Quarts de Chaume is a highly respected sweet white wine appellation of the Anjou district in the western Loire Valley of France. Quarts de Chaume wines are made exclusively from Chenin Blanc (known here as Pineau de la Loire).
Created in 1954, the appellation is now one of the Loire's most famous titles, ranking amongst the most sought-after names in France's portfolio of sweet wines. Bonnezeaux (located eight miles/13km to the south-east) ranks alongside it in this regard, although neither has quite attained the fame of the dry, crisp whites of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume.
One of the Loire's most location-specific appellations, the Quarts de Chaume title covers just 100 acres (40ha) of vines at the southern end of Chaume, a hamlet within the parish of Rochefort-sur-Loire. This area corresponds to the lieux-dits of Les Roueres, Le Veau and Les Quarts. The rest of Chaume is otherwise covered by the only slightly less-prestigious (although considerably more controversial) Coteaux du Layon Chaume. To complicate matters further, the entire commune of Rochefort-sur-Loire (Chaume included) is also covered by a third sweet white wine title, which is again a little less prestigious: Coteaux du Layon Rochefort-sur-Loire.
Chaume's high output of high-quality sweet wines, combined with its trio of sweet wine appellations, has led to some controversy over the years. The producers lucky enough to claim the Quarts de Chaume title for their wines have jealously protected its prestige and individuality. When the Coteaux du Layon Chaume name was upgraded to Chaume Premier Cru des Coteaux du Layon in 2003, the committee for the Quarts de Chaume appellation lobbied to have this decision revoked. They claimed that it would cause confusion with their own name and create an unfair advantage, as the new Premier Cru would be the first the Loire had ever seen. The title was suspended for a period, but ultimately reinstated in 2009, when Quarts de Chaume was granted the right to the title 'Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru'.
