Château d’Épiré
One
of the oldest and most celebrated domaines in Savennières, Château d’Épiré is
rich in history, not only for its fabulous architectural rendition of the Petit
Trianon of Versailles, but most especially for its exquisite wines. Savennières
is situated just southwest of Angers, on the north bank of the Loire River.
Vines have been cultivated there since the time of the Romans. The Plantagenet
dynasty allowed for the first exports of the wine to be sent to Great Britian
in the 11th century. The domaine itself has been in the Bizard family continuously since the 17th century. The current head of the estate is Paul Bizard, who took over for his father, Luc, in 2018. The Bizards own eleven hectares, nine of which are entirely dedicated to the cultivation of Pineau de
la Loire, known today as Chenin Blanc. The château is exquisite, but the pièce de résistance is their winery,
formerly a Romanesque chapel, which is from the 12th century. Truly
a blessed wine!
Despite
the beauty and timelessness of the building structures, it is the vineyard for
which the domaine is best known. The Savennières from Épiré is regarded as Grand Cru. The domaine works primarily
three parcels: La Croix Picot, Le Parc, and Le Hu-Boyau. It is the latter that
sits just above another famous vineyard, La Coulée de Serrant. The soils here
are rich, and the microclimate is ideal. Southern and south-eastern sun
exposure brings ripeness to the grapes, while the proximity to the Loire River
keeps the temperatures moderate. The subsoils are comprised of sandstone and
schist, and the top soil is a beautiful blue slatey schist that covers the
vineyard floors, lending nerve and firmness. We import two cuvées of dry Savennières from Château d’Épiré. Their Cuvée Spéciale is blended by Kermit from their best parcel, and creates a powerful wine, austere within its first two or three years, that develops substantially with age. This cuvée is aged in demi-muids, primarily in traditional but largely abandoned chestnut barrels. The other cuvée, aged in stainless steel, is more accessible young, with floral notes and lip-smacking acidity. Both are delicious
and spectacularly complex, and show a value disproportionate to their pedigree.

One of the oldest and most celebrated domaines in Savennières, Château d’Épiré is rich in history, not only for its fabulous architectural rendition of the Petit Trianon of Versailles, but most especially for its exquisite wines. Savennières is situated just southwest of Angers, on the north bank of the Loire River. Vines have been cultivated there since the time of the Romans. The Plantagenet dynasty allowed for the first exports of the wine to be sent to Great Britian in the 11th century. The domaine itself has been in the Bizard family continuously since the 17th century. The current head of the estate is Paul Bizard, who took over for his father, Luc, in 2018. The Bizards own eleven hectares, nine of which are entirely dedicated to the cultivation of Pineau de la Loire, known today as Chenin Blanc. The château is exquisite, but the pièce de résistance is their winery, formerly a Romanesque chapel, which is from the 12th century. Truly a blessed wine!
Despite the beauty and timelessness of the building structures, it is the vineyard for which the domaine is best known. The Savennières from Épiré is regarded as Grand Cru. The domaine works primarily three parcels: La Croix Picot, Le Parc, and Le Hu-Boyau. It is the latter that sits just above another famous vineyard, La Coulée de Serrant. The soils here are rich, and the microclimate is ideal. Southern and south-eastern sun exposure brings ripeness to the grapes, while the proximity to the Loire River keeps the temperatures moderate. The subsoils are comprised of sandstone and schist, and the top soil is a beautiful blue slatey schist that covers the vineyard floors, lending nerve and firmness. We import two cuvées of dry Savennières from Château d’Épiré. Their Cuvée Spéciale is blended by Kermit from their best parcel, and creates a powerful wine, austere within its first two or three years, that develops substantially with age. This cuvée is aged in demi-muids, primarily in traditional but largely abandoned chestnut barrels. The other cuvée, aged in stainless steel, is more accessible young, with floral notes and lip-smacking acidity. Both are delicious and spectacularly complex, and show a value disproportionate to their pedigree.
