Mary Taylor / Pascal Biotteau
If no wine region on earth can rival the stylistic diversity on display in France’s Loire Valley, the appellation of Anjou offers the perfect microcosm of the region as a whole. Long a staple of the bistros of Paris, the area is home a to a mind-bogglingly vast array of expressions— from white to red, bone-dry lusciously sweet, still to sparkling— derived from a handful of different grapes, from Cabernet Franc and Gamay to Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. But one grape variety could be called the most distinctive of all: Chenin Blanc.