Ronceray Château De Plaisance Anjou Aoc, 2023

Ronceray Château de Plaisance Anjou AOC 2023 is a refined Loire Valley white that captures the tension, purity and elegance that Chenin Blanc can deliver in Anjou. Crafted in small quantities, it offers a vivid expression of its schist-based terroir, balancing ripe fruit with a striking mineral backbone. Named after the historic Abbaye de Ronceray, this cuvée pays homage to the region’s centuries‑old winemaking heritage while showcasing a contemporary, precision‑driven style.

Tasting Notes
In the glass, Ronceray pours a luminous pale straw to light gold, with brilliant clarity and gentle viscosity. The nose is pure and focused, opening with notes of crisp orchard fruit—green apple, pear and quince—layered with citrus zest, white flowers and hints of acacia honey and wet stone. On the palate, this Anjou is dry to just off‑dry in feel, with a beautiful interplay of concentrated fruit and racy acidity. Flavors of ripe apple, pear and lemon curd are underlined by a saline, schist‑driven minerality and subtle herbal and chamomile nuances. The texture is sleek yet mouth‑filling, with good mid‑palate weight and a long, precise finish that tapers on citrus and stone. Enjoyable now for its vitality and freshness, it also has the structure and acidity to evolve gracefully over the next 5–8 years, gaining complexity and gentle honeyed tones with time in bottle.

Production
Sourced from carefully tended vineyards in the Anjou AOC of the Loire Valley, Ronceray comes from predominantly schist and slate (“Anjou Noir”) soils that naturally limit vigor and enhance mineral expression. The vines are farmed with a strong focus on environmental respect, with low yields to concentrate flavor and preserve terroir character. Harvest is typically carried out by hand in multiple passes, allowing only perfectly ripe Chenin Blanc clusters to be selected. In the cellar, the grapes are gently pressed and the must is fermented—often with indigenous yeasts—in temperature‑controlled tanks and/or neutral barrels to preserve aromatic purity. Aging on fine lees adds texture, depth and complexity, while the restrained use or absence of new oak keeps the wine’s focus firmly on freshness, precision and minerality.

Food & Serving
This Anjou white is highly versatile at the table and pairs beautifully with shellfish (especially oysters, mussels and scallops), grilled or poached white fish, sushi, and lightly spiced Asian dishes. It is also excellent with goat’s cheeses from the Loire, soft-ripened cheeses, roast poultry, and vegetable‑based dishes such as asparagus risotto or lemony spring salads. Serve well-chilled, ideally at 10–12 °C (50–54 °F), to highlight its aromatics and tension. A brief 15–20 minutes in the glass or a quick splash‑decant can help the wine open up, but extended decanting is not necessary for this youthful, vibrant 2023 vintage.

Producer
Château de Plaisance is a respected name in Anjou, located in the heart of the Loire Valley, an area long celebrated for its benchmark Chenin Blanc wines. The estate has embraced a quality‑driven, terroir‑focused philosophy, working closely with its vineyards to produce precise, characterful cuvées that reflect the nuances of Anjou’s schist‑rich soils. The Ronceray bottling references the historic Abbaye de Ronceray, underscoring the deep cultural and viticultural roots of the region. Known for meticulous vineyard work and a thoughtful, minimal‑intervention approach in the cellar, the producer has gained recognition among wine lovers and professionals for wines that combine purity, energy and age‑worthy structure, helping to reaffirm Anjou’s place among the Loire’s most exciting white wine appellations.