History and Terroir

Few vignerons understand the intricacies of the Chinon appellation like the Joguet family. The estate’s modern day history begins with Charles Joguet, who left his impending art career to take over the family domaine back in 1957. Although the family had long sold off their fruit to négociants, Charles saw the immense potential of their optimally planted vineyard sites, and began vinifying the grapes on site shortly after his arrival. After an impressive four decades helming the winery, Charles ultimately retired in 1998. Today, the Joguet estate is spearheaded by Kevin Fontaine, a dynamic and curious winemaker that oversees both the vineyards and the cellar. In honor of Charles’ vision, Kevin continues to bottle a number of single-vineyard wines, ensuring that the vinification regimen of each cuvée best showcases the unique parcel from which it comes.

Farming and Winemaking

Chinon is deemed one of the crown jewel appellations of the Loire Valley. The Joguet’s 32 hectares of vines are dedicated mostly to Cabernet Franc (30 hectares), with the remaining two planted to Chenin Blanc. Within the family’s holdings lie a myriad of very specific lieux-dits, which have been identified, recognized, and praised for their unique nuances since the Middle Ages. The Joguet estate has long honored these differentiations through bottling a number of single-vineyard wines as part of their lineup. For reference, Charles Joguet had long done this far before it was fashionable, and today, the fruits of his pioneering spirit are carried on through Kevin Fontaine’s continued emphasis on single-vineyard bottlings. The majority of the Joguet vineyards are located between the Loire and Vienne rivers, on what’s deemed some of the most prestigious land in all of the Loire Valley. Come harvest, all plots are harvested and vinified separately, according to variety and site. In the cellar, all fruit is destemmed and fermented with native yeasts and aged in a variety of vessels (steel, oak barrels, etc.) depending on the variety / cuvée. The resulting wines are sultry, earth-driven wines that show the exceptional potential of this beloved appellation.