The Dhommé family started growing vines in the 1950s when Marie-Louise Dhommé began making wine in Chalonnes-sur-Loire, right where the Loire and Layon rivers meet. Today her great-grandchildren Clarisse, her brother Xavier, and husband Quentin run 25 certified-organic hectares, with another 10 in conversion.

Les Fougerais sits on the right bank of the Loire—classic Savennières territory. The vines grow on windblown silty sands over green schist and quartz bedrock. This is the geological cocktail that makes Savennières special: the sands give finesse, the schist brings a smoky breed, and the quartz adds electric minerality.

Everything's done by hand. Pruning, disbudding, leaf removal, harvest. They even bring sheep through the vineyards in winter to graze between the rows. The Chenin gets picked golden-ripe, fermented slow in oak barrels through winter, stirred on the lees, and bottled when it's ready, all on a tiny scale.

The French wine trade knows about Dhommé. Hotels and restaurants across France buy nearly three-quarters of production. Another fifth ships to Europeans from the cellar door. We're among the first to bring this producer to America.

WHY YOU'LL LOVE IT

Terroir Transparency: Savennières doesn't hide its origins. The schist comes through as smoke, the quartz as electric minerality, all overlaying succulent pear, sliced lemon, and floral flavors. 

A Secret The French Hoard: 92% of production stays in France, which speaks volumes. Clarisse and Quentin Dhommé’s wine is so pure, so high in quality, and so well-priced, why export? 

Organic Since 2011: Certified organic, hand-harvested, native yeasts. This is natural winemaking without the funk—just pure, clean Chenin that tastes like liquid minerals and juicy pears and peaches.

HOW TO SERVE IT

• Serve at 48-52°F in white Burgundy stems.
  

• Serve with paillards of chicken with morels and cream, sole meunière, or even as an aperitif with a Reblochon or Camembert.
  

• Drink now through 2033. Savennières ages like white Burgundy—give it time and watch the smoke and minerals integrate into something profound.