The Clos Thierrière Vouvray Petrichor 2022 is a dry Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley, built on tension and texture rather than richness. Fermented with wild yeasts in fibreglass tank and bottled bone dry, it is a precise, savoury style of Vouvray.

Dried lemon and yellow pear lead the aromatics, with quince, chamomile and a struck-flint smokiness that lifts as the wine sits in the glass. Air brings out orchard fruit and a faint waxy note that is pure Chenin.

The red clay of the Les Perruches parcel shows in the palate, which has real substance and a subtly oily feel across the middle before firm acidity draws everything tight. Seven months on fine lees in tank has given breadth without softening the line, and the finish is long, dry and faintly chalky.

Pair it with roast chicken and tarragon, pork rillettes, a goat's cheese salad, or grilled flathead with lemon. It also handles milder curries and salt-and-pepper squid better than most dry whites.

Drinking well from 2025 through to about 2032. Younger bottles benefit from decanting or a large glass, as the reductive edge takes a little coaxing; with time it will trade flint for honey and dried apple.