Grape growing and winemaking is often a family business. When the leading member of a family retires or dies, one of the next generation will frequently take over. This is when it’s worth looking out for any changes of style as the new person in control introduces their own ideas. Of course, transition isn’t always so smooth; under inheritance laws that apply in many parts of Europe, the estate may have to be split between siblings. Or a son or daughter may be impatient to produce their own wine in their own way and decide to branch out before their parents want to hand over. As a result, it’s not unusual to find the same family names on wines that are actually from different properties – an easy source of a mistake for those, like me, without a perfect mind for detail.
But sometimes these lapses of memory work out well. I saw a bottle of the Loire red St Nicolas de Bourgueil on the shelves at Majestic (£13.99 as part of their ‘mix 6’ deal) and noticed a familiar name, ‘Mabileau’, on the label. It was only when I got home that I realised that the wine was from Laurent Mabileau and not Frédéric as I had expected. A little research suggested that there was no obvious family relationship between the pair, despite them working in the same village (although several generations back, who knows?)
Despite my confusion, I wasn’t going to take it back – my wife and I both like Loire reds, many of which are 100% Cabernet Franc, and it was an opportunity to explore a new producer. I’m pleased we kept it; we found a lovely, soft and rounded wine with attractive red fruits, a hint of tannin (decanting a hour or so in advance is a good idea) and excellent length. A bargain at the price (Frédéric’s wines are rather more expensive!) and a perfect match with some pan-fried duck breasts – the acidity in the wine cutting through the fattiness of the meat.
I might have bought this thinking I was buying something else but, in the end, my mistake worked out well and we drank a most enjoyable wine.