Loire Valley - Touraine - Domaine Ricard

Domaine Ricard Touraine

Thésée, Loir-et-Cher
Domaine Ricard lies on the north side of the Cher River, about a forty-five minute drive from Tours. Chenonceaux, the famous castle that juts into the river, is about twenty kilometers to the west. We have left the Chenin Blanc territory of Vouvray and Montlouis near Tours and passed into firm Sauvignon Blanc terrain, which continues to the east through Quincy, Menatou Salon, Sancerre, and Pouilly Fumé.
Touraine has never been rated as highly as the aforementioned regions, and few independent producers existed outside of the coopérative. But times change, demand soars in other regions and prices rise, leaving a void for well-priced, affordable wine.
With the increased prices of Sancerre, we saw interest in Menatou rise, then Quincy. Now Touraine is looked at as the value white wine of the Loire. However, with quality rising at frightening speed, who knows how long that can last?
Grapes have been grown on the property for five generations, and the Ricard family were founding members of the local Oisy-Thésée wine coopérative. The co-op, like many in France, were mostly interested in quantity over quality, with grapes being paid for by the kilo and wine being made in a factory setting.

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Vincent Ricard, 2010

In the early nineties, Vincent Ricard studied viticulture and did an apprenticeship in Chinon. In 1996, after two years of study, he received an enology degree. Fresh out of school, he returned to Chinon, where Philippe Alliet, for whom he had worked earlier, offered him a job.
For a couple of years, Vincent learned to vinify red wine and follow it in barrel. More importantly, however, he learned the obsessive vineyard details practiced by Alliet (ground cover, plowing, green harvests, organic farming — to name some), methods that were not taught by his teachers at school.
Vincent decided to move closer to home and took a job in Montlouis with Claude Levasseur, the uncle of Francois Chidaine, in 1997. It was here that he learned to vinify white wine in barrel and follow its progression in oak.
 
In the spring of 1998, Vincent returned home and was employed by his father Alain in his hometown Théssé. The following year, they bought themselves out of their cooperative contract, formed a GAEC together, and Domaine Ricard was born.
 
Since that time, many things have changed at the property: Alain has retired, Vincent has married and become a father, several new parcels of vines have been purchased, the vineyards have become fully organic, and the domaine is now one of the most esteemed in the appellation.

Inside the cave at Domaine Ricard

Domaine Ricard Touraine Le Petiot
100% Sauvignon Blanc. Hand harvested from 30-year-old vines with a yield of about 50 hl/ha (3.5-4 tons an acre). A selection is made of the best juice. Fermented at a low temperature for three weeks then aged on its fine lees in stainless-steel tanks. About 20% is aged in well-seasoned barrels that have already seen three wines.
Tasting Notes: Bright citrus aromas (grapefruit, lemon) along with a savory herbal touch. Great balance of fruit and acidity.

Domaine Ricrad Touraine Le Villain Petit Rouge
100% Cot
After abstaining from Vincent’s red wines for a couple of years, we were thoroughly impressed with this little ugly wine made with pure Cot (Malbec).  Fermentation occurs in cement tanks; the wine then goes into a variety of new, 1 and 2 year-old barrels for a total of 9 months.  Tasting Notes: Bright black fruit along with some vanilla and spice are the flavors you will get from this hearty yet versatile red.  

Domaine Ricard Touraine Les Trois Chênes
100% Sauvignon Blanc from old vines (the oldest planted in 1947) on a gentle slope near the top of the hill. The vineyards face directly south, and the soil is clay and limestone. The grapes are hand-harvested and pass through a sorting table. Yields average about 35 hl/ha (2-2.5 tons an acre). The wine is barrel-fermented for three months, then aged in barrel for eight months, with lees-stirring every four days or so.
Tasting Notes: A delicious mouthful of Sauvignon Blanc that overachieves not only its appellation but also those to the east, notably Sancerre. Great texture, bright white peach fruit, classy vanilla notes and good underlying acidity make this an absolute pleasure to drink.

The vineyards lie on southern facing slopes, with nearly fifteen hectares planted in Sauvignon Blanc, along with a bit of Gamay, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, and Cot (Malbec). Vincent lets grass grow between his rows of vines instead of removing it with herbicide. No pesticides are used to combat insects. Vines are replaced using the shoots of neighboring vines. Pruning and occasional de-budding helps to limit yields.
 
Vincent has expanded his cave, once a simple, small space built into the side of a hill that's now a rather modern winery (although still built into the same side of the hill and attached to the old cave). The majority of his production is white, and most of that is split between three dry Sauvignon Blanc cuvées.
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He also makes a couple of sweet wines, as well as a couple of solid red wines. Nearly three-quarters of his production is exported, and his wines have been praised by the international press. Like many other young producers in the Loire, he has chosen modern labels for his wines based on canvases painted by a friend, all of which are on display in his small but modern tasting room.
 
Ricard's wines are all about balance: The fruit is always lifted by just the right amount of acidity, and his wines never come across as being heavy. They are, however, precise with their fruit and defined on their finish, and are amazing values to boot!

The P'tit Villain Rouge canvas and label