Technical Information
Wine | Blend | Vine Age | Soil Type | Vineyard Area* |
---|---|---|---|---|
Savennières |
Chenin Blanc | Planted in 1965-2013 (average 35 years old) | Schist | 8.5 ha |
Savennières “Cuvée Spéciale” |
Chenin Blanc | Planted in 1988, 1989, 2000, 2017 (average 20 years old) | Phtanite | 1.5 ha |
Savennières Moelleux |
Chenin Blanc | 30-55 years | Schist | 1 ha |
Anjou Rouge Clos de la Cerisaie |
Cabernet Franc | Planted in 1973, 1976, 2016 *As of 2020 vintage the red will be only from young vines as they have torn out the old parcels. |
Schist | 1.5 ha |
* "ha" = hectares; one hectare equals roughly two and a half acres |
VITICULTURE / VINIFICATION
• The Bizards’ vineyard land sits at the highest point in the Savennières appellation
• Vines are pruned in gobelet
• Cover crop is planted in between every other vineyard row
• Hand harvested
• Grapes are pressed gently by pneumatic press
• Juice rests for 24 hours before being racked into stainless steel cuves for fermentation to begin
•No malolactic fermentation fermentation for white winesSavennières:
• A blend of parcels from the lieux-dits Le Parc and La Croix Picot• Fermented and aged in stainless steel tanks
Savennières “Cuvée Spéciale”:
• Bottled specially for Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant
• Sourced exclusively from the domaine's best vineyard, Le Hu-Boyau, a high-lying, well-exposed parcel overlooking the Loire, on stony soils of phtanite (a hard, blueish, siliceous sedimentary rock similar to chert that is extremely rare in the Savennières appellation) • Fermented in stainless steel tanks • Aged for up to 9 months sur lie in a combination of old 440-liter chestnut, acacia, and oak demi-muidsSavennières Moelleux:
• Fermentation lasts one month in acacia barrels
• Aged in acacia barrels until April bottling
• 35 grams/Liter residual sugar
• Parcel is located near the Loire river and benefits from the mists from the river, which add in the development of botrytis
Anjou Rouge Clos de la Cerisaie:
• An actual clos, but part of the walls have collapsed
• Fermentation with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel
• Primary fermentation lasts 15 days, with daily pumpovers
• Wine ages in 30 hectoliter stainless steel tanks
• Wine ages until spring and is bottled in April
• Neither filtered nor fined
MISCELLANEA
The Château d’Épiré filters all of
its wines except those sold to Kermit Lynch. Why? Sadly, the majority of
European consumers and sommeliers are willing to forsake body and taste for
perfect stability and sediment-free wines…. Based on my tastings of each over
three different vintages, there is a two-point difference between the normal
cuvées and the Cuvée Spéciale and another two-point difference between it and
Lynch’s unfiltered cuvée.
-Pierre Rovani, The Wine Advocate
It is difficult to
imagine another wine from France likely to provide the sheer intellectual
marvel we seem to enjoy with every bottle of d’Épiré’s Savennières.
-Bruce Neyers, KLWM
The Cuvée Spéciale is what it
usually is, their best parcel, old vines next to the Coulée de Serrant,
fermented and raised in demi-muids, and bottled unfiltered. All for us! It is
intense with a strong goût
de terroir to go with the fruit. It
is powerful, coiled like a spring, needs some time, and can age well into the
next century.
-Kermit LynchÉpiré
The Château d’Épiré filters all of its wines except those sold to Kermit Lynch. Why? Sadly, the majority of European consumers and sommeliers are willing to forsake body and taste for perfect stability and sediment-free wines…. Based on my tastings of each over three different vintages, there is a two-point difference between the normal cuvées and the Cuvée Spéciale and another two-point difference between it and Lynch’s unfiltered cuvée.
It is difficult to imagine another wine from France likely to provide the sheer intellectual marvel we seem to enjoy with every bottle of d’Épiré’s Savennières.
The Cuvée Spéciale is what it usually is, their best parcel, old vines next to the Coulée de Serrant, fermented and raised in demi-muids, and bottled unfiltered. All for us! It is intense with a strong goût de terroir to go with the fruit. It is powerful, coiled like a spring, needs some time, and can age well into the next century.
General Information
- Country
- France
- Region
- Loire
- Appellation(s)
- Anjou, Savennières
- Producer
- Paul Bizard
- Founded
- 1882
- Annual Production
- 4,000 cases
- Website
- http://www.chateau-epire.com