Luneau-Papin, legends of Muscadet arrive in Western Canada

JancisRobinson.com Wine of the Week: Luneau-Papin, L d'Or 2020

— Richard Hemming MW • Jan 21, 2022

Luneau Papin, formerly known as Domaine Pierre de la Grange before Pierre Luneau married Monique Papin of Domaine Papin and combined estates, has been in existence since the early 18th century, growing Melon since Day One. They remain one of the most revered names in the Loire Valley. Who else in Muscadet can boast of a 99 point wine?!

Pierre & Monique were among the first producers to bottle single parcel representations of Melon de Bourgogne, highlighting the various soils and micro-climates of the region, eschewing clonal selection for the patience and diversity of selection massale.

Luneau Papin makes their wines with the lightest touch. They forego the use of oak in all but their Folle Blanche - a fascinating varietal in its own rite - to preserve the fidelity of each terroir through indigenous ferments in underground glass tiled vats (traditional for the region). Extended lees ageing - duration decided vintage by vintage according to the arc of the fruit and fermentation - give these wines a glorious texture and round profile to meet their dazzling acidity. You’d be hard pressed to find a better option for crab and lobster dishes.

Luneau Papin was also visionary in their decision to hold back and cellar large portions of each vintage, releasing the wines years later to demonstrate the potential for aging in this underappreciated varietal. Back vintages of the estate’s countless old vines, beautiful farming, and centenarian plots and monopoles are available in limited numbers: L’d’Or from vines planted on granite, Les Pierres Blanches from vines on gneiss, the Clos des Allées monopole from vines on mica schist, and Excelsior from the schists of their hallowed Goulaine Cru vineyards, in the family possession since the 17th century (by the 1990’s, enough likeminded producers had emerged in Muscadet to band together to begin the long and tiring process of classifying and having approved individual cru for Melon de Bourgogne, their first being Goulaine).

In 2008, just as Pierre & Monique were passing the baton to Pierre-Marie & Marie, the domaine also made the leap to biodynamic farming. The quality of the wines has only increased. Pierre-Marie also brought home a wealth of knowledge from his time spent working in numerous French and new world wineries from 2001 to 2005, collecting a deeper and broader wine education. Today he carries on the domaine’s tradition of elevating and privileging Melon de Bourgogne with a Burgundian degree of attention and site specificity that inspires and excites wine lovers around the world.

PUNCH: The Insider’s Guide to Muscadet

Jon Bonné • Mar 29, 2018

Alberta CSPC/SKU #865312

2020 FOLLE BLANCHE

Gros Plant du Pays Nantais AOP

Plots of Folle Blanche vines planted in 1974 in villages La Chapelle-Heulin and le Landreau named la Richardière and Fromenteaux. Selection Massale. Light and stony soil, with sand on schist. This is the domaine’s only wine not made from Melon de Bourgogne. Folle Blanche is the offspring of the prodigious and now rare grape Gouais Blanc that also sired Chardonnay, Gamay, and Aligoté. Folle Blanche itself is parent to Canada’s hybrid darling, Baco Noir. This is a refreshing and crushable white masterfully grown, showing lemon zest, sea breeze, and green apple.



*AVAILABLE BY ALLOCATION REQUEST ONLY

Alberta CSPC/SKU #865314

2020 ‘LA GRANGE’ VIEILLES VIGNES

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie AOC



This wine comes from a single parcel in the village of Le Landreau ('The Grange' vineyard) planted by selection massale on mica shist with a southern exposure. The Luneau family are pioneers in this regard and still amongst the only producers in Muscadet to bottle single vineyard expressions of their land. They've been doing it since the 80's. Spring soil preparation has been performed in a traditional manner (earthing down and hoeing) throughout the entire estate since 2009. Vines only see natural preparations (no chemical products). They sow cover crops such as pulses and cereals at the end of summer, with close attention to the needs of each crop. Soil life is stimulated with biodynamic preparations 500 and 501. Vines are short cut pruned (single guyot) during winter. Vine density is 6,500 plants per hectare. Careful sorting is carried out in the vineyard by their team of grape harvesters. Serve at 12˚C. Excellent as an aperitif with shellfish, fish in a sea salt crust, roasted fillet of sea bream, Asian cuisine, or fresh cheeses.

Alberta CSPC/SKU #865316

2020 ‘CUVÉE L D’OR

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie AOC



Village of Vallet. Vines planted in 1984 (selection massale). Mother rock of granite and gneiss with two micas of the Armoricain Massif. This plot is one of the historical treasures of the Luneau family. It rises up between two villages and has a river runnings through it. Officially part of the village of Vallet, the plot lies at the top of a hillside forming a 500 meter wide seam of granite that descends gently to the gneiss of the village of Le Landreau.

Also available:

2010 ‘Cuvée L d’Or - tech sheet | find the wine
2007 ‘Cuvée L d’Or - tech sheet | find the wine

Alberta CSPC/SKU #865319

2020 ‘CLOS DES ALLÉES’

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie AOC



From Luneau Papin's monopole, the Clos des Allées has a pale straw hue with aromas that delicately dance between salt and citrus. The palate is intricately laced with jasmine, orange blossom, lemon zest, pear sorbet, beach pebbles, and subtle spice. This storied plot was last planted in 1974 (selection massale). Its 2.3 uninterrupted hectares sit on a bedrock of altered schists from the Armorican massif and are enclosed by paths which, in the late 18th century, formed the borders of three seigneuries (feudal lordships) which became the village of Le Landreau. The Cassini maps listed 75 owners at the time. Today, Luneau Papin tends it all. This clos is adjacent to their winery and is the historical cradle of the Luneau family.

Alberta CSPC/SKU #865320

2020 ‘TERRE DE PIERRE’

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie AOC



Village of Le Loroux-Bottereau. Vines planted in 1974. Selection massale. Mother rock of peridotite (from the earth’s mantle) on a serpentinite mound. The magmatic origins of this place bursting with history give vibrant energy to “La Butte de la Roche” where this plot is located. The red ochre earth of “La Butte de la Roche» is legendary in the Pays Nantais. The seigneuries once had their castle here. “A land full of stories into which our vines plunge their roots.”

Also available:

2012 ‘Terre de Pierre’ - tech sheet | find the wine
2008 ‘Terre de Pierre’ - tech sheet | find the wine
2012 ‘Terre de Pierre’ MAGNUM - tech sheet | find the wine
2010 ‘Terre de Pierre’ MAGNUM - tech sheet | find the wine

Alberta CSPC/SKU #865323

2018 ‘EXCELSIOR’

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie AOC Goulaine Cru

Village of La Chapelle-Heulin. Vines planted in 1936. Mass selection (no clones). Mother rock of schist and micaschist in «La Plécisière». Selection Massale.



Goulaine Cru: The communal crus initiative dates back to the late 1990s in the Muscadet area. A handful of estates, including Luneau-Papin, agreed on a definition of the cru’s terroir and its richness and diversity around Nantes. The process of seeking recognition of the cru was launched. Long called Schistes de Goulaine, our cru today goes by the name Goulaine, in reference to the Goulaine river which flows into the Loire and common denominator of an area now officially identified by the national appellations body INAO.

Also available:

2006 ‘Excelsior’ - tech sheet | find the wine
2015 ‘Excelsior’ MAGNUM - tech sheet | find the wine