the flavours, caves and castles of the Loire

This article is part of FT Globetrotter’s guide to Paris

Scanning a map of France’s Loire Valley reads like the wine menu of a classic Parisian bistro: Sancerre, Vouvray, Chinon, Saumur, Savennières, Muscadet — each name steeped in viticultural history. The Loire region is a wine and food lover’s paradise, yet somehow it draws blank stares from most people as if it’s a black hole somewhere in north/west/central France. Yes, it’s far less trodden than Paris, Provence and the Alps, yet the Loire is quietly emerging as one of France’s most exciting wine regions to visit — and the TGV from the capital can transport you there in just over an hour.

This vast region is named after France’s longest river, which stretches 1,006km from its source in the Massif Central to the Atlantic, and has served as a historical superhighway for more than 2,000 years. There are some 300 castles along the way, evidence of the aristocratic link between fertile lands and strategic location. The stones used to build those castles came primarily from local quarries, the most famous material being tuffeau, a soft, cream-coloured limestone extracted from the area around Saumur to Tours. These quarries were often underground, creating a network of tunnels that were later repurposed as mushroom farms, habitation or as wine cellars, often for sparkling wine — crémant.

A well-rounded long weekend escape to the heart of the Loire, the area on which this guide largely focuses, should incorporate the region’s three defining Cs — castles, caves and crémant — as well as its range of world-class wines and excellent restaurants.

Castles

The Loire Valley’s majestic castles have inspired many to call the region a “living tapestry” of French history. While exploring all 300 castles is more of a lifetime mission than a weekend project, a perfect starting point is the Château d’Angers, home to the magnificent Apocalypse Tapestry. Commissioned in 1375 by the Duke of Anjou, this 140m-long medieval masterpiece is the world’s largest surviving work of its kind, depicting vivid scenes from the Book of Revelation, including the seven-headed beast, the adoration of the lamb and the harvest of the damned. If suddenly that spawns an interest in textile art, across the river is the Musée Jean-Lurçat et de la Tapisserie Contemporaine, renowned for its collection of modern tapestry, including the monumental series Le Chant du Monde (Song of the World) by Jean Lurçat, a tribute to the famed work at Château d’Angers.

In Saumur, 40 minutes east, you’ll find the magnificent Château de Saumur, striking in white tuffeau stone perched high above the old town. The interiors aren’t as beautiful as the more renowned châteaux such as Chenonceau, Chambord and Azay-le-Rideau, but it does house one of France’s best faience collections. A remarkable series of rooms shows the evolution of ceramic styles across regional France and Europe. 

Caves

The cool, damp caves around Saumur serve essential gastronomic purposes, notably cultivating mushrooms such as champignons de Paris, shiitake, oyster mushrooms and the rare pied-bleu. These fungi are central to Loire cuisine, enriching dishes like tarts, soups and stews, and are featured seasonally everywhere from cosy bistros to Michelin-starred restaurants (more on this below).

You can explore these caverns in Saumur at the Musée du Champignon, a remarkable troglodyte site that houses one of the largest collections of mushrooms in Europe, or in the nearby village of Montsoreau at the Champignonnière du Saut aux Loup, which is located directly beneath vineyards. This unique feature highlights the dual purpose of tuffeau limestone in maintaining the caves’ humidity and retaining water in vineyard soils during the hot summer months.

Crémant

The caves are also ideal for storing and ageing sparkling wines. The Loire Valley is the second-largest producer of sparkling wine in France after Champagne. It’s known as Crémant de Loire, which is fresh and fruity and made in the traditional method like Champagne, but with local grapes such as Chenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc and Chardonnay. Saumur is specifically known for its sparkling production; it is the biggest producer of the region and has its own appellation, Saumur Brut. 

Two joining roads in the town, Rue Léopold Palustre and Rue Jean Ackerman, are home to the bustling bubbles industry. Underneath them you’ll find the famous underground limestone quarries converted into extensive cellars. Important stops on this route are Ackerman, the oldest producer, which introduced traditional sparkling wine to the Loire in 1811, and Bouvet Ladubay, one of the most celebrated estates, where visitors can explore part of the 8km of underground cellars by bike. The Champagne connection persists, as you’ll also discover the elegant sparkling wines of Langlois-Château here, owned by Bollinger, whose vineyard you can tour in a horse-drawn carriage (May to September). It’s also worth seeking out traditional producers like Gratien & Meyer and Louis de Grenelle — both offer excellent value in their ranges of white, rosé and even sparkling red. 

Other Loire wines 

Beyond crémant, the expansive Loire Valley is France’s most diverse wine region: all types of wine are made here from different grapes, soils and microclimates. What stitches them together is the ligérien style, which translates to “from the Loire” and emphasises specific characteristics: freshness, elegance, minerality and finesse. Look for the following wines, wine villages and domain names. Many of these producers welcome the public for guided tours, vineyard walks or tastings (be sure to check opening times before visiting).

