Goutte d'O

One of the grape varieties that I think responds best to natural winemaking is Chenin Blanc and here is yet another dry Chenin from the Loire (Anjou), described simply as a 'vin artisanal'

It's not as fine as the Chenins I've tasted recently from Frantz Saumon or the late Stephane Cossais but it's an appealing wine with pronounced appley (but not cidery) aromas, and a beguiling touch of quince and honey. Quite similar to the flavours you get from an aged Chablis, in fact. (It doesn't contain any sulphur).

You can read about the winemaker Sylvain Martinez on my colleague Jim Budd's blog here and here. It's stocked in the UK - almost inevitably - by Caves de Pyrène.

I'm still mulling over a way to categorise wines, favouring a simple three tier 'traffic light' division into green, amber and red. Green being virtually indistinguishable from a conventional wine, amber being a little more challenging and red really only for natural wine aficionados. I'd class this as an amber!