driven, its exuberance is nicely softened by bubbles which impart a creamy sensation on the finish".

Château de Targé 2008: 88 / 100
Red wine - Saumur Champigny A.O.C.
"Bright red. Distinctive nose mingling black and red fruit, liquoricy and mineral notes. Lovely suppleness, freshness and crunchy fruit on the palate. A more robust finish is a reminder of its youthfulness. A stellar wine with enjoyable typicity."

July 2010: Anthony Rose "In summer I am attracted to lightly chilled reds that are light to medium in body, with little or no oak"

In the serious newspaper The independent this week end 24-25 of July, "Food & Drink" released this nice and interesting article quoting the Château de Targé '07 :

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/anthony-rose-in-summer-i-am-attracted-to-lightly-chilled-reds-that-are-light-to-medium-in-body-with-little-or-no-oak-2031549.html

June 2010: In TAST by Bettane & Desseauve

In an article by famous wine journalists Bettane & Desseauve :

Château de Targé 2008 : "Souple and fine tanins, nice fruit with a fresh end: this wine is elegant"

Quintessence 2006 : "This cuvée is well structured with its old vines and defined by its ageing, then the fruit comes at the end. Better to wait a few months."

June 2010 : Comments in London Wine Trade Fair

Two of my wines have been selected as "ambassadors" on the stand of Cabernet Franc in this professional fair :

Targé 2008 : "Nice, fruity, light, fresh style.  Soft, well made red fruit.  Nice, crisp, zesty style.  Red fruit, super silky texture."

Targé 2006 : "Ripe. Not typical, over-ripe style. There is a market for this style. It's not an ambassador though as lacks typicity. Created great debate amongst jury."

June 2010: Saumur-Champigny wines invade the US!

Hello Americans of New York !

As a member of the syndicate of Saumur-Champigny, I was happy to participate to the project of promoting our grape variety Cabernet Franc in New York :

www.saumurchampigny.wordpress.com

My son, still a student, speaks english much better than me and will promote by himself our wines when the time comes.

Saturday May 22th, 2010: Open Doors Day

Want to learn about wine? On Saturday 22nd of May, the Château de Targé is organizing an open doors day to welcome you for a visit of its vines and caves, and a wine tasting of all its products.

Saturday 22nd May 2010, from 10am to 7pm, see "Contact" for a map of the region. The Château will be open on following Sunday and Monday.

March 2010 : Pierre Seillan, who inspired the Quintessence de Targé, obtains the 100/100 note from Robert Parker

Pierre Seillan, who began at Targé in 1977 as a vine manager and maitre de chai, and who is a long lasting friend of the family, is currently flying winemaker  between California (Sonoma Valley), Tuscany in Italy and St Emilion.

Robert Parker, of The Wine Advocate, just awarded him the supreme notes of 100, 98 and 99 out of 100 for three of his californian wines.

I am proud of having so well listened to him when I created the Quintessence of the Château de Targé...

coiffure à domicile

sécuriser son site

February 2010 : Published in the 20 Minutes parisian newspaper

Saumur-Champigny, un vignoble exemplaire

Le vignoble de Saumur-Champigny est la première appellation d’origine contrôlée à s’être engagée sur un programme d’implantation de biodiversité sur l’ensemble de son terroir. Les viticulteurs voilà plus de deux ans, se sont unis pour implanter un réseau de Zones Écologiques Réservoirs (ZER), sur les neuf communes de l’appellation. Aucun apport de pesticides et de fertilisants ne permet une régulation naturelle de l’agro-système viticole. Pour les viticulteurs qui s’engagent dans ce processus de rétablissement de l’équilibre biologique, cela implique de stimuler et d’augmenter la biodiversité en plantant un réseau de haies d’arbustes aux essences diverses pour abriter les oiseaux et les insectes. Cette appellation bénéficie de nombreux paramètres qui valorisent la culture de la vigne qui s’étage en coteaux le long de la Loire. La richesse argilo-calcaire de son terroir et la présence du tuffeau en sous-sol, cette roche calcaire du crétacé supérieur, absorbe les précipitations hivernales et les restitue ensuite parcimonieusement durant les périodes de sécheresse évitant ainsi aux raisins de souffrir. Ce terroir a la particularité d’emmagasiner les fortes chaleurs de la journée et de les restituer durant la nuit, d’où le nom latin “Campus ignis” qui signifie champ de feu. Toujours soucieux de préserver la typicité du terroir et la personnalité unique de ses vins, le Syndicat des producteurs de Saumur-Champigny soutient les viticulteurs qui perpétuent un vrai savoir-faire sur un terroir historique puisqu’on y cultive la vigne depuis le Moyen-Âge."

