A close to 60-40 blend of Cabernet Franc and Chenin though incorporating a soupcon of Pinot Noir, the Baumard Cremant de Loire Carte Turquoise Lot 811 is blended based on the assumption (going back three generations) that the austerity or strictness of schist-grown Chenin will be complimented by the fruitiness of white-pressed Cabernet Franc that might on its own be rustic. Cassis and blackberry as well as quince, pear, and citrus fruits seem to (given the grapes in question, predictably) be mingled here. Texturally, this has a silken yet subtly gripping texture that would I believe have told me blind that I was in the presence of something quite unfamiliar. It finishes with the addition of nut oil richness and a faint hint of sweetness (even though it harbors only 5 grams of residual sugar, so the sensation must stem largely be from ripe fruit and gentle acids). This will be enjoyable simply on its own – I suspect over the next 6-9 months. I finally had the pleasure to taste personally with Florent Baumard (for more about whose domaine and methods, consult my report in issue 172) and found him a disarmingly astute critic of his own wines whose confidence I share that the best is yet to come from this vast and already justly renowned estate. I find a freedom from bitter or coarse elements and a clarity of flavors in the more recent wines that is welcome and which, when pressed, Florent Baumard suggests might in part be attributable to increasingly selective and watchful (though not necessarily gentler) pressing. The envelope-pushing here is evident in the quality of Baumard’s relatively high-volume sparking wines, rendered from blends unfamiliar outside of the Loire. The wines I tasted five years ago were good, but only modestly-recommendable (and I elected not to publish notes on them in issue 172). The lot numbers of Baumard non-vintage sparkling wines appear on the front label in very tiny, faint letters under the words “sparkling wine,” but cannot be read without good eyesight, and not if the bottle is wet! The Baumards’ “regular” bottling of Savennieres is from their Clos St. Yves vineyard between the Clos du Papillon and Roche aux Moines, and a fact of which I was not aware when I published my notes in issue 172 is that two different labels are used interchangeably, one of which indicates the vineyard name.Importer: Ex Cellars wine Agencies, Cambridge, MA; tel. (617) 876-5105

This is Baumard’s entry-level sparkling wine, with ripe, soft fruit, a creamy texture with some attractive weight and flavors of apples and pears. ——R.V.(6/1/2011)—— 86

This is Baumard’s entry-level sparkling wine, with ripe, soft fruit, a creamy texture with some attractive weight and flavors of apples and pears. ——R.V.(6/1/2011)—— 86