Originating from Southwestern France, Folle Blanche found an ideal adoptive home in the Pays Nantais as early as the Middle Ages. Its spread was greatly accelerated by maritime trade with Dutch merchants, who valued its high natural acidity for distillation into brandy and spirits.
Planted across the schist, gneiss, and granite soils of the Atlantic Loire, Folle Blanche became locally known as “Gros Plant”, named after the vigorous stock and plump clusters of the vine. It is the exclusive grape variety behind the historic Gros Plant du Pays Nantais AOC, sharing coastal vineyards alongside Melon de Bourgogne.
Often aged sur lie (on its fine lees) to develop subtle texture and creamy mid-palate balance, Folle Blanche expresses an uncompromisingly fresh aromatic profile filled with tart citrus, green apples, wild white blossom, and a distinct sea-spray minerality. Its vibrant, laser-like tension makes it one of the most invigorating and palate-cleansing white wines in the entire Loire Valley.
