From the atlas
Fournier Père & Fils
Fournier Père & Fils is a Loire domaine based in Chaudoux, Verdigny, with wines from Sancerre, Menetou-Salon and Pouilly-Fumé.
At A Glance
| Field | Detail |
| Region | Loire |
| Home village | Chaudoux, Verdigny |
| Appellations | Sancerre, Menetou-Salon and Pouilly-Fumé |
| Main grapes | Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir |
| White wine | Pouilly-Fumé Les Deux Cailloux |
| Range | White, rosé and red wines |
The Producer
Fournier Père & Fils began in 1926 when Hélène and Léon Fournier established the estate in Chaudoux, Verdigny, at the heart of the Sancerre appellation. Today, the domaine cultivates 39 hectares across 165 individual plots. Its wines cover Sancerre, Menetou-Salon and Pouilly-Fumé, bringing white, rosé and red bottles into one Loire range.
The estate's white wines include Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, while Menetou-Salon contributes Pinot Noir. Sauvignon Blanc is the sole grape variety described for the Pouilly-Fumé vineyards. The range covers Sancerre, Menetou-Salon and Pouilly-Fumé, with white, rosé and red wines.
Place
Chaudoux is a wine-growing hamlet of Verdigny, positioned in the heart of the Sancerre appellation. The Sancerre vineyard extends over hills and slopes, with plots scattered across the appellation rather than gathered in one continuous block.
Menetou-Salon and Pouilly-Fumé extend the domaine beyond its home appellation. The first brings wines from Terres Blanches soils, while the second is described through a mosaic of closely intertwined soil types. Each appellation carries its own grape and ground into the bottle.
Soil And Site
Menetou-Salon's Terres Blanches soils are made of marls and clays. These soils give the wines silky, intense notes, with the fine texture of the white wines tied directly to the ground beneath the vines.
Pouilly-Fumé has a mosaic of densely intertwined terroirs and uses Sauvignon Blanc as its sole grape variety. The combination produces wines with concentration, complexity and mineral character, while the different soil types keep the appellation's bottles varied.
Story
Hélène and Léon Fournier founded the family estate in Chaudoux in 1926. The domaine's present range reaches across Sancerre, Menetou-Salon and Pouilly-Fumé, with Sancerre white and rosé wines, Pouilly-Fumé Sauvignon Blanc and Menetou-Salon Pinot Noir.
The family name remains attached to a working vineyard estate rather than a single bottle. Its current holdings cover many individual plots, and its range follows three Loire appellations with different grapes, soils and wine colours.
Vineyards And Cellar
The Menetou-Salon Pinot Noir begins with cold maceration for one week, allowing gentle extraction of its fine aromas before temperature controlled fermentation. The wine then spends 3 to 4 months in wood. Cold maceration draws colour and perfume gradually, while time in wood gives the young red further contact with oxygen and oak.
Pouilly-Fumé Les Deux Cailloux follows a separate white wine method. Temperature controlled fermentation is followed by fine lees ageing and weekly batonnage. Fine lees are the yeast solids left after fermentation. Keeping the wine with them can add texture, while stirring returns those solids to contact with the wine.
Wines
The Sancerre range includes Les Belles Vignes Blanc and Les Belles Vignes Rosé. Les Deux Cailloux is the Pouilly-Fumé white, while Côtes de Morogues 2022 is the Menetou-Salon Pinot Noir. The bottles move across white, rosé and red styles without leaving the Loire appellations that define the domaine.
The white wines place Sauvignon Blanc at the centre of Pouilly-Fumé, while the Menetou-Salon bottle changes both grape and colour through Pinot Noir. The range therefore offers separate expressions of white Loire wine and a red made from a different variety.
In The Glass
Sancerre Les Belles Vignes Blanc opens with lemony aromas and blackcurrant bud. The palate has a refined, silky lemon sorbet texture, sharp citrus and bright acidity, with lemon lime fruit carrying the wine forward.
Pouilly-Fumé Les Deux Cailloux shows concentrated citrus with chopped apples, lemons, flint, honey and smoky hints. It is medium bodied, with mineral complexity, finishing on a smoky note.
Menetou-Salon Pinot Noir brings fresh cherry and raspberry, followed by black fruit and a subtle mentholated note. Silky tannins keep the palate smooth, while fresh, crisp fruit leads into a soft, fruity finish without heaviness.
A Bottle To Understand It
Choose Pouilly-Fumé Les Deux Cailloux. It is the range's Pouilly-Fumé white, made from Sauvignon Blanc and shaped by temperature controlled fermentation followed by fine lees ageing with weekly batonnage.
The bottle places one appellation, one grape variety and a defined cellar method together. Fine lees ageing can add texture to a white wine, while batonnage keeps the yeast solids in contact with the wine during élevage.
Anecdote
In 1936, Léon Fournier was a member of the founding committee of the Verdigny village syndicate during the creation of the Sancerre AOC. The committee role placed the family estate in the appellation's inaugural moments, while keeping the episode local to Verdigny, the village where the wine-growing hamlet of Chaudoux is located. Léon’s role was tied to the village syndicate and to the committee work surrounding the creation of the appellation. The Fournier name was present as Sancerre took its formal shape.
Final Word
Fournier Père & Fils is rooted in Chaudoux, Verdigny, and works across Sancerre, Menetou-Salon and Pouilly-Fumé through Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir, with white, rosé and red wines shaped by distinct Loire soils and cellar methods.
Sources
- https://www.fournier-pere-fils.com/en/
- https://www.fournier-pere-fils.com/en/the-domain/
- https://www.lesvignoblesvillebois.com/domain/fournier-pere-fils/
- https://www.fournier-pere-fils.com/en/wine/les-belles-vignes-blanc/
- https://www.fournier-pere-fils.com/en/wine/les-deux-cailloux/
- https://www.lesvinsdecarole.com/en/products/menetou-salon-cotes-de-morogues-rouge-2022-domaine-fournier-pere-et-fils