• Muscadet sur Lie A dry, crisp and refreshing white made from the white grape Melon de Bourgogne; sur lie means the wine has undergone extra ageing on lees (it is left to age without being filtered after fermentation), which gives it a slightly more rounded and savoury style, as opposed to the thinner, sharper conventional varieties. Look out for wines from Famille Lieubeau such as Muscadet Clisson. 

• Sauvignon Blanc is a notoriously zesty and aromatic grape, but the wines made from it around the picturesque villages of Sancerre and Pouilly are known for their minerality, elegance and freshness. Try Domaine Didier Dagueneau and Alphonse Mellot.

• Chenin Blanc A complex, rich and aromatic white grape from Savennières, Vouvray or Montlouis-sur-Loire. Vouvray is renowned among oenophiles for its command of Chenin Blanc, from sparkling to dry, off-dry and sweet. One of the top producers is Domaine Huet, known for its early commitment to organic and biodynamic viticulture. Over the river, in the town of Montlouis, Domaine de la Taille aux Loups makes sensational single-vineyard whites with precision, razor-edge acidity and apple and quince flavours. To the west, Savennières produces a mighty Chenin Blanc — age-worthy and complex, with notes of honey, nuts and kerosene over time. Try Domaine du Closel, Nicolas Joly and Domaine Belargus.

• Red wine Saumur-Champigny, Chinon, Bourgueil and St Nicholas de Bourgueil are known for refreshing and juicy red wines, with medium body and supple tannins. Based on the Cabernet Franc grape, they tend to have red-fruit flavours and are even better if slightly chilled. The best producers are Thierry Germain, Clos Rougeard, Domaine des Closiers and Domaine Breton.

• Dessert wine Coteaux du Layon, Quarts de Charmes and Bonnezeaux produce luscious, golden sweet wines from Chenin Blanc grapes. Drink them well chilled on their own or paired with blue, salty cheeses, pork rillettes or tarte Tatin, the upside-down apple tart that originated in the Loire region.

Where to eat 

The culinary riches of the Loire come straight from the caves, pastures and orchards of its river banks. Mushrooms aside, chèvre (goat’s cheese) is the signature product, with five protected styles. The most famous is Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine, a fresh, raw goat’s-milk cheese, hand-moulded around straw and rolled in ash, but be sure to taste Chavignol, Valencay and Selles-sur-Cher. From April to June, look for “La Délicate” on menus — a soft and tender white asparagus that grows on the sandy banks of Chinon and Bourgeuil. Rillettes are another local speciality, as are fish dishes (made from the fresh catch from the river and the Atlantic) and tarte Tatin. The following restaurants, located in the heart of the Loire region, offer an excellent taste of the local cuisine.

A charming and friendly little restaurant where each dish is an exquisite parade of seasonal local ingredients presented in unexpected and creative ways. The wine list is centred on organic, biodynamic and natural farming, and it features more than 300 mainly local producers. 9 Rue Baudrière, 49100 Angers. Website; Directions

• Belle Rive A stylish and serene fine dining restaurant that turns out sophisticated dishes with a modern twist using local ingredients. In a region marked by crumbling walls and old castles, this smart and elegant spot offers a contrasting experience with unforgettable food. 32 Promenade de Reculée, 49000 Angers. Website; Directions

Traditional cuisine by candlelight in a cave. Here you can enjoy bottomless wood-fired fouées (flatbreads) accompanied by regional delicacies: fresh mushrooms, mogettes (white beans), chipouillette (sausage), and goat’s cheese, which are best washed down with crémant de Loire, juicy Saumur red and a local sweet wine from Coteaux du Layon. Booking in advance is essential. 1 Rue Henri Fricotelle, 49400 Rou-Marson. Website; Directions

• Bistrot de la Place

  

  Ambience and charm are in abundance at this restaurant, located in a pretty little square with the magnificent 17th-century St Pierre church towering above. A daily chalkboard menu offers traditional dishes according to the seasons, which, along with the service and wine by the glass options, are exceptional. 16 Place Saint-Pierre, 49400 Saumur. Website; Directions

• Le Restaurant de Fontevraud l’Ermitage A modern Michelin-starred destination inside the grounds of Fontevraud Abbey, once Europe’s largest monastic centre, where Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry II and Richard the Lionheart were buried. The menu is focused on local ingredients and biodynamic farming, with some of the produce grown on site. 38 Rue Saint-Jean de L’Habit, 49590 Fontevraud-l’Abbaye. Website; Directions

Victoria Daskal is a wine writer, certified educator, presenter and judge

Share your recommendations for exploring the Loire in the comments below. And follow FT Globetrotter on Instagram at @FTGlobetrotter

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