Noëlla Morantin has a resumé that many natural winemakers in the Loire and across the globe would and should envy. After being bitten by the winemaking bug (a professor of viticulture inspired her) she landed an internship with Rene and Agnes Mosse in Anjou. Shortly thereafter she was hired to run the now defunct Touraine estate Les Bois Lucas.

It was at this estate that she became friends and collaborators with her neighbor Didier Barrouillett of the famous Clos Roche Blanche. This was around the time when Didier was beginning to wind down his legendary winery. That friendship had great influence over Noëlla. It's perhaps why her wines, along with being fresh and alive, are so poised and elegant.

In 2008 Noëlla was able to start leasing some vines from her good friend and began making her own wines. A couple of years after she ended buying a property from him and his wife that had a few scattered farm buildings but no vines. She planted a vineyard and these vines along with those she rents from like minded neighbors are the raw materials she crafts into her lovely wines. From there it was a pretty fast rocket ship to natural wine stardom.

Noëlla chooses to work under the more general VDF denomination rather than AOC and her wines stand apart from the perceived notion of Touraine. She refers to the prevalence of industrial yeasts used in the area to enhance supposedly typical flavours in the wine. Noella ferments with native yeasts and seeks a longer maturation period in old barrels than is usual, meaning her wines are released much later than many other producers nearby. This patience is rewarded with sublime depth and texture.

Noëlla’s wines have always been about freshness and exuberance. They mirror her own sunny personality, full of life and vivacity. A decade after she began her own label the world of natural wine has expanded exponentially, hitting shelves and lists all over the U.S., and even getting full write ups in glossy food and wine magazines. But the Morantin wines remind us why we fell in love with the category to begin with.

Noëlla Morantin, VDF Blanc “Stella Marie’, 2018

Noella’s Sauvignon is unique in that the grapes are allowed to fully mature before harvest. None of that cat pee thing that is typical of Touraine. This is both rich and vibrant with aromas of fresh pears, honey and fresh flowers. Lovely and lifted with texture through to the snappy finish. The type of Sauvignon Blanc for long lazy dinners in a garden.

Noëlla Morantin, VDF Rouge Gamay “La Boudiniere”, 2019 

A clean, pure expression of the Central Loire Valley. Whole cluster fermented for ten days, this gamay leaps out of the glass and demands you drink more! Lots of dark fruit with aromas of morello cherry, black raspberry and violet, all perfectly ripe and pretty. The palate is textured with lively lush fruit. There is nice density and length showing ripe sappy red fruits, earth, and mineral flavors that continue that continue through the rather refreshing finish.

Noella Morantin, VDF Rouge Gamay “Mon Cher”, 2019

Fully destemmed and macerated for ten to fifteen days, this is a bit more structured than the “La Boudiniere”. Brighter than the 2018, this is quite lovely and pretty. A little time in the glass and this opens up with aromas of raspberry, balsamic, cranberry, cherry, autumn leaves and bramble. Like all of her wine, this is elegant and textured with lots of ripe yet snappy fruit through the long mouthwatering finish. This is a wine that can be laid down and will only increase in complexity and elegance with time.