Biodynamic. This tiny vineyard also deserves status as one of Saumur’s Grand Crus, and it’s certainly the most enchanting of Germain’s sites to visit. The Chenin vines are rooted in the walled enclave of a priory dating back to the 11th century. Planted on the limestone ridge above Parnay just outside Saumur, the roots burrow down through the white rock (Senonian-era bedrock called Pierres de Champigny) towards the famous Maisons Troglodytes below. Germain acquired this historic site in 2007 and has steadily replanted at a density of 12,000 vines per hectare. It’s one of the many Germain vineyards ploughed under the direction of Thierry’s daughter, Jeanne.

Raised in large-format neutral oak and bottled without filtration after nine months on lees, this is a wine of outstanding purity that seamlessly balances the chiselled depth of Germain’s densely planted, low-yielding fruit with the uplifting lightness of France’s greatest whites (aérien, as the French might say). This is one of the great white wines of the Loire. To give you an idea of just how good this wine is, Germain does a bottle-for-bottle contra deal with the Puligny Grand Cru of a highly respected Côte de Beaune domaine (no names!). It’s enough to say we’re not sure who gets the better deal!