Ep 360: Touraine and its Red and White Jewels of the Loire Valley

<p>Touraine is in the Middle Loire Valley, and it has a myriad of pockets with famed and delicious wines. We give an overview of this region and discuss its most famous areas (Vouvray, Chinon, Bourgueil), which make some of the most distinctive, complex red and white wines in the world.</p> <p><img style= "display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src= "https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/show/45638/Map.png" alt="" width= "400" height="447" /></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Here are the show notes:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Touraine is in the heart of the Loire Valley, half-way between Sancerre and Nantes, 225 km/140 mi from the Atlantic Ocean, and from the northern Massif Central</li> <li>Touraine follows the Loire River for 100 KM/60 miles, and has 5,000 hectares /12,355 acres of vineyards</li> <li>Dry and sweet white, red, rosé, and sparkling wines are all made here</li> <li>The soil is varied, containing three main types: <ul> <li>Tuffeau: calcareous rock that produces wines of great acidity</li> <li>Perruche: flint and clay with pockets of gravel, near the river</li> <li>Limestone and clay, with pockets of gravel, near the river</li> </ul> </li> <li>The climate is Atlantic in the west, more continental as you move east.</li> </ul> <p style="text-align: center;"><img style= "display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src= "https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/show/45638/14259206408_7046609b2d_b.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /><em><span style= "font-size: 8pt;">"Thésée-la-Romaine (Loir-et-Cher)" by sybarite48 is licensed with CC BY 2.0. <a href= "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">Click here to view a copy of this license</a>,</span></em></p> <p><strong>Grapes</strong></p> <ul> <li>White is 59% of production: Sauvignon Blanc (nearly 80% of whites), with Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, Arbois and Sauvignon Gris, Pinot Gris</li> <li>Red is 22% of production and Rosé is (8%): Gamay makes up more than 60% of harvest, with Cabernet Franc, Malbec (aka Côt), Cabernet Sauvignon, Pineau d’Aunis, Pi