“You must pair this wine with oysters,” Carol insists as she hands over an organic Muscadet Sèvre et Maine from the lower Loire Valley of France. OK, I don’t recall whether those were her exact words, but the message was crystal clear.
Carol is the owner of a small local wine shop that specializes in French and other European wines. When I seek Carol’s advice on old-world wine purchases, she either steers me to something appropriate on her shelves or orders a wine to my specifications. This time around, she is uber-helpful, not only with the wine, but also by directing me, a newbie in town, to a nearby wholesaler/retailer who sells fresh oysters.
A couple of days later, the spouse and I are off to Northern Fish Company.
Striding up to the counter, I quickly survey the handsome cod, Coho salmon, and other fresh-looking catches displayed behind the counter.
“A dozen oysters, please,” I announce confidently as if I purchase them regularly. Truth is, I’ve never bought live oysters until now.
If you’re an experienced oyster eater, you know what happens next – scrub them with a stiff brush, then shuck them using a table knife, oyster knife or screwdriver.
Wait, screwdriver?
Yes indeedy, these rocklike critters are tough to pry open. Hence, the screwdriver. I tried but risking certain injury, promptly gave up and delegated this challenging task to the spouse. We developed an assembly-line operation of sorts: I scrubbed and he split the shells in half.
“Don’t worry,” I assured him as he toiled and cursed. “This definitely will be worth it.”
How many times have you uttered these same words to your partner?
Muscadet Sèvre et Maine
Muscadet Sèvre et Maine is named for vineyards along the banks of the Sèvre and Maine rivers in the Pays Nantais district of the Loire. These wines are 100% Melon de Bourgogne. To set the record straight from the beginning, this wine is unrelated to the Muscat family of grapes. I know, that’s confusing. Nor does it have anything to do with melons, and though Burgundy was its home way back when, Melon de Bourgogne is now the signature grape of Pays Nantais.
In this cool, maritime climate near the Atlantic Ocean, cold-resistant Melon de Bourgogne has found a happy home. Early-budding and vigorous, the grape can produce a second budding if spring frosts wipe out the first buds. Melon de Bourgogne is generally high in acidity but can be rather bland. Winemakers adjust for this shortcoming through extended time sur lie (on the spent yeast cells) or even barrel aging. This results in more complex, textured wines.
Now, global warming is threatening vineyards worldwide. As temperatures rise, grapes once naturally high in acid are in danger of losing their trademark acidity while gaining increased alcohol levels.
2019 Jo Landron-Domaine de la Louvetrie Muscadet Sèvre et Maine “La Louvetrie “Sur Lie, Loire Valley. Certified organic.
100% Melon Bourgogne
Jo Landron-Domaine de la Louvetrie consists of almost 120 acres of vineyards on the upper slopes of the Sèvre River near Nantes. Jo Landron worked alongside his father, Pierre, in the family business for a number of years before taking over in the 1990s and expanding their holdings. In 1999, Jo began converting the estate to organic and biodynamic practices, earning certification in both forms of viticulture. While the majority of his land is planted to Melon de Bourgogne (“Melon B”), Jo also plants small quantities of Folle Blanche, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay for his sparkling wine.
His Melon B grows in sandy loam soil on 15 to 30-year-old vines at the highest elevation of his estate. Low yields invigorate the grapevines and encourage them to produce flavorful fruit. Jo harvests by hand and does a “vigorous triage” of the grapes during picking. He presses whole clusters slowly and gently over three hours to obtain the best juice. Fermentation takes place in stainless-steel vats with wild yeasts and lasts from two to three weeks. To best preserve freshness and finesse, he ages the Muscadet on fine lees without any malolactic fermentation for six to 12 months. Wines are bottled by gravity, unfined and unfiltered.
My tasting notes: Straw in color. Delicate, faint aromas of apple and pear. The palate is both light and round with hints of apple and loads of minerality and salinity. Medium+ acidity. Medium+ finish. Alcohol: 13%. Price: $18.
The pairing: First, let me say how much I love Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, though I haven’t opened one in some time. With its delicate aromas and characteristic acidity and minerality, Muscadet is the perfect blank slate for light dishes – especially shellfish.
In the end, I found the effort to pair fresh oysters with Muscadet worth it. Of course, I wasn’t the one struggling with those stubborn little oyster shells! The oysters tasted clean, not fishy, and briny, like the sea. Baked with a buttery, herb topping (recipe from The Spruce Eats), they were an ideal match for the sur lie-aged, minerally Muscadet. The next day, I paired the remaining Muscadet with smoked salmon on pepper crackers, topped by goat cheese and micro-greens, and with a side of potato gnocchi in sage butter. That too was yummy!
P.S. When we related the oyster saga to my daughter, who lives nearby, her reaction was: “You know I have an oyster knife, right?”
We know now!
Please tag along
In celebration of Earth Month in April, the French Winophiles are chatting about organic Loire Valley wines on Twitter Saturday 4/17, beginning at 8 am PT/11 am ET. Simply follow the #Winophiles hashtag. Below is a full rundown of this month’s posts:
- Susannah Gold brings Vouvray – A Wine In Many Styles to Avvinare.
- Nicole Ruiz Hudson does Cooking to the Wine: Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux & Pork Tenderloin with Citrus Gastrique on Somm’s Table.
- Jane Niemeyer suggests Tasting and Pairing LoireValley Wines on Always Ravenous
- Linda Whipple shares Organic Muscadet and Must-Have Oysters at My Full Wine Glass
- Terri Steffes invites you to A Tasty Dance: Red Beans and Rice with Les Parcelles Mark Dupas Sauvignon Blanc on Our Good Life
- Andrea Lemieux offers Pascal Jolivet & Sancerre the Way Nature Intended on The Quirky Cork
- Camilla Mann has Porc aux Pruneaux (Pork with Prunes) + Chateau de Parnay Le Blason de Parnay 2018 on Culinary Adventures with Camilla
- Host Gwendolyn Alley on Wine Predator shares Unusual Reds at Loire’s Biodynamic Manoir de la Tête Rouge.
Hahaha! I love your story about the oysters! I would never dare. Sounds like it was worth it in the end and the wine sounds gorgeous.
Now that we’ve shucked oysters, we’ll definitely leave it to others in the future!
LOL! Your daughter having an oyster knife is the perfect punchline here! I can totally relate to this post. I LOOOOOOOVVVVEEEE oysters, and I HAAAAAAAATE shucking them. It’s a task I’m very happy to delegate or pay someone else to do at a restaurant. You’re right as well in that they’re so perfect with Muscadet.
Had no idea shucking would be so difficult! I’m lucky the spouse is a good sport – and able helper.
Muscadet and oysters are a heavenly pairing, but I am also in the camp of have someone else do the shucking. (I bought mine from a favorite restaurant!) Actually, it is a go to appetizer when I go out to eat.
Shucking was definitely once and done in our household! Next time, we get someone else to do it. LOL!
Without a shucker it is SO HARD to open oysters. But so good! We eat them raw all the time — too lazy to do anything else except maybe put some uni on them! And yum with an organic Muscadet! Now there’s a find — and a great story!