Patrick Baudouin

Loire Valley, France

Patrick Baudouin at his vineyard in Chaudefonds-sur-Layon, Anjou, Loire Valley

Patrick Baudouin's Côteaux du Layon vineyard.

Chenin blanc vines organically grown by Patrick Baudouin

Organic Chenin blanc vines in Côteaux du Layon

Rocks from Patrick Baudouin's vineyard in Anjou

Patrick Baudouin's vineyard in Côteaux du Layon, Anjou, Loire Valley

Vineyard rock from winemaker Patrick Baudouin in Anjou, Loire Valley, France

Patrick Baudouin winemaker captured in his vineyards in Anjou

Patrick Baudouin sampling his Chenin blanc

Patrick Baudouin winemaker in Chaudefonds-sur-Layon, Anjou, Loire Valley

Patrick Baudouin’s vineyards are located in Anjou and the Coteaux du Layon

Photography and writing by Ted Vance.

Short Summary

Patrick Baudouin's views on wine are as unfiltered as his methods, shaped by decades of organic viticulture and natural winemaking; though he adds sulfites to his wines at bottling. Patrick’s vineyards, certified organic but exceeding the certification’s expectations, are a reflection of his precise, forceful nature. And while many modern dry Chenin Blancs hum with electricity and tension, Baudouin’s wines purr with silky acidity, reminding us that beauty can still speak in whispers. He has 13.5 hectares in Anjou, Coteaux du Layon and Savennières that rest on ancient volcanic and metamorphic soils, where the conditions are ideal for producing both dry Chenin Blanc the region’s historic botrytised sweet wines.

Full Length Story

One of our favorite stops in the Loire Valley is to the domaine of Patrick Baudouin, a man who seems conjured from the pages of J.R.R. Tolkien—an aspiring wizard, perhaps, or a sage of the vine. His opinions on the wine world are as unfiltered as his wines, shaped by decades of unwavering commitment to organic viticulture, natural winemaking, and unchaptalized sweet wines, though he concedes to the use of sulfites.

Though certified organic, Patrick’s vineyards transcend the limitations of certification itself. As quick and purposeful as his driving, in his vineyards he’s a force of nature, sweeping through the rows, attuned to their rhythm, looking to the sky for the answers, tasting grapes with the precision of someone searching not just for ripeness but for a perfect harmony.

His Chenin Blancs, in their myriad forms, can be revelatory. Layer upon layer unfolds: aromas of dried herbs and wild grasses, a faint buzz of acacia honey. Subtle Middle Eastern spices and stone fruits, in hues of gold and orange, weave to form ethereal melodies, light and lifting. In an age where dry Chenin Blanc can often be tense and wiry, a show of force humming with electrical currents, Baudouin’s have silky acidity that purr while you drink them, reminding us that beauty still speaks in whispers.

Patrick Baudouin’s 13.5 hectares are northwestern France’s Anjou, Coteaux du Layon and Savennières appellations, rooted in the terroirs of the Anjou Noir. Here, the dark, ancient Pangea-age rocks of the Massif Armoricain tell a tall tale: once towering as high as the Alps, the Variscan (Hercynian) mountain range has, over 400 million years, been worn down to rolling hills of ancient volcanic and metamorphic rock once deep under the earth, now with Avaloirs in Mayenne, it’s highest peak rising to a mere 417 meters. A ridge to the southwest offers Anjou and the neighboring Anjou Blanc, Saumur, shelters from the region’s persistent rains, leaving them among the driest in the Loire River Valley. Yet between the Layon and Loire rivers, humidity endures, inviting the noble rot that defines this region’s most historic wines, the sweet, botrytised Loire Valley Chenin Blancs which find their fullest expression here.