December 2009: comments of journalist Andreas Larsson from "Tasted" magazine about Loire valley wines

Côteaux de Targé 2007: Nice golden colour, intense and sweet nose, of honey and apricot, fresh and vibrant palate with a rich and unctuous sweetness, long finish with a good emphasis on freshness and minerality.

Fresnettes 2007: A hint of oak, ripe citrus and some floral notes on the nose, dry and crisp palate, fresh finish, needs some more time for the nose to settle.

Quintessence 2006: Quite modern and oaky nose, good fruit, still a little austere with wood tannins, high freshness, rather long, needs a few more years to soften.

Harvest 2009

The 2009 harvest went really (really) well - magnificant bunches of grapes and not a sign of rot until the superb noble rot that formed on the Chenin destined to make the Coteau de Saumur, which we'd saved to harvest last. Couldn't have been better.

This said, it wasn't an easy year; it was pretty wet in the spring, even during the flowering period, and summer started chaotically, with hail in some regions. But then the weather turned lovely and hot ... and the vines started suffering from drought! Luckily for us, our clay-and-limestone soil had acted as a kind of sponge, storing the water, which it then released to the roots when most needed. In mid-september the much-sought-for rain came, preventing the grapes from drying out on the vines. After this, the weather was wonderful right through to 22nd October. Two days after we'd finished harvesting!

2009 will be a great vintage for the Château de Targé.

September 2009: Cited on the Hugh Johnson 2010 wine guide

I am most happy to discover that once more my Saumur-Champignys have been quoted in this pocket book.

September 2009: Cited on the Dusser-Gerber 2010 wine guide

July 2009 : Release of the Brut de Targé

"White flowers, fresh, elegant, neat yet well matured..." here are the very first comments for this very first release of my sparkling wine, the Saumur Brut, elaborated on Cremant ( Champagne method ) standards !

When you know that it has been on laths only for one year, which means yet a little bit too young !

This cuvee has been harvested on the same parcels as "Les Fresnettes".

June 2009: Seen on nakedwineshow.com

Susan Sterling, a passionate lover of wines, came on June 4th by bicycle and wrote about us in her wineblog, once back home in Ontario:
"After the Maison des Vins, I needed to get going, but not before I made one final stop in the tiny village of Parnay. There I was treated to a sampling of wines from Ch. de Targé. This winery is nearly bio-dynamic, and currently does not sell any of its wines in Ontario. This is a shame, because absolutely everything I tried was fantastic. The wine that stood out the most for me was ‘Quintessence’ 2005. 100% Cabernet Franc, it was fermented in new oak casks, and rings in at 14.5% alc. Opaque plum colour, with a high intensity nose of green pepper, baked black fruit, and some game notes. On the palate it was dry, with a full body, and flavours of dark fruit, tobacco, and smoke. Long, long length. Gorgeous. If you’re going to VinExpo in a few weeks, look for the house, they will be in Hall 1."

April 2009: Sam Harrop MW Selection

The New Zealander oenologist comes now every year to select the Loire Cabernet Franc wines that are adapted to the international market standards. The Château de Targé 2007 has been selected as "ambassador for the GB Market". Here are his comments:
"Lovely wine. Nice ripe red fruits, clean and correct, commercial. Varietal - ripe expression, nice weight and acid crisp holds palate. Perfumed savoury notes elegant complex."

List of our medals since 1998

As this file is in French, the following should help you to understand our magnific language:

Or = Gold

Argent = Silver

Bronze = Bronze

Très bien = Very good

Bien = Good

Other information:

- In our region, the "Salon des vins de Loire" in Angers and the "Concours de Mâcon" are the most important competitions.

- At the end of the document, you will see the guides in which our wines are seen.

Thank you for the interest you show for our wines!

Voir le pdf : Medailles.pdf

All the news before January 2009 (in French)

Voir le pdf : Avant 2009.pdf

All the news before January 2009 (in English)

Voir le pdf : Before 2009.pdf