Bianc'O, 2024

Light, bright Loire white at 11%, nothing added. Golden apple and citrus with a chalky edge — the bottle that disappears first.

Sylvain Martinez spent years alongside Anjou natural-wine figures Olivier Cousin and Mark Angeli before settling at Le Thoureil, where he makes wine in the old cellars of the Abbey of Saint-Maur. Bianc'O is Chenin Blanc with Grolleau Gris from a limestone parcel right beside the winery, pressed straight off the skins and bottled without fining, filtering or added sulphur. Bright golden apple and citrus, a faint chalky earthiness, and a round feel for something